All graffiti removal now free in City of Brussels

The City of Brussels will from now on remove graffiti from façades for free, the alderwoman in charge of public cleanliness Karine Lalieux said in a statement yesterday. In 2012 , nearly 4,000 pieces of graffiti were removed by the City. The new regulation on graffiti removal came into force on September 2. Until now, the first removal was free but subsequent interventions were invoiced to homeowners unless they could prove that an anti-graffiti product had been applied. A specialist ‘anti-graffiti’ cell was created in 2007 and employs four people; it intervenes at the request of homeowners whose façades have been defaced. Making all graffiti removals free addresses the “sense of injustice” felt by homeowners who, until now, were made to pay for something they had been the victim of, says Lalieux.