The ACT government spent half a million dollars on graffiti removal last financial year and another $200,000 on repairing public property destroyed by vandals.
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At a recent community council meeting, Minister for Territory and Municipal Services Shane Rattenbury said it had been an "enlightening" experience to see what could actually be vandalised in the capital.
Responding to concerns from residents about why there were no garbage bins in their area the minister said unfortunately there was a limit to how many times an item would be replaced. He said a decision had to be made about whether it was worth continuing to spend the money on replacing some items when there were other priorities.
A Territory and Municipal Services spokeswoman said the decision to replace, repair or remove an asset was made on a case by case basis.
"In some circumstances the decision is made to relocate bins that are frequently vandalised rather than continually repair them," she said. "There are also instances where the same street sign is continually stolen, whereby the street name is stencilled on to the concrete kerb rather than replacing the sign."
One vandalism hotspot has been Fadden Pines. In 2012 play equipment was burnt costing the government about $18,000 to replace. More unusual incidents have included copper piping getting ripped out of public toilets and the theft of temporary barriers used for road safety.
"Wherever possible, care is taken to ensure assets in the public domain are of a standard to withstand some forms of vandalism," the TAMS spokeswoman said. "This adds to the cost of the asset."
Bus shelters are made out of concrete instead of timber these days and public phone booths are metal rather than glass.
"It's disappointing that despite the time and money put into providing quality facilities, the community can't make use of them in full because of vandalism," the spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, ACT policing have estimated more than $10,000 in damage was caused in a graffiti spree in downtown Belconnen last week.
Numerous businesses and public buildings along 10 different streets were targeted. CCTV footage taken from several businesses shows four males involved in spraying the walls and windows.
People who witnessed or are aware of vandalism should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report it to act.gov.au/fixmystreet.
