Knowing the City Council is addressing the graffiti problem in Washington is reassuring, to some degree.

A graffiti problem in Washington? Yes, and enough so that at least one downtown merchant complained about graffiti to the council. Several weeks ago, Gary Ceres, co-owner of I Can’t Believe It’s a Book Store, voiced his concerns about graffiti at a council meeting.

Last week, the council tabled action on a proposal that would have imposed punishment on those who placed graffiti on structures in the city. The matter was tabled not because the council doesn’t care about punishing those responsible for graffiti. The council has no problem with that. It did express concern over the proposal making property owners responsible for cleaning up the graffiti (if those responsible for it cannot be identified) to the point of possibly being fined if the graffiti is not removed within a specified number of days.

The guilty should be punished, and graffiti should be removed from defaced properties. Should property owners face fines if they cannot remove graffiti in a timely manner?

The council and city staff should be able to find a workable solution. The community expects nothing less.