INUVIK - Help is just a phone call away for town residents wishing to rid their properties of unsightly graffiti.

"Regardless of where graffiti is, it reflects on our community," said Sarah Brown, Inuvik senior administration officer. "I don't think we're a lot worse than most Northern communities. People are empowered when they continue to see their artwork up. You disempower them when you remove it quickly."

The Corner Store on Kingmingya Road is just one of the locations the town plans to tackle as it attempts to rid Inuvik properties of graffiti. - Andrew Rankin/NNSL photo

Brown said residents can call the graffiti hotline, sign a consent form and within a couple of days, a crew of town employees will show up to get rid of the mess.

Residents can call the hotline to report graffiti anywhere in town but the owner of the affected property has to sign a consent sheet in order for work to be done.

She got the idea recently from the City of Whitehorse, which runs a similar program, and then got approval from council to go ahead with the program as part of the spring clean-up program.

She said the push for it also came from residents complaining about the graffiti problem in town. She added it's also something the town has been trying to tackle.

So far the town has already rid its garbage bins of graffiti.

Depending on what type of surface is defaced and the substance on it, a high pressure hose or steamer will be used. She said paint will be applied over the graffiti if it can't be removed any other way.

A total of $2,000 will be budgeted for the program per year.

Danny Johnson, the town's public services assistant and development officer, is in charge of the graffiti-busting initiative. He said he already has a few target areas on his list, including the Corner Store on Kingmingya Road, the Community Greenhouse on Gwich'in Road, and the Inuvik Native Band office on Veterans Way.

He said he's hoping people will take advantage of the program.

"It looks like we'll get enough calls to keep us going, but it will be interesting to see how many people take advantage of the service."