Graffiti Removed, For Now, as Sutrito Tower Facility Gets a Coat of Paint

/ Jobius (Joe Thomas)

Sutrito Tower post-graffiti removal

Sutrito Tower has long been plagued by graffiti — not street art, not murals, just ugly, boring tags.

American Tower, which owns the facility, occasionally paints over it, but the company recently allowed some of the tags to linger for a long time. There’s one that says “TRUST NO HOE!” (charming) in this picture from January 2014 that was still there until very recently: IMG_0806

Now, it’s all gone. There’s new fencing, upgraded security lighting, and even barbed wire around most of the perimeter, which isn’t very attractive. Yet it might be worth it, if it actually keeps the taggers out.

If it doesn’t (which seems likely, given this site’s history), why not get rid of the fencing entirely? Like it was when Sutrito Tower was first built, in 1963.

Removing the fence would take the “adventure” out of tagging this building, and make it convenient for neighbors to paint over it without waiting years for American Tower to get around to cleaning up the mess.

Sutrito Tower post-graffiti removal

PHOTOS: Joe Thomas

16 thoughts on “Graffiti Removed, For Now, as Sutrito Tower Facility Gets a Coat of Paint”

    • As a frequent night dog walker on the hill, I really, really really HATE the new lights. Obnoxious light pollution that serves no purpose. They have tried on other occasions to light up the hilltop and saner heads have prevailed to remove the lights. I really hope these new ones are removed soon. Or else I hope the youth of Bernal take them out by any means necessary.

      I also hate the solar light at the parking lot at the top of Folsom. But at least it only pollutes a small portion of the hill. The new light pollution is much, much worse.

      • Holy carp! Is that permanent? I saw it the other night and assumed that it was a temporary nighttime maintenance crew doing work up there. I was walking near Cesar Chavez and it was nearly gliding all the way down there. As much as I would like to stop the routine acts of vandalism—not just the tagging, but the hateful messages that keep ending up all over—that light is way over the top.

      • agree, new lighting is too much. One of the best things about the Hill was the lack of lighting. The sensor triggered lights are too sensitive, bright and unnecessary. We need to let American Tower know.

    • The lights are crazy+ugly bright. Does make it easy to point out Sutrito late at night from way across town though.

  4. I would love it if the hilltop fencing were removed entirely and the hilltop returned to the park for the public to enjoy. Some small enclosure around the antenna tower could replace the existing fencing. Modern radio equipment does not need a facility like the one there now.

    Even if they did not remove the existing structure, just removing the fencing, or replacing it with minimal protection for the tower, would be a huge win for Bernal.

  5. Seriously, what the hell is going on in that compound that is worth more than what would be an amazing hilltop park in SF? Covered in graffiti or drab green, the awful menacing compound really puts a damper on the whole hill.

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