Graffiti on the public works building and other structures in National City isn't just an eyesore. It's a problem that costs the city tens of thousands of dollars a year and compounds other issues.

“It’s a broken windows theory,” explained Vice Mayor Marcus Bush. “When there is trash or junk that you don’t take care of in your neighborhood, it grows."

That's part of the reason why National City councilmembers are rethinking how they clean up graffiti. Instead of just painting over it, giving taggers a blank canvas to vandalize again, they're planning to use murals to reduce the problem.

On Tuesday night, councilmembers voted in favor of paying artists from Vision Culture Foundation to create two murals that would adorn the south and west walls of the public works building. The art would

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