A postal workers repainting a mailbox in Brooklyn Heights after our hero repainted over graffiti. (
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The US Postal Service pays no attention when graffiti vandals deface its mailboxes — but when someone goes to tidy them up, they suddenly swoop in and take action, some Brooklyn residents are complaining.
Residents of Brooklyn Heights were thrilled that an anonymous neighbor took it upon himself to re-paint long-vandalized mailboxes.
They dubbed him “Captain Cleanup,” and he has spent the past month or so repainting Heights mailboxes, fire alarms and other street items plastered with graffiti.
“These objects are a blight to the area, and everyone has gotten so used to them that they don’t even seem to notice the blight,” the uncaped and anonymous crusader told the Brooklyn Heights Blog. “This is unacceptable … I refuse to live this way.”
But our hero isn’t perfect – some have accused him of being “color blind” because the shades of green and blue he uses are slightly different than the Postal Service’s official mailbox colors. He says he’s experimented with color combinations but can’t find the perfect blend just yet– although residents don’t mind because they prefer his shinier paint to the feds’.
Postal workers were spotted yesterday repainting mail dropoff boxes on Hicks and Remsen streets in government-issued dull green — covering “Captain Cleanup’s” more glossy shade of emerald green. His work also included painting the words “Relay Mail” in white stenciled lettering.
“It’s a shame his hard work is lost and the aesthetic has been downgraded,” wrote one resident on the blog. “On the other hand, if this is what it takes to get the post office to get rid of the graffiti so be it.”
“I don’t get it,” chirped another resident to the Post. “He’s paying for the paint with his own cash, and the mailboxes have not looked better. I guess the Post Office was embarrassed into finally responding.”
A Postal Service spokesperson said the agency “appreciates Captain Cleanup’s diligence in beautifying his neighborhood; however, these mailboxes are icons, and we take repainting and refurbishing them seriously.”
Vandalizing mailboxes is a federal offense carrying fines of up to $250,000 per offense and three years behind bars.
“I wonder if he will be able to find the right shade of jailhouse gray?,” sniped another resident, alleging that Captain Cleanup is skirting the law.