(intense upbeat music) - I'm Starla Sampaco in the Crosscut KCTS 9 newsroom.

In October, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell announced his one Seattle Graffiti Plan, part of his larger goal to clean up the city.

His plan will include increased graffiti removal and prosecution.

Harrell says, graffiti costs small business owners and residents money to remove and obscures street signage, but he adds that opportunities for graffiti artists to create sanctioned art are central to his plan.

His approach has reopened a decades old can of worms.

Where's the line between artistic expression and vandalism?

Street art and graffiti?

And what role, if any, should the government play in drawing that line?

In several interviews, people who create graffiti challenge the effectiveness of Harrell's plan.

They say chasing after graffiti is a distraction from the real issues of Seattle's housing crisis and wealth inequality.

I'm Starla Sampaco.

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