The streets of Pompano Beach are looking markedly less colorful after a recent decision by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to enforce a state law banning street art on public roadways. Murals and painted crosswalks around the Pompano Beach City Hall that once burst with bright geometric patterns and musical motifs were obscured with black paint. As reported by CBS News Miami, the FDOT's move also included the overpainting of artwork on storm drains, though a few pieces on sidewalks remain. This has been a common sight across South Florida, as Key West and Delray Beach have experienced similar losses.
Local artists have not taken well to the state's move. Bill Savarese, a longtime muralist whose work was among the painted over, expressed his dismay, saying, "My free expression has vanished into the night," in a statement obtained by CBS News Miami. The state has stood by its actions, citing prevention of driver distraction and avoidance of political messaging as its rationale. Despite these claims, Gov. Ron DeSantis's administration and the FDOT's decision has generated considerable controversy, coming across to some like a systematic effacement of community-funded public art.
Miami Beach has intentions to soon lay out their case before the FDOT, while Fort Lauderdale has taken the matter to court. As the battle over aesthetic and expression continues, Pompano Beach seems to stand a little faded, spared only a few child-created sidewalk paintings. Savarese believes compensation is due, pointing out that the state had once sanctioned the artwork and the city had invested substantially in it. "It's a microcosm of what's happening without getting into politics of how government is not functioning," he told CBS News Miami.
Meanwhile, a closer look at the FDOT's overnight actions yesterday reveals that a single piece of art - a storm drain between the city library and city hall - was left untouched, adorned in students' work from Moreland Academy. In an interview obtained by TapInto, Savarese called "This is emblematic of the decay of our constitution, of our constitutional rights," pointing out the political undercurrent of the FDOT's decision. Mayor Rex Hardin previously echoed this sentiment, asserting during a September 9th meeting that Pompano's street art is "just freedom of expression."
