San Francisco has chosen nine walls in two city neighborhoods to receive a coat of hydrophobic paint that will repel urine back onto perpetrators. The pilot project will cost several hundred dollars per wall, according to reports.
The nine walls are located mostly in the Mission and SoMA districts, where the city has received numerous requests to remove urine from walls.
The city's Department of Public Works has responded to 375 requests to remove urine since January, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, accouting for five percent of public requests made to the department.
The Ultra-Ever Dry paint is a "coating that will repel most water-based and some oil-based liquids," according to manufacturer Ultratech International, Inc. The paint modifies the surface texture of the wall, shooting liquid back toward its source.
“The team that did the testing [were] excited because the liquid bounces back more than we thought it would,” Public Works head Mohammed Nuru told the Chronicle. “We will send people to see, visually, if there are any wet signs to indicate urination has happened.”