January 29, 2025
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Geneva pride-painted hydrant defaced again over holiday weekend

Police: ‘We are looking into it’

By Brenda Schory
A pride-painted hydrant at State Street and Kirk Road in Geneva was found defaced again with blue paint on Labor Day Monday. Police said they are looking into it. The hydrant was repainted in its original pride and transgender colors.

A pride-painted hydrant at State Street and Kirk Road in Geneva was found defaced again with blue paint on Labor Day Monday. Police said they are looking into it. The hydrant was repainted in its original pride and transgender colors. (Photo provided by Chrissy Swanson)

GENEVA – After nearly a month without incident, the pride-painted fire hydrant at State Street at Kirk Road in Geneva was defaced again during the Labor Day Weekend, artist Chrissy Swanson reported.

The hydrant, which also featured transgender colors across its valves, was found to be covered in blue paint on Monday, Labor Day, according to a text from Swanson.

Geneva Deputy Chief Brian Maduzia said an officer made a proactive report about it when he saw that it was defaced, but when he drove past again, it had been repainted with pride and transgender colors.

Chrissy Swanson’s pride and transgender-painted fire hydrant at State Street at Kirk Road in Geneva has been vandalized four times. Swanson repainted it after it was spray painted red on July 23, then it had paint scraped off by July 24. Swanson vowed to continue to repaint it.

Chrissy Swanson’s pride and transgender-painted fire hydrant at State Street at Kirk Road in Geneva has been vandalized four times. Swanson repainted it after it was spray painted red on July 23, then it had paint scraped off by July 24. Swanson vowed to continue to repaint it. The hydrant was found defaced on Labor Day Monday with blue paint, but police reported that it has been repainted in pride colors. (Photo provided by Chrissy Swanson)

“We are looking into it,” Maduzia said.

Police themselves made a report about the hydrant, but Maduzia said so far, no one reported it as defacement to police.

The hydrant, painted as part of the Art on Fire program in the city, has been defaced multiple times. A Plainfield man was arrested July 29 and charged with two counts of criminal defacement. He has a court date pending on Sept. 20 for plea setting, court records show.

Swanson and others hosted a rally Aug. 9 at the corner where the hydrant is located to show support for the LGBTQ community.

Swanson was unavailable for comment Tuesday.

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