While traditional spray paint graffiti can be painted over, acid etching permanently scars storefront windows. Gordon Castro, a senior maintenance worker for San Jose's Anti-Graffiti Program, said acid etching has been on the rise during the past few years.

"Because the anti-graffiti program was so successful, kids started to do etching because it was harder to remove," Castro said.

To do the etching, taggers use a bottle of white shoe polish with an applicator on the top. They empty most of the polish out, replacing it with acid etching cream and then use the bottles to write on windows.

"It looks like someone has used shoe polish, but when you wash it off the window is etched," Castro said.

In order to combat the problem before it begins, the city's anti-graffiti program has been talking to neighborhood organizations over the past months about possible solutions.

Castro and the program's community involvement team have told approximately 10 neighborhood and business associations that they no longer have to pay more than $1,000 to replace an etched window. There is a better, less costly solution to solve the problem.

"There are companies who come out and polish the windows to get the scratches off, then put a vandal shield up. You don't see the shield, but you can't etch the shield," Castro told one neighborhood association. Vandal shields are becoming increasingly popular, he says.

"It costs $80 an hour to polish the scratches off, while a vandal shield is $2.50 to $3 a square foot," he said.

Castro, a Willow Glen resident, said graffiti in the Willow Glen neighborhood is not very prevalent. However, outlying areas are susceptible to graffiti and popular targets are closed businesses and abandoned buildings.

In a thriving neighborhood business district like Willow Glen's Lincoln Avenue, graffiti can be a blow to business, according to Eva Klinger of the San Jose Redevelopment Agency.

"When people walk into a shopping center and see a lot of gang graffiti, people don't feel comfortable shopping there," Klinger said.

The agency recently allocated funds to purchase vandal shields for business districts to ensure their storefronts will not be acid etched. Klinger said the effort is a small gesture to help neighborhood business districts.

Even though Willow Glen business owners would have to pay for their own vandal shields because they are not located in a redevelopment area, Castro said it's a good investment, costing around $200 depending on the size of the window.

Because graffiti is often used to mark the territory of tagging crews Castro recommends removing the graffiti as soon as possible. "The faster you remove it, the faster they won't come back," he said.

To report graffiti in San Jose, call 408.277.2758. If you see graffiti in progress, call 911 or, on cell phones, call 408.277.8911.Two businesses that provide vandal shield services are Glass Scratch Removers at 510. 885.0400 and Tint of Class at 408.288.7571.

Mary Gottschalk contributed to this story.