Brooks: Timid tagger sprays graffiti on roof of Minnesota governor’s residence

As October surprises go, the most surprising thing about this one was that anyone saw it.

But someone, somehow, at some point, climbed on top of the unoccupied worksite that is the Minnesota governor’s residence with some paint. There, the timid tagger scribbled a political hot take that only birds, HVAC repair technicians and drone operators could see.

Minneapolis photojournalist Chad Davis spotted the partisan graffiti on the taxpayer-owned building on Wednesday and shared the images — possibly spoiling the vandal’s plans for an Election Day or post-election reveal of “Walz failed” scrawled across a rooftop that belongs to the people of Minnesota. And it’s Minnesotans who are now going to have to foot the bill to clean up the mess.

If you’re the tagger in question, remember: This entire rooftop could have been a tweet.

The Minnesota State Patrol and St. Paul Police Department “are currently investigating who defaced equipment at the governor’s residence and when it happened,” according to a Thursday afternoon release from the patrol. The agency declined to give specifics on security at the governor’s residence and “will not speculate on any aspects of this ongoing investigation.”

The State Patrol is responsible for the governor’s safety and the security of the governor’s residence — or residences, in this case. The Walz family moved out last year into a $330,000-per-year rental when the $6.3 million renovation project began. The big brick governor’s mansion on St. Paul’s Summit Avenue has been a work site ever since complete with scaffolding that might explain how someone could make their way onto the roof.

It wouldn’t be the first time scaffolding on a public building in Minnesota tempted someone into a petty misdemeanor. In 2013, when the Minnesota Legislature had just begun its massive renovation project, an unidentified climber scaled the Capitol dome and led security officers on a nerve-wracking low-speed chase, 223 feet above street level. Eventually, the hooded intruder clambered back down and fled into the night.