The Eternal Sign-Code Battle

Sign-code and ordinance-related headlines seemingly never stop flowing through the virtual transom. Long story short, some local officials understand the correlation between prominent signage and economic growth; others don’t. Here are the latest cases that underscore the volatile nature of sign regulations:

• A task force that comprises Raleigh, NC civic and business leaders endorses changing the city’s ordinance to treat window signage in the city as promotional graphics, which are currently unregulated by city codes. One local businessman, comedy-club owner Richard Gardner, observed, "If ComedyWorx loses one sale per show [due to inconspicuous signage], that’s an $8,000 annual loss. It’s a hidden tax.”
• The Downers Grove, IL Village Council refused to amend its sign ordinance, which nixed a proposal that would allow business signs to face the railroad tracks that traverse the city. According to mysuburbanlife.com, Leibundguth Moving and Storage owner Bob Patterson requested the amendment to allow the 80-year-old, handpainted sign, which faces the tracks, to remain on the back of its building. However, the sign would’ve likely come down because the village doesn’t allow painted wall signs outside of its downtown, and it’s too large, according to the code.
• With a 3-2 vote, the La Cañada Flintridge (CA) City Council declined Monday to change its ordinance to allow two large electronic message centers at two schools on Foothill Blvd. In July 2012, St. Francis High School officials requested an electronic display to convey event news and school information to the community. The employee at the La Cañada Flintridge city clerk’s office who confirmed the result via a phone call expressed surprise at the outcome.
• Des Moines’ (IA) Plan and Zoning Commission denied a rezoning request that would’ve greenlighted a 900-sq.-ft. mural for Exile Brewing Co., according to the Des Moines Register. Because the brewery must comply with the city’s historic-preservation code, its conventional signage is somewhat restricted, so Exile proposed the mural for the northern-facing, currently empty wall at the Fitch Studio Building, which is near the brewery. The Register noted that the proposal violates a local ordinance that forbids off-premise advertising within 500 ft. of Des Moines’ John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park; the wall is 265 ft. away.