Wednesday, May 25, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Signs on steroids?By JOHN MUNFORD Peachtree City residents will be able to have bigger signs in their yard if the proposed changes to the citys sign ordinance are ultimately approved by the City Council. The maximum size will increase to 16 square feet, up from just two square feet in the current ordinance, but the sign must be non-commercial in nature. The size increase is due to recent decisions from the Georgia Supreme Court and the U.S. 11th Circuit Court, which has issued several rulings that a city cannot dramatically restrict its residential signs more than it restricts commercial signs, said City Attorney Ted Meeker. The change brings residential sign sizes more in line with those allowed in other districts in the city, Meeker said. Im telling you, its going to shock a lot of people, said Mayor Steve Brown. The proposal also allows residents of multifamily dwellings to post one window sign, another change to the ordinance that is currently not allowed, Meeker said. Again, the idea is to give those persons a chance to express themselves with a sign if they see the need, Meeker said. Those signs must also be non-commercial in nature, he added. The number of signs allowed would also increase during political season, when citizens will be allowed to have an unlimited number of signs to protect political speech, Meeker said. The proposed ordinance, approved by the planning commission Monday night, doesnt change any restrictions currently set forth for commercial signs, Meeker said. As long as its not obscene, you can put it up, Meeker told the commission in a workshop session Thursday evening. There is at least one type of political sign that might not pass muster under the new ordinance, however: the billboards that are placed on trucks and/or trailers and driven around town in the heat of political season. As long as the trucks and trailers are mobile and not parked, they should be fine, Meeker said. But the minute they are parked somewhere, it becomes a possible billboard in my mind, Meeker said. Such billboards are frequently seen parked overnight in downtown Fayetteville near the historic courthouse and in other places where candidates want to dramatically increase their name recognition. Although the citys new ordinance deletes references to the word billboard, the big signs will still be prevented by the height and size guidelines for commercial signs as always, Meeker noted. City Planner David Rast said one of the major improvements of the ordinance was in the expansion of the definitions section to clarify the regulations. |
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