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Letter to the editor

Sandwich board ban on the horizon

The Safety Harbor City Commission looks to crack down on the signs on Main Street.

By EILEEN SCHULTE
Published June 26, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Douglas R. Clifford] Julie Brannon, owner of BailyÕs Naturals, removes her sign from Safety Harbor's Main Street after closing her shop. Brannon has been fighting to keep her sandwich board because of concern that her business could die if she can't use it.

SAFETY HARBOR - True, said City Manager Billy Beckett, "no one in this city has ever been attacked by a sandwich board."

People laughed when he said that during a recent City Commission meeting, but Beckett said it's a matter of time before someone trips.

And, he added, the city could be held liable if someone is hurt after stumbling over one of the freestanding A-frame signs that now line Main Street.

So city commissioners recently signaled that they plan to crack down on many of the eclectic signs along downtown sidewalks by enforcing an existing rule on where they are allowed.

Starting Jan. 1, businesses located off Main Street would not be allowed to put their sandwich boards on Main Street. Commissioners are expected to vote on the plan at an upcoming meeting.

Putting the ban in place next year is expected to give officials time to install permanent signs that direct visitors to businesses on side streets. The design of those new signs has yet to be determined.

But some merchants are skeptical about how effective they'll be.

"It's a disappointment, " said Julie Brannon, owner of Bailey's Naturals at 470 Second St. N near the Gazebo, who campaigned to keep the signs. "We had the feeling the commission had its mind made up before the meeting."

She said the decision will affect about seven businesses off Main Street. Some merchants plan to meet with an attorney to explore their legal options.

City Commissioner James McCormick Jr. said the city tried to be as fair as possible to all the businesses but doesn't "want 100 sandwich boards" cluttering up the city.

"I think we all agree we liked the quaintness of the sandwich boards, " he said. "But we didn't want people battling over corners, " meaning turf wars.

But without her sandwich board, Brannon fears she would lose half her business and could end up "closed and gone."

The herbal educator keeps her green, white and black sign in a flower bed at the end of an alley. She said it attracts foot traffic more than vehicular traffic.

"The fact that the ordinance has gone unenforced all these years points to its ineffectiveness, " she said.

Brannon is talking about an ordinance drafted in 2001 that says sandwich boards shall be allowed in the restricted commercial and downtown redevelopment district.

The rules state the boards should be located directly in front of the business for which it is advertising and not exceed 2 feet wide by 3 1/2 feet high.

They can't be fluorescent or lighted and can't interfere with visibility.

Brannon said city officials have made a few efforts to curb the sandwich boards, once not allowing them for almost a month. But they eventually look the other way.

"It's a tenuous situation for the city, " she said. "They don't want to send a message that they are business unfriendly."

A task force appointed in March came up with several alternatives for sandwich boards.

Concepts included decorative sign posts with protruding blades containing the business names, monuments with changeable plaques and free standing pole signs.

But Brannon and another small business owner who saw a presentation were unimpressed. They want their sandwich boards.

"These are not easy decisions, " task force member Neil Brickfield said. "No matter what you do, you're not going to make everyone happy."

Fast Facts:

Proposed rules for signs

Along with banning businesses not on Main Street from putting sandwich board signs along Main Street, city commissioners plan to:

- Amend section 211.06 of the land development code to include permitting requirements, procedures and fees for A-frame signs.

- Require proof of liability insurance and indemnification provision for signs placed in the city's right of way.

- Specify where signs can be placed in front of businesses.

- Require permanent lettering on sandwich board signs.

[Last modified June 25, 2007, 22:44:17]