Mayor Recommends Temporary Moratorium on Billboards While Signage Regulations are Under Review

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The opinions expressed in these articles and features are those of their author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of McANA or the opinion of its Directors or Officers.

Mayor Recommends Temporary Moratorium on Billboards While Signage Regulations are Under Review
by Nancy Meade
[facilitator of McANA's Signage Committee]

The reality is….The Signage Ordinances need to be review and then enforced.

The reality is….The neighborhoods have made their voices heard well enough that the Mayor, who three years ago said that he would never support a moratorium on billboards, has at least heard that the neighborhood volunteers need a respite from zoning board hearings in order to participate in signage regulation review. McANA and I thank him for this support!

The reality is….A recommendation from the Mayor does not a moratorium (even a temporary one) make!

The reality is….The Mayor probably would have preferred to have a moratorium on giving variances to the signage regulations for a year, but, alas, that is illegal.

The reality is….The Metropolitan Development Commission passed unanimously the motion proposed by Harold Anderson and seconded by Ed Treacy for a six month moratorium—half the time sought by the City—and not nearly enough time for the bureaucracy and the community (neighbors and businesses alike) to review and update the signage regulations.

The reality is….The proposal must be passed by the City-County Council. It is on a fast track and we hope that it will be possible to extend the time frame back to one year or until the new sign regulations are adopted whichever comes first (as is in the City’s proposal). Otherwise, this citizen servant thinks that the neighborhoods really lost the race at the first hurdle even though it felt like we won!

The reality is….This moratorium proposal is not the moratorium proposal that Scenic America suggests or that McANA would like see. It is simply the legal way to prevent an onslaught of variance requests that would take the volunteer time of the neighborhood representatives. But it is a start! The first step has been taken—the Metropolitan Development Commission passed a 6 month moratorium. On April 14 the proposal will be presented at the City Council and assigned to a sub-committee—Neighbors who think we need a moratorium to review signage need to be there. On April 21 the City-County Council sub-committee will meet at 5:00 pm and vote on the proposal—Neighbors who think we need a moratorium to review signage need to be there. If approved, the City-County Council will vote on the proposal—Neighbors who think we need a moratorium to review signage need to be there.

It is now time to write your Council representatives…and call…and show up en masse!

It has only just begun! If this is passed, then we need to participate in the review of the Signage Regulations!