Village to ease up on sign law

POTSDAM — The village Planning Board wants to revise the sign code to allow fliers and temporary posters in storefront windows without requiring permits, regardless of whether they promote commercial or nonprofit events.

The issue was raised last month when Code Enforcement Officer John F. Hill distributed letters to downtown business owners asking them to remove off-premise signs from their windows.

Arts and nonprofit organizations and business leaders objected, and the village Board of Trustees declared a 90-day moratorium on the section of law in question until it can be revised.

"Is this the mountain out of the molehill or what?" Chairman Theodore C. Prahl said at the village Planning Board's meeting Thursday night. "All we're trying to do is develop some semblance of ambience downtown, which is going down the toilet, guys."

Mr. Prahl, who owns the Tread Mill bicycle shop, 55 Market St., said most downtown business owners keep track of signs and take them down on their own.

"This summer, I hung two of my son's artworks in my window. Am I violating the village code?" he said.

"We didn't see it," Mr. Hill said. "Frankly, when somebody calls with a question about the sign law, I cringe, because it's so archaic."

The village originally modified its off-premise sign code years ago to prevent McDonald's from erecting a large sign with an arrow pointing toward its restaurant on top of a Market Street building, according to Mr. Prahl.

As the law is now written, off-premise signs are permitted in only three downtown locations: the chamber, where member businesses can take turns putting displays in the window; the wall poster frame on the corner of First Crush Wine Bistro, and a banner at Mama Lucia's visible from the Route 11 bypass.

Mr. Hill periodically has to tear down fliers from telephone poles downtown.

Under the code now, only nonprofits can post temporary signs and they have to obtain permits to do so.

Planning Board members said they won't exclude commercial businesses from posting signs for band gigs or other events.

"I think it's up to the individual merchant," Mr. Prahl said. "If I have too many signs, I start taking them down. People don't look anyway."