Signage policy keeps city clutter-free

PHOTO by Jill russell

Blaring signals of an appro-aching political campaign season are those viral name signs. They seem to creep onto lawns, storefronts, even the shoulders of busy Interstate 5. But, one place you may never see political signs is in Fife’s city parks.

Since incorporating in 1957, the city has a strict policy in place prohibiting signage of any kind within park or city limits, without written consent. And, on June 15, the city’s park policies were the topic of discussion among members of the Fife City Council.

Steve Worthington, Fife city manager, said the policy has helped keep the city parks and right-of-ways mostly clutter-free.

“It’s made an impact over the years, but we have had various times when code enforcement has needed to clear out an area,” Worthington said. “One year, we removed over 3,000 signs from the right-of-ways.”

Worthington added that for the most part, residents have respected the no-sign policy. But, he said people and businesses get frustrated sometimes when they have their signs removed. This is especially true during campaign season – when candidates need as much public exposure as possible. Worthington said political campaign signs in Fife are allowed on private property only.

Kurt Reuter, Fife’s Parks and Recreation Department director, presented revisions and updated policy information to the council. Current policy states that for a business, organization or individual to post an advertisement sign in the city of Fife, they need written consent from the city government. Reuter supports the current policy, but noted the goals of the revision are to change the language within current policy, making enforcement easier for his department.

“The difference between the ordinances and policies we have right now are that ordinance violations are enforced by police and are subjected to criminal penalties,” Reuter said. “But, policy violations are enforced by Parks and Rec.”

Revising the city’s park sign policy would clearly define what actions the Parks and Recreation Department could take for violations within the city’s parks. Reuter said Fife has not experienced many political signage problems within its roughly 28 acres of developed parks. However, he added most of the problems with political and illegal sign posting occurs along the shoulders of city-owned roads.

Steve Montgomery, Fife’s GIS technician, began his career with the city five years ago, as a code enforcement officer. Over the years, he said the number of people and businesses illegally posting signs has decreased.

“I think word has gotten around to what is legal and what isn’t,” Montgomery said. “People have been extremely cooperative.”   

Montgomery assumes illegally posted signs are placed on street corners and shoulders because it provides more visual exposure. But, he explained this is hazardous, because the signs can also block motorists’ view of on-coming traffic.

The heaviest season for Fife’s sign enforcement officers, by far, is campaign season. Last presidential election, Montgomery said his team collected thousands of illegally placed signs all over the city. This election season, letters will be sent out to local candidates that explain the city’s signage code.

“Signage is expensive, so candidates want them to be visible and effective,” Montgomery said. “We try to work with the people, so they can do what’s going to benefit their campaign, but also what’s best for the city.”

Don Alveshere understands how important posting signs can be. He is running unopposed this year for a position on the Fife City Council and plans to use signs during his campaigning. He said although posting signs can be effective, he agrees with the current “no sign” policy because it limits the use of city resources to clean up the clutter.

“I think political signs have two important effective roles for campaigns. They help with name recognition and they can give an impression to potential voters of who is likely to win,” Alveshere said. “The hardest part about campaigning is getting name recognition and then getting your message and vision out to the voters.”

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