Small Town News

Does city sign code policy violate rights to equal protection?

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Virtually every city in the country regulates the placement of signs, from the size, color and lighting of business marquees to the homemade, cardboard atrocities that announce a private yard sale.

For businesses, whether any particular sign makes good advertising is more than a subjective judgment. If it gets customers in the door, it's a sign that gets the job done.

Sedona business owners with locations away from state routes 179 and 89A face a special dilemma. They may have wonderful signs on their storefronts, but because the signs face away from the highway, fewer motorists are able take note of their location.

Even owners with highway storefronts must deal with the problem if their business is situated many yards back from the roadway.

Some owners reason that if their storefront can't be seen from the main thoroughfare, at least they can place a sign there for potential customers to see.

It's a strategy that usually works. Bandit A-frame signs and banners attract customers. That's good for the business and it's good for the city too. Signs that boost net earnings also directly impact the amount of sales tax the city can collect to provide services.

During hard economic times, the ability of business to attract customers is even more critical. A business failure does more than harm its owners financially, it begins a chain reaction that ends in the loss of jobs and a reduction in commercial property values as more and more empty storefronts crowd the market.

That's why the city's decision to ease off enforcing the sign code for businesses struggling to survive during construction along State Route 179 makes so much sense, but is highway construction a reasonable way to distinguish between businesses allowed to flaunt the code and those that cannot?

Plenty of West Sedona business owners who showed up for work only to discover their A-frame sign confiscated by the city are asking the same question. Are they not also impacted by this construction?

The city is trying its best to strike a fair balance. Most Sedonans disdain the unsightly clutter of numerous A-frame and yard signs lining the highway. Businesses need to understand code enforcement officers are just doing the job the voters want and the law requires.

On the other hand, shouldn't West Sedona businesses enjoy the same privilege of violating the law those along State Route 179 enjoy? If so, does the city's current enforcement policy violate the rights of West Sedona businesses to receive equal protection under the law? It's something to consider, at least until the construction ends and the local economy stabilizes.



Copyright 2009 Sedona Red Rock News, Sedona, Arizona. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2009 Sedona Red Rock News Sedona, Arizona. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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