By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com
The Wabash City Council approved on first reading an ordinance bringing the city’s political sign ordinance in line with the state’s sign statute.
The Council voted 7-0 to change the local measure following a presentation by Wabash Plan Commission attorney Doug Lehman.
Lehman presented a recommendation from the Plan Commission to the Council to approve the change.
The Plan Commission, for the second time in two months, approved a resolution recommending the change when it met on Wednesday, April 4.
The commission approved the same resolution in March. However, it failed to have a public hearing on the matter, thus it had to reconsider the matter. It unanimously approved sending the matter to the City Council following the hearing, at which no one spoke for or against the matter.
The new ordinance will bring the city’s ordinance in line with state statutes, commission attorney Doug Lehman explained.
Prior to 60 days before the election, as well as more than six days following the election, political signs shall not exceed 10 square feet in area.
Signs are also not to be located between the sidewalk and curb, and, in the case of properties without sidewalks, it is not to be located less than eight feet from the paved edge of the street.
“The state statute basically says that we cannot control the size or the number of political signs between a date 60 days prior to an election, and six days after,” Lehman told the commission. “During that period of time, you can have as many political signs that you want, and you can have them almost any size that you want.
“The statute does, however, permit you to regulate their placement so as to prevent those signs from interfering with line of sight at corners that would make it dangerous to pull out into an intersection into traffic, that sort of thing.”
Candidates also must receive a property owner’s permission to place a sign, he added. In addition, signs cannot be placed on any government owned land.
“The government does not endorse any political candidate so if you’re a political candidate you don’t want it to appear that a governmental unit is endorsing you, so there shouldn’t be a sign for Joe Schmoe taped to the front door of City Hall,” Lehman said.
Lehman told the Plan Commission there was no penalty for violating the measure.
He clarified that Monday night, saying that while the political sign measure contained no penalty, the city’s overall sign ordinance does. Since the political sign ordinance doesn’t have a penalty, any penalty listed in the overall ordinance could be imposed. That penalty is between $10 and $2,000 per day.
Council will consider the measure when it meets again on April 23.