Subdivision Signs: Good or Bad?

The April 3 city election is fast approaching, but Don Prinster can't put up a sign in his front yard supporting a friend's race for alderman because his subdivision — like many across the metro area — doesn't allow it.

That would change statewide for future elections under a bill proposed by a legislator from nearby O'Fallon. The measure, by Republican Rep. Kurt Bahr, would prevent homeowners associations from enforcing or adopting bans on political signs.

"Should a private organization allow you to contract away constitutionally protected inherent rights?" Bahr asked.

If his proposal passes, subdivisions could still prohibit signs larger than 4 feet by 6 feet and restrict them to between 90 days before an election and 10 days after.

"It's a freedom of speech issue," Prinster said. "With a reasonable time limit, I don't see any problem." Prinster does have a campaign sign for his friend Rod Stratman in his window, which is allowed in his subdivision, Highland Estates.

Bahr said he became interested in the issue after a supporter living in the WingHaven development in O'Fallon was told he couldn't have a yard sign during his first race for the House in 2010.

Laws similar to Bahr's proposal are in effect in 10 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Bahr's legislation has little appeal for David Fine, who is on the three-member homeowners association board in Prinster's subdivision.

Fine said he was unaware of the bill's details but doesn't like it "anytime big government comes in."

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/stcharles/bill-would-keep-subdivisions-from-barring-political-signs/article_f16ff951-1e37-51fa-a0e3-01660f0ac60a.html#ixzz1oRT2wD8D

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Golden Gables Brings Subdivision into 21st Century With new Sign

Golden Gables Subdivision in South St. Louis County recently replaced their 1960 subdivision sign with one that's definitely in the 21st century, according to Bill Rogers, Subdivision Trustee. "We've received at least a dozen e-mails and several phone calls along with people stopping us on the street to compliment the new sign," said Rogers.

The sign was the product of The Designery Shop. You can see samples of their work at their website at: http://www.designery.com/. For information, contact Shannon Brown at 314-647-1700 or e-mail to: shannon@designery.com.

Old sign

New Sign

(Click on Photos to enlarge)

Homeowner Fan Works Around Sign Restriction

Steven Paul, 28, is a Tampa Bay Lightning season ticket holder who's justifiably excited with his team in the Eastern Conference finals, eight wins away from the Stanley Cup.

Like many other Bolts supporters, he flaunted that enthusiasm within his community. That is, until his Home Owner's Association crushed his freedom of expression like an over-reactive parent.

But Steven Paul is a hockey fan, which means he's both incredibly cynical and incredibly stubborn about his passions. So he got a little creative in his battle with the draconian rules of his neighborhood HOA — and appears to have won.

Back in April, before the Lightning defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference playoffs, Paul decided he wanted to make his neighbors aware of his fervor for the team.

When the Lightning clinched a playoff spot, they gave fans a playoff preparation package that included a T-shirt, stickers and a sign made for display on one's front yard, like a political placard.

Paul placed his white "GO BOLTS" sign on his lawn on a Saturday.

On Wednesday of the following week, he received a notice from his Home Owners Association.

"Whoever it is that has too much time on their hands took a picture on Monday, turned it in and then I got the letter that said, 'No signs allowed except for security signs,'" said Paul, who shared the story and the letter with the Reddit hockey community, where he's an active member.

His HOA limits lawn signs to ones that provide free advertising for alert others that the house is protected by some kind of alarm system or security service.

"I was pissed. I was infuriated," recalled Paul, "and then I was like, 'OK, fine. If we can only have security signs, then I'll make it a security sign."

Which he did:

A few days later, his wife was at home when something caught her eye outside the house. It was a woman with a camera, taking a photo of the new sign, ostensibly for more HOA tattling.

Meanwhile, Paul was getting proactive with the HOA after their cease and desist letter, writing a letter of his own.

"I asked them if they had any community support. Tampa made the playoffs for the first time in years. Obviously, it's not a permanent sign in my yard, it's just a way to support the team," he said. "Don't they have anything better to do with my HOA fees?"

After transforming his sign into "GO BOLTS SECURITY," he hasn't gotten a second notice — yet. The HOA told Paul they'll discuss the matter further at an upcoming meeting.

Then Paul decided to get really proactive. Inside the bag of Lightning swag was a large blue Tampa Bay flag. He checked the HOA bylaws about hanging flags on houses, and found no restrictions.

So up it went on his garage. (Click on photo to enlarge)

"Honestly, I think the flag looks worse than the lawn sign," he said, "but I'm gonna hang it up there until we're done."

St. Louis Unveils New Regional Signage to Help Tourists

Those signs are in no way to replace the County limit or the City limit signs that are on the interstates. Those decorative signs are part of the new St. Louis Regional wayfinding program that is sponsored by the Convention and Visitors Commission. (Click on Photo to Enlarge) 

This program is very similar to wayfinding programs that are located in many of the other larger cities in the country like Los Angeles, Chicago, Madison, Columbus, etc. The signs are to get the attention of motorist as they enter the region to let them know that we have a wayfinding program and they can expect to use these non-traditional signs to find our attractions.

These signs were designed by Corbin Design and the designs were reviewed by representatives from MoDOT, CVC, Grand Center, Laclede's Landing, Pinnacle Entertainment, The City of St. Louis, St. Louis County and Forest Park. The group wanted to make sure that attractions from both the County and the City were represented and the signs took on a feel that was not just that of the City. We debated the "Welcome To" signs, as far as wording and location, and decided that the signs needed to be included on every interstate as you entered St. Louis County since the program included County attractions and City attractions. We also looked at the possibility of adding "Welcome to the St. Louis Region" to the signs but that made the sign look cluttered and we felt that it confused the intent of the sign.

The limited signs that have been installed to date, only represent a small sampling of the entire wayfinding program. The remainder of the signs will be attraction and corridor specific and they should help to clarify the intent of the "Welcome To" signs and bring the program together. CVC is working very hard to get the remaining signs installed by the end of the year. The program will also include an extensive marketing campaign that will explain the program to not only our visitors but our local citizens too.
 
Read more about the new signs at: http://www.slfp.com/MoHyNews.htm
 
Explanation from:
Becky Allmeroth, P.E., P.T.O.E.
District Maintenance & Traffic Operations Engr.
Missouri Department of Transportation
St. Louis District Office
(314)453-1758

What are your subdivision signs saying about your home?

The same way improving the exterior of one’s home tells everyone how nice their home is; improving the exterior of one’s subdivision tells everyone how nice their subdivision is. The Designery Shop has a distinguished record of improving the look of subdivisions by designing and creating entrance signs along with interior way-finding signs that create a greater perceived value of the homes within. One example of where The Designery Shop has recently done this is at the Clarkson Woods South subdivision in St. Louis County. 

(BEFORE - click on photo to enlarge)

Clarkson Woods South subdivision recently replaced their aged entrance signs with new, elegant and esthetically pleasing entrance signs. The previous signs were aged and faded therefore they did not adequately express the quality of the homes in the subdivision. The trustees of Clarkson Woods South contacted The Designery Shop for ideas for replacement signage. After surveying the subdivision site, The Designery Shop consulted with the trustees and offered solutions to their sign project. The trustees selected The Designery Shop’s oval shape signs 42" X 66" made of high density urethane. A custom look was given by routing the subdivisions logo and script name into the sign. The signs were painted black and sealed with several coats of lacquer. The finishing touch came when 23 carat gold gilding was applied to the routed portions and the outer edge giving the piece an elegant look and feel.

Visibility was a critical factor due to Clarkson Woods South’s location on the busy four-lane Clarkson Road and because of this great consideration was given to the height of this sign’s lettering and logo. The United States Sign Council recommends proper visibility of lettering at 1 inch per 24 feet of visibility. The Clarkson Woods South sign lettering was at 9 to 10 inches giving effective visibility up to 240 feet.

(AFTER - click on photo to enlarge)

The design, shape and placement of a subdivision entrance sign and interior subdivision way finding signs visually express the quality of the subdivision and the homes within the subdivision. The Designery Shop is located in St. Louis County; it is a full service graphic design and sign studio, which offers creative solutions to all signage needs. Check out The Designery Shop online at http://www.designery.com/ for complete service listing and portfolio or feel free to contact them at Monday through Friday 8:00am – 5:00pm at 314-647-1700 or email at getinfo@designery.com .

Sign program draws complaints from residents and business

Residents in virtually all counties (St. L County, Jefferson, St. Charles, etc) have a growing unrest regarding signs posted for real estate sales, political endorsements, garage sales, and others. Many of these signs show up in subdivisions and posted on a subdivision's common ground. Some are taped to telephone poles light poles, benches, etc. while most are stuck in the ground. Some are never removed or stay posted for weeks or longer.

The City of Arnold is looking into this growing problem. Local real estate agents are unhappy with a new program the city created to remove temporary signs like those for garage sales. Volunteers have been recruited to clear signs attached to trees, telephone poles, public benches, streetlights and other public right-of-way property.

A representative for G'Sell Contracting asked the council to reconsider the ordinance to allow for directional signs for real estate developments. G'Sell has two developments in Arnold it is trying to promote. "In one year we have had a total of 212 visitors with 130 of them citing signs as the source they used to find our developments," said Ruben Leon.

At a December meeting, real estate agent Cindy Coleman accused the sign removers of taking down expensive signs she had put up and not returning them. The council plans to review the ordinance at a work session next month.

Arnold, is apparently getting tired of illegal signs and has recruited some volunteers to remove them. Residents in North St. Louis County have been doing this for years and realtors and others are realizing that they must comply with the ordinance or lose their signs to their “slash and trash” program.

A resident said directional real estate signs are illegal in all areas of unincorporated St. Louis County for the benefit of realtors.

What do think about this situation? Click on COMMENTS below and share your thoughts.

Woman Must Remove 'Messages From God'

A woman who has covered her roof and property with painted slogans she calls messages from God has been ordered to remove them or face possible fines or jail time.

The San Mateo City Council unanimously ruled last week that Estrella Benavides' writings violate city codes regulating the size of signs. The writings allege vast government conspiracies, among other warnings.

Benavides, 47, who also broadcasts the messages from a loudspeaker on her car's roof, has said the messages come to her from God through a statue at her church and from the Bible.
She claims the city's ruling violates her free speech rights.

"They're telling me based on the San Mateo sign code that I'm violating the law," Benavides said. "I'm telling them based on the U.S. Constitution that their sign code violates the law."

The council ruling orders Benavides to remove the slogans or face fines of $50 a day starting late next month. If she refuses to remove them or pay the fines, the city will sue her or file criminal charges, City Attorney Shawn Mason said.