SIGN ORDINANCE - HORAN DECISION

from Douglas V. Alling, SMITH ALLING LANE, attorney for JAMES L. WINGARD:

"We believe the Legislature has spoken on this issue. RCW 47.42.107 requires that '[j]ust compensation shall be paid upon removal of any existing sign pursuant to the provisions of any resolution or ordinance of any county, city, or town' in the State of Washington, by such county, city, or town if such sign was lawfully in existence on May 10, 1971, or erected subsequent to May 10, 1971, in compliance with existing state and local law."

"As you are likely aware, the Court of Appeals has held that RCW 47.42 precludes removal of signs before compensation is determined. Horan v. City of Federal Way, 110 Wn. App. 204, 39 P.3d 366 (2002)."

Full letter attached.



Letter to David Swindale, Planning and Community Director, city of University Place

SMALL BUSINESS BE FORWARNED

The City of University Place is coming for you if you have violated their SIGN ORDINANCE. They are going after the low hanging fruit first, small business owners. They are more easily intimidated and forced to close. The larger business that have told them to take a hike are classified WT, working towards.

Attached is my NOTICE OF CIVIL VIOLATION because my 40 year old sign is 12 feet in height. Their ordinance only allows 10 feet. I cannot afford to tear down my sign and put up a new base and sign to their liking nevermind the bureaucratic permit process and all it entails.

I will attend my hearing Nov. 3 at 2 pm City council chmbers with my lawyer. If I can't stop them here you have no hope. Please join me and attend meeting.

GETTING STARTED

There seems to be two groups saying NO to this predatory ordinance.

Large business and smaller ones. Large businesses are not deterred by threats of FINES or other forms of intimidation. Small business cannot financially remove their old sign never mind a new sign and permit costs and hire an engineer acceptable to the UP bureaucracy. This is why we need to organize now and quickly.

Businesses who have handed UP their lawyer's card and told to contact them seem to be left alone and tagged as WT working towards. P for pending have said they are willing to make the changes. Hopefully you will take this second chance and say NO. Some beautiful signs are coming down for naught.

This blog is mainly concerned with non conforming signs(according to UP) or NO. This is an OUT OF BUSINESS ordinance for most of us and we, individually cannot afford a lawyer to fight CITY HALL.

There is strength in numbers if we can come together.

This SIGN ORDINANCE has been found illegal by the courts in two other communities (Federal Way and Fife). But we must be ready to act when the first fine notices are mailed.

I do not regularly attend UP regular council meetings but did speak at the August 10 meeting (see on UPTV ch 12)during PUBLIC COMMENTS. We need to all show up and voice our displeasure with this unenlightened ordinance which makes no sense. Call city hall 253-566-5656 for scheduled council meetings.

Who determined that signs in place for over 30 years are not acceptable to this council and mayor? VOTE FOR CHANGE. Driving around the boundaries of University Place there is a montage of signs surrounding UP that would be illegal in UP. Is the UP council and mayor some sort of super sign elitists or on some sort of personal vendetta against small businesses in University Place?

This makes no sense at all???????????????

This blog will be our form of communication. If you wish to blog let me know and I will include you. If not send me your thoughts and I will post them. I will contact you once more personally with this message but let me say in my first meetings I was struck by the harassment going on and the high stress being created by University Place and its bureaucracy and hired guns. This must stop.

Attached find a list of affected businesses and their status.

Post a contact me comment and I will post your experience with this.

Logon to:

http://upsign-no.blogspot.com/

-30-

<

The first step is to organize.