Town of Apex administration down on young art

In its usual knee-jerk reaction to anything not explicitly approved by the Town of Apex, the Town's sign enforcer quickly removed a lovely art display recently placed on a utility pole across from the Town Hall and Community Center at the corner of Mason Street and Old Raleigh Road in June, 2008.

This cheerful little gallery of creature drawings was added to the pole over a short period in early June and suddenly disappeared the day after this photo was made. Unfortunately the town's effort signals that the staff doesn't support artist efforts to be creative and add a little color to the local landscape.

The local sign ordinance was meant to prevent signs and posters from littering the roadways but enforcement is sometimes carried too far when signs or displays that mean no harm are ripped down as soon as they are placed due to strict interpretation of the rules. There are legitimate circumstances when local organizations want to tell of barbecue fund raisers, yard sales or other similar events that need community participation to be successful.

Residents generally post signs on utility poles for weekend yard sales to attract potential buyers but soon experience the wrath of the Town's "sign czar". If the Town staff member sees posters along local streets the signs are immediately removed to enforce the strict intent and interpretation of the sign ordinance. This in turn prevents the yard sale host from simple and reasonable advertising that would legitimately provide them with more customers and income.

Town rules on signs may be seen on the Town's website section on ordinances under Sec.8.7.1 /Permitted Signs: Location, Size, and Number. The town's "sign permit form" allows you to apply for and pay a fee to post signs for a variety of purposes. The Town position requires that a citizen or organization purchase a sign permit in order to place even the simplest of signs anywhere around town. Perhaps this should be tempered a bit to allow citizens to post simple yard sale signs for a few days or otherwise advertise personal activities without the requirement of a sign permit. Contact your Town Council representatives if you think the ordinance needs to be revisited.