COUNCIL: SKATEPARK SIGNS MUST COME DOWN; LOM SAYS IT'S THE RIGHT DECISION
Wednesday, January 11th, 2006 -- 12:28 PM
The signs will be coming down at the Neillsville Skatepark. After a last ditch attempt by Skatepark Committee members tto save the signs failed, the City Council voted 3-2 Tuesday night that the signs must come down until a yet-to-be-formed committee decides what should happen next.The action will affect about fourteen 2? X 4? signs that hang on the west fence of the park, located on highway 10 near A & W. They were displayed in recognition of donations of $500 or more.
A controversy erupted when Clark County Right to Life approached the city about putting a pro-abstinence sign at the Skatepark. They were told they couldn?t because the sign was ?religious? in nature. CCRTL denies being a religious group.
Fearing a lawsuit, the council decided in December only to allow ?recognition signs?. T hey said the current signs would have to be altered - or completely remade ? to take out information about services offered and even phone numbers. City attorney Bonnie Wacsmuth advised recognition signs could only have the group?s name and their official logo.
The Skatepark Committee was to bring proposed changes to the meeting last night. Instead, committee members Marcia Gross and Wendy Sigurdson told the Council they felt the signs should stay up.
They checked with Marshfield, Eau Claire and other communities and found they allow restricted advertising at park facilities.
But Mayor Diane Murphy commented that she would never support advertising at the park.
The Council?s action forces the signs down immediately ? not even business names and logos will be allowed until a committee is formed to look into the situation.
Advertising on city property can be legally dicey territory according to Curt Wytynski, Assistant Director of the Wisconsin League of Municipalities. But, he says it is often done successfully if there are strict guidelines imposed.
Wytynski calls the Council's decision a "wise course of action".
The risk is the city could face lawsuits claiming discrimination if they ?pick and choose? who?s allowed to advertise without a spelled-out policy.
"Once the door is open, it's pretty hard to distinguish between the different organizations or messages that want to be displayed in that forum," Wytynski says. "The best thing communities can do is establish tight policies up front."
But, with strict restrictions in place, municipalities can - and often do ? turn to advertising to fund things like baseball diamonds, skateparks and other facilities, Wytnyski says.
"In the city of Madison, they're even doing the public parking garage," Wytynski says. "What they've done is distinguish between political ads and traditional commercial ads."
Gross and Sigurdson said they?re not sure how businesses will react when told their signs are coming down.
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