Reconciling Santa Monica’s Ban on Pole Signs

The contentious code — which eliminates all pole signs — takes effect This article, written by Jennifer Flinchpaugh, originally appeared in the May 2000 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. No projecting signs. No upper-level signs. No roof signs. And no off-premise signs. Certainly Santa Monica, CA’s sign code, adopted in 1985 and scheduled […]

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North Olmsted’s Prior Restraint and Content-based Sign Code

The following article originally appeared in the December 1999 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. By John Yarger, Esq., and Jennifer Flinchpaugh On Aug. 17, Federal Magistrate Judge Patricia Hemann of Ohio’s Northern District filed her “Report and Recommendations” regarding the North Olmsted Chamber of Commerce vs. City of North Olmsted lawsuit. In her […]

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How An Appraisal Could have Defeated Amortization in Mississippi

Mississippi circuit court upholds amortization of signage, but could this tragedy have been prevented? The following article originally appeared in the June 1999 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. By Dr. R. James Claus Thomas A. Claus contributed to this article. He is completing studies at Portland (OR) State University and will begin attending […]

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Sign-Valuation Arguments Thwart Amortization Against Michael’s

Richfield, MN, realized what it might have to pay in just compensation and let Michael’s keep its on-premise billboard The following article originally appeared in the December 1998 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. By John Yarger, Esq. A Michaels crafts store in Richfield, MN, was recently the target of an amortization scheme. On […]

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When the Proposed International Zoning Code Threatened the Sign Industry

Code-development authorities unwittingly imperiled the sign industry The following article originally appeared in the October 1997 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. An update appears on this website at http://signreference.org/2000/01/11/zone-defense/ By Bill Dundas When Signs of the Times magazine received an alarming fax from the United States Sign Council’s Executive Director Andrew D. Bertucci at […]

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Some Policy Considerations For Sign Legislation

Signs and Their Functions By Dr. R. James Claus This article originally appeared in the August 1973 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. It’s appropriate to offer some elementary information about signs and to define some of the more common terms to be found in the literature on signage. Because controversies over banning billboards, for […]

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