The following article originally appeared in Signs of the Times magazine. By Karen E. Claus, JD Phd This month, the author examines the First Amendment aspects of takings by looking at the cases of Linmark Assoc., Inc. et. al. v. Township of Willingboro et. al., which concerned real-estate signage. and Omni Outdoor Adv Inc. v. […]
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Supreme Court Ruling Strengthens Just Compensation
The following article originally appeared in the August 1987 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. The Fifth Amendment guarantees that private property shall not “be taken for public use, without just compensation.” Those words have caused much heated debate and litigation ever since they were written. In a 6-3 decision on June 9, 1987 the Supreme […]
Continue readingBob Aran Reflects on 30-year Sign-Legislation Career
The following article originally appeared in the February 2004 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. Were you an attorney first, who became interested in sign codes, or did you have an interest in signs that ended up being sign-code based? I majored in interpersonal relationships (literary related) during my undergraduate work at Pepperdine University. […]
Continue readingTennessee Billboard Law Ruled Unconstitutional
A 45-year-old, outdoor-advertising act in Tennessee has been declared unconstitutional by a Memphis district judge, because of content-neutrality issues. An April 3, 2017 article in U. S. Today states, “U.S. District Judge Jon P. McCalla said the 1972 law ‘does not survive First Amendment scrutiny’ because it bans some forms of commercial and non-commercial speech […]
Continue readingFASI Board Member Weinstein Speaks at National Planning Conference
Alan Weinstein, an acknowledged expert on planning, who holds a joint faculty appointment at Cleveland State University’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, and also serves as director of the colleges’ Law & Public Policy Program, will speak at two separate sessions at the 2017 American Planning Association’s National […]
Continue readingVillanova Study Examines Value of Illuminated On-premise Signs
Professor Charles R. Taylor, a marketing professor at Villanova University, and a Research Fellow at the Center for Marketing and Policy Research, conducted a survey of business owners as to the value of illumination for their on-premise signs. Surveys were sent to 750 business owners, and 333 useable responses were received. Here are some of […]
Continue readingWhat the Street Graphics Books Say About Signs
In 1971, the American Planning Association (APA) began distributing a book called Street Graphics and the Law, which was authored by Daniel Mandelker and William Ewald. It recommended the uncompensated taking of signs and governmental control of signs’ design, message and content. The authors stated that their conclusions were substantially based on 1956 research conducted […]
Continue readingWhat Happened in the Denny’s v. Agoura Hills Pole-sign Case?
In 1985, the city of Agoura Hills, California enacted a sign ordinance that prohibited all pole signs, with the exception of a few that were less than 6 feet tall. It included an amortization period that ended in March 1992, at which time all of the pole signs would have to come down, without any […]
Continue readingWhat’s the Economic Difference Between Doubled- and Single-faced Signs?
When a Pier 1 Imports store opened in Germantown, TN (a suburb of Memphis) in 1991, it was granted a permit for a sign that faced west-bound traffic. However, no signage was visible to east-bound traffic. A few months after the store’s opening, sales were 25% below projections, despite typical promotions, advertising and direct mailings. […]
Continue readingWhat Does a Business Owner Think About the Bozeman, MT Sign Code?
Roger Koopman wrote an editorial for the Bozeman Daily Chronicle a quarter century ago. Does it sound like it could be written today? This appeared in the February 1991 issue of Signs of the Times magazine. One of the more interesting hypocrisies of contemporary liberalism is the ease with which its followers can advocate a […]
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