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Put More Muscle and Teeth Behind Snipe Sign Ordinance

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 21, 2007

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign

Blocking out the scenery, breaking my mind

Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign

Five Man Electrical Band, 1970

As the Tribune's Julia Ferrante reported recently, it's hard to go anywhere in Pasco County without seeing temporary signs that litter intersections and rights of way in flagrant violation of an ordinance county commissioners adopted five years ago.

First things first: The county doesn't adopt ordinances and leave it up to residents and businesses to decide whether to follow them. Ordinances are law. Compliance is mandatory unless the county grants variances, and in some cases variances aren't allowed.

In the case of those annoying little 'snipe' signs that advertise homes for sale and services, to name a couple of examples, the ordinance doesn't leave room for misinterpretation:

'It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation or other entity, for its own or the benefit of another, to erect, place, post, install, affix, attach, or in any other way locate or maintain a sign upon, within or otherwise encroaching on a right-of-way or upon a structure located within such a right-of-way.

'Information contained in any sign, including names, addresses, or telephone numbers of persons or entities benefiting from or advertising on the sign shall be sufficient evidence of ownership or beneficial use or interest for purposes of enforcing this section.

'More than one person or entity may be deemed jointly and severally liable for the placement or erection of the same sign. Each unlawful sign shall be deemed a separate violation.'

What is it about this ordinance that snipe sign offenders don't get? Because the signs have become a real thorn in the side of the county's code enforcement officers, the only logical conclusion is that the people placing them don't care about being good citizens.

Code Compliance Manager Richard Ortiz even wonders, hopefully theoretically, whether the snipe perpetrators are following his officers, ready to replace confiscated signs with new ones once the area is clear. 'You pull a sign, and you drive off and then you come back and two more are there,' he says.

Ortiz and his officers aren't exaggerating the extent of the problem. One day last year, with the help of municipalities, a sweep netted about 1,200 illegal signs - in four hours.

An $80 fine for each illegal sign isn't much of a deterrent, either. Clearly, the commission needs to increase the fine to a level that will create a deterrent.

In addition, it didn't help that Code Compliance lost two positions recently because of budget cuts. As the county continues to grow at a phenomenal rate, more officers are needed, not only to increase enforcement of the snipe sign ordinance, but also to make sure other ordinances are being strictly followed.

Of the 21 officers currently on board, nine are specially assigned, leaving just 12 to work the entire county. Thank goodness that the county has a group of dedicated volunteers who help the hard-working officers remove these signs.

Probably the biggest problem is identifying the offenders, who can be sneaky by listing only telephone numbers on their signs and then screen calls. Maybe the county could use a little creativity here by devising a plan - or sting, so to speak - to entice them to come forward. And if they do, hit them with the stiff fine they deserve.

It's also disturbing that some builders, including Beazer Homes, are among the worst offenders, according to county officials. You'd think that as profitable as the industry has been in Pasco County, these offenders would have more respect for the ordinance. That some builders were willing to pay the penalty and continue placing the signs, as Ferrante reported, shows the fine structure isn't a deterrent.

For those who wonder what the big deal is about, snipe signs pollute the scenery, distract motorists and obstruct views. It's about public safety and aesthetics. Sure, commissioners have bigger challenges, but these issues are important, too, and they need to be addressed through bigger fines, more manpower and a stronger enforcement system.

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