Proliferating signs require strong, decisive action

Nearly every weekend, hundreds of signs go up throughout Sussex, directing traffic to new developments and realtors’ open houses. While helpful to people looking for a new home, commercial signs do not belong in public rights of way. They are illegal, so county employees have been taking them down.

Now state officials say county officials should stop removing signs from public property. Although an agreement has been in place since 2009, state officials say county workers cannot remove signs without a formal legal agreement.

And so it goes.

Recently, in just one day, county officials removed 250 signs from local roadways and destroyed them. Still, the developers who put them there are unconcerned; they’ve made it clear replacing signs is a price they are willing to pay to help people find their developments.

A few signs at intersections might be helpful, but developers have taken to outdoing one another, posting dozens of signs – and that number will only escalate if no one removes them.

If state transportation officials want a new agreement, it’s time to stop talking and propose one. Temporary signs are commercial messages that do not belong in public rights of way. Still, it would be a huge mistake if county officials stop there.

Signs have taken over the Route 1 commercial corridor, and they get larger and brighter every week. Numerous new signs ignore existing regulations, featuring video that moves constantly for several seconds.

As Councilman Sam Wilson has already pointed out, these signs are intended to distract drivers, and in too many cases, they succeed – in an area that is already dangerous for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. In a region whose economy depends on tourism, signs alerting people to local businesses are important.

Yet with no clear, enforceable limits, these signs are escalating out of control and spilling into noncommercial areas. It’s critical for county council to enact tough, new measures to limit the size and brightness of new signs and restrict them to established commercial areas.

It’s time for decisive action.

Sussex County will remain a prime tourist destination only if we take strong action to curtail distracting signs and limit commercial intrusion on our rural roadways and scenic vistas.