Sign restrictions under review
Amending the town code was central to the agenda at Tuesday’s Town Board work session. The board discussed relaxing code restrictions on real estate signs and amending the open burning law to mirror recent state Department of Environmental Conservation changes.
Board Attorney Laury Dowd proposed an amendment to the current town code regarding real estate signs. Town Supervisor Jim Dougherty explained that Ms. Dowd had reviewed similar laws in other towns in Suffolk County to help guide the proposed amendments.
The town currently limits the size of the signs (to two square feet), what the sign can say (“For Sale by Owner” and nothing more), and where the signs can be placed (on the sale property only). She also suggested that the board change the code to limit the number of signs that can be displayed on a property but remove restrictions on what the sign can say — in other words, the names of commercial real estate brokers could once again be displayed.
She also suggested signs should be set back at least 10 feet from the road, that they cannot be illuminated, and they should be removed within a prescribed time after the sale. The town would continue to regulate the size, and limit the placement of signs to the property being sold.
Controversy over the law was sparked this year when Building Inspector Billy Banks sent an open letter to Island real estate agents, dated July 21, demanding that they take down any and all commercial real estate signs within seven days or face criminal fines or penalties. He called it “an Island-wide sweep to rid this community of the unsightly, excessive use of these signs.”
The town’s current law dates back to 2000 but made headlines in September 2004 when an enforcement effort similar to the one this summer was initiated. In 2006, the Town Board considered loosening the law to allow broker signs but met with opposition; the board did not amend the code.
Board member Chris Lewis suggested that election signs should be included in the amendment. She said they shouldn’t be allowed to go up before Labor Day and should be taken down within 36 hours of the polls closing. Nearby towns apparently have similar time restrictions on election signs, she said. Ms. Dowd responded that regulating election signs becomes tricky when First Amendment rights come into play but that she would investigate the issue.
Audience member Don Bindler said there is not consensus among the community that changing the law is a good idea and he had specific questions about the wording of the law. Mr. Dougherty reminded him that this was just a draft, and suggested, “Why don’t we get the proposed language out to the folks once the five of us are comfortable with it and then we’ll call a public hearing, and we won’t enact anything until we hear from everyone.”
BURNING LAW
Ms. Dowd also proposed that the town code regarding open burning be redrafted to reflect the changes enacted by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, which are more restrictive than the town’s law. She noted that town law can be more restrictive than the DEC law, but not less.
The new DEC restrictions took effect on October 14 and prohibit “virtually all open burning,” said Mr. Dougherty. Burning leaves is now banned, as well as the burning of household paper and trash in burn barrels or in piles. Tree limbs can be burned as brush as long as they measure less than 6 inches in diameter and 8 feet in length, and even that is not allowed between the middle of March and the middle of May, Ms. Dowd added.
Mr. Dougherty suggested that Ms. Dowd, a fire chief, a representative from the Police Department and perhaps a town board member form an informal committee to figure out “the most congenial way to marry Shelter Island practices and customs to these new mandates.” Police Chief Jim Read expressed interest in being a part of the group. He also noted that although people may have been issued town burn permits, those permits will remain invalid at least until the town works out its new laws.
Exceptions to the open burning law remain, such as small campfires and cooking fires, ceremonial or celebratory bonfires and the burning of clean, dry, untreated or unpainted wood.
Other business discussed during the December 1 work session will be summarized in next week’s paper.