Sign Language

It’s one of the last things an entrepreneur worries about when launching a new business, but it can be the most infuriating.

Designing and putting up a sign would seem to be a piece of cake after coming up with a sellable idea, finding a location, and securing financing. However, there are myriad rules and regulations business owners have to follow when putting up a sign, and they can vary dramatically from one municipality to the next.

Hang your sign without going through the proper channels, and you’re likely to find an official waiting to scold you by the time you step back down the ladder.

Townships fall under the sign rules established by the Door County zoning codes and are policed by zoning administrators at the Door County Planning Department.

“Generally speaking, an on-premise advertising sign can have a surface area no bigger than 24 square feet,” said zoning administrator Rick Brauer. But Brauer said he hesitates to make a blanket statement on what is allowed because there are so many variations. “It all depends on the total number of signs, whether a business is one of several in a building. Some rules have changed over time, and there are a number of grandfathered signs out there.”

Those “grandfathered” signs, or non-conforming signs, are allowed to stay in place as is until they are changed. The rules in Sister Bay, Egg Harbor, and Gibraltar, for instance, prohibit internally lit signs, but several such signs remain because they pre-date the rule. Once the sign is changed, a business owner is supposed to bring it into conformity, which may mean making it smaller, changing the type of sign, and even uprooting it to meet setback requirements.

Gibraltar and Washington Island are the only towns who have added their own stricter signage rules on top of the county zoning. Gibraltar’s overlay prohibits signs illuminated from within, limits the number of art flags to two, and mandates that all signs be constructed of wood or materials that give the appearance of wood. The town doesn’t allow open flags or sandwich boards of any kind.

But enforcement of the rules isn’t easy. Zoning administrators are not out patrolling signs like police and often rely on referrals from municipal officials or respond to complaints from citizens or other business owners. That can pit businesses against each other and lead to arbitrary enforcement, say some business owners.

“It’s imperfect,” Gibraltar town supervisor Dick Skare acknowledged, “but it seems to work pretty well.”

Villages have their own individual sign ordinances, which are enforced by the village administrator. Sister Bay actually polices the color of signs, but the struggles of the business community in recent years have led to some loosening of the signage reigns. The villages of Egg Harbor and Sister Bay have each relaxed rules since 2007 at the request of the business owners.

“We asked what the village could do to help the business community,” said Sister Bay Administrator Bob Kufrin. “One of the things that our Economic Development Committee asked for were signage changes.”

The village decided to allow businesses to put out open flags and sandwich boards to advertise specials or events.

In Egg Harbor, the village worked with the Egg Harbor Business Association to create a uniform open flag featuring the village logo that businesses could display. It also approved a one-year exemption allowing businesses to display sandwich boards in front of their business between November 1 and May 1 so passersby would know the businesses were open in the off-season.

Village president Nancy Fisher said the Plan Commission is discussing allowing the boards again this winter after getting positive feedback last year.

“The question,” Kufrin said, “is how do you balance the need to maintain the appearance of small-town character with the desire of every business to broadcast their business and product.”

Josh VanLieshout, Egg Harbor Village Administrator, said defining what constitutes a sign isn’t always easy.

“We have a retailer in the village who has a product in their window that looks like a sign,” he explained. “Now, is that a sign or a product for sale? Sign ordinances are very tricky and very difficult to craft.”

Fortunately, he said, common sense prevails in most disputes and the village is able to resolve issues without taking formal enforcement action. But that doesn’t mean business owners are happy.

Brauer said he knows the rules aren’t easy to follow.

“There are so many differences, that’s why I encourage people with a particular question or concern to call us for clarification before they spend money,” he said.