Last summer when San Juan County Code Compliance Officer Jeff Wasnick began enforcing the County’s Ordinance which prohibits most off-site advertising signs, he tagged 40 signs on Orcas one day and 20 on Lopez the next.
Apparently business owners and organizations have gotten the message. “Last month I only tagged two signs on Orcas and two on Lopez,” said Wasnick.
But the signs, which are mostly portable “sandwich boards,” usually start appearing in large numbers as the tourist season arrives, and Wasnick warns all advertisers that illegal signs will be tagged for pickup by County Public Works employees and held at county office buildings. Sign owners may pick up their signs at the Annex by the Sheriff’s storage building in Friday Harbor, Orcas Senior Center, or the Cormorant Building on Lopez Island. The signs will be held at these locations for a limited amount of time then disposed of.
“Ninety percent of the feedback we’ve received on this enforcement program has been positive,” he said. “They tell me everything looks cleaner and less cluttered.”
The other ten percent of the feedback, Wasnick said, comes mostly from non-profit groups and the owners of small businesses that are not located on a major road.
The San Juan County code requires that business identification and advertising signs be mounted or painted on a building unless the business cannot be seen from a public road. Off-premises outdoor commercial signs are not permitted. Additionally, residential and commercial identification signs, outside of urban growth areas and activity centers, can be no more than two square feet in size.
Signs offering directions can only refer to geographical locations, such as Roche Harbor or Eastsound and can include nothing beyond the location name, the mileage and a directional arrow. Prior approval from the County Engineer is required before directional signs can be erected.
The lone exceptions are special events signs, which can be displayed for a maximum of 30 days within a year. However, the current Eastsound Sub Area Plan doesn’t allow these event signs within its boundaries.
