Gainesboro Aldermen want to clean up the cluttered signage at the lone traffic light on Grundy Quarles Highway.
Alderman Tom Goetz said the intersection has become a maze of signs.
“Some of them are old, and some of them are new election signs and everything, but surely there is a way we can just clean all of that out and not have just the whoever wants to put something up there put it up there, signage,” Goetz said. “It looks trashy to the town.”
Goetz said he does not have a problem with people placing signs, but there needs to be a process for picking them up. Town Recorder Darla Pippin said the town will need to contact the state about the signs because they are placed in the state’s right-of-way.
“I think I called last year or the year before last, and they say the auction companies do get permission from the state to do it because they put them up, and they leave them for a week or two, and then they do take them down,” Pippin said. “So they do get permission.”
The board discussed amending the town’s ordinance to restrict signs. Mayor Lloyd Williams said that may upset some people.
“I don’t think there is a single politician who would not be mad if we told them that they could not put signs up,” Williams said.
No formal action was taken during the meeting, but aldermen agreed further research and coordination with the state will be necessary before any changes are implemented. Though working with the state may take some time, Goetz said he would like to clear the signs after the election.
“At the end of this particular election that is coming up at that point, let’s clear it out, and let’s keep it clear,” Goetz said.