Even though residents of the Village of the City of Clarkston cannot vote in the Independence Township election, candidates and their supporters have posted signs downtown.
According to City Manager Dennis Ritter, some residents and city council members aren’t pleased to see the campaign signs.
Candidates can post campaign signs up to 2-by-3-feet in the village 60 days before the election, Aug. 7, and remove signs 14 days afterward. If they violate the city’s ordinance, the signs will be confiscated but not destroyed, and candidates can pick up any removed signs from the Department of Public Works.
While Ritter understands the candidates? desire for visibility, ‘the magnitude is another story,? he said.
Complaints about the number of signs have reached City Hall, but as long as they are not placed on public property or in the public right-of-way, the signs won’t be removed.
‘Before the next election, those sign restrictions may change,? said Ritter.
Although the city hasn’t yet made an official move to change the ordinance, Ritter has spoken to a few members of the council and believes ‘a change to the zoning ordinance may be forthcoming.?
During the city council meeting on July 9 the city decided to research altering the ordinance.