Image

Petrolia businesses could face stiff fines for misplaced signboards

July 21, 2014

Retailers in Petrolia could face stiff fines if their sandwich board signs get in the way of pedestrians.

That’s one of the changes after Petrolia Town Council updated its sign bylaw.

Ron Nesbitt, a Lambton County planner working for Petrolia, says the bylaw has been working fairly well since it was put in place but some changes needed to be made.

The changes were prompted by some of the problems the town was having regulating street signs commonly called sandwich boards. Deputy Clerk Mandi Pearson says often the signs end up in the middle of the sidewalk.

“It’s a matter of public safety,” says Pearson. “No matter how many notices I hand deliver people put them in the middle of the sidewalk.”

The amendments spell out retailers must leave about six feet of space for pedestrians and if they don’t, they could face a $250 fine.

The changes also limit how big signs in store windows can be. “In both commercial and downtown regulations more complete set of rules,” says Nesbitt. “We want to keep windows open – we want to be able to see inside the store…we’ve limited the amount of signs (allowing retailers) to cover up to 25 percent of a window with signage.”

Pearson says the issue came up when three businesses wanted to use new technology, which allowed pedestrians to use touch screen technology with electronic window signs.

The bylaw would allow the use of the electronic signs as long as they don’t cover more than 25 per cent of the window.

Nesbitt says the changes also give council more leeway on signage allowing council to approve signage, which may not be “exactly to the letter” of the bylaw but “make sense according to the building.”

 

 

 

Share This

Image
Front Page

North Lambton wins SWOSSA Girls basketball crown for first time in school’s history

November 12, 2024

Forest’s North Lambton Eagles has qualified for the OFSAA girls’ basketball tournament for the first time in school history. The Eagles led from wire-to-wire in beating Lajeunese, 40-25 in Windsor for the SWOSSA A championship Tuesday. North Lambton led 14-7 after a quarter and took a 25-10 advantage into the intermission. The Eagles extended their lead to 41-15 after three

Read More

Image
News

Victoria Hall roof getting a second fix

November 12, 2024

Imperial Roofing employees are at work high atop Victoria Hall this week. In July, during a major storm, water came into the auditorium. A patch job was completed, according to a report by Julie Bullock, director of parks, recreation and facilities for the town. It was supposed to hold until the insurance claim was settled. But water came leaking in

Read More

Image
Front Page

Guilty plea in theft and ransacking of Watford Legion

November 12, 2024

The Independent A Watford man charged after a break in at the local Legion has plead guilty to some of the charges.In April, when members of Branch 172 arrived at the Nauvoo Road building, they called police reporting a break-in. Police found someone kicked in a window and entered the building early that morning. He took four cash boxes with

Read More

Image
Front Page

Careless driving charged in Petrolia Line/Plank Road crash

November 12, 2024

A 64 year-old Sarinia driver is facing a careless driving charge after a van struck a hydro pole, leaving some residents of St. Clair Township in the dark Monday. Just after 11 am Monday, police, paramedics and St. Clair firefighters were called to Petrolia Line and Plank Road after a van hit a hydro pole at the corner. The driver

Read More