City: Keep political signs in yards

There's so much enthusiasm for this year's presidential race that it's almost spilling into the streets in Findlay, and that's a problem. The City of Findlay announced last week that city workers have been instructed to begin removing yard signs that are placed in the public right-of-way. Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn said there are a large number of the signs being placed in the right-of-way, which is typically a tree lawn, between the sidewalk and the street. Findlay's zoning code governs both the size and placement of political signs. Residents may have an unlimited number of signs, but they can be no bigger than 32 square feet, with a maximum height of 8 feet. Signs must be placed on private property and are not permitted in public rights-of-way, such as tree lawns or near street intersections. They also cannot be posted on utility poles, fences, trees or any public or private sign structure. "This is not a permitted location for yard signs and if they are located there our team is removing them," said Muryn. "At this time we are not able to relocate the signs because of potential liabilities issue if our team puts them in someone's yard who did not actually want the sign." Residents may retrieve yard signs removed by city crews at the Parker Building, 224 W. Crawford St. The signs can be found at the southwest corner of the building, next to the sandbags. Muryn emailed the message to both political parties Wednesday, along with local media outlets. Earlier this month, both the Hancock County Republican Party and the county's Democratic Party reported that the demand for yard signs, especially in the presidential race, started early this year and remains high. Both parties are also reporting their signs are being stolen and vandalized throughout Findlay and Hancock County, and said they are trying to discourage it. While there is no law in Ohio that specifically protects political signs, charges of trespassing could be raised.