The Mayor and City Council (M&CC) has issued a warning to city dwellers over unauthorised signs and other structures on council property.
In a press release on Thursday, the council said that its notice comes in the wake of numerous complaints against its constabulary officers who remove business and company signs and items; including no-parking signs erected at store fronts belonging to the city.
The council said that before persons can utilize pavements, sidewalks and other public spaces in such a manner, they are required to obtain a permit in accordance with bylaw 10 of the Municipal and District Councils Act Cap. 23:01.
According to the release, Town Clerk Royston King said that the removal of unauthorized signs and other materials is part of the M&CC’s efforts to return order within the city. King said in the release that many of the Council’s rules and regulations which were not observed for a long time, are now being enforced.
He said that the Council is responsible for removing the signs, since the areas where they have been erected, are under the direct control of City Hall.
King noted that many store owners illegally erect no-parking signs in front of their stores without permission. He stressed that persons cannot erect signs to ensure the availability of parking spots whenever they leave and return to their businesses.
The Town Clerk is quoted in the release as saying, “these public spaces belong to all citizens and no one person has the right to erect any sign in a public space, especially when it serves to benefit them only.”
King said that sidewalks, pavements and other such spaces are the property of all citizens, though controlled by the Council, and that no person is authorized to have their business signs in the public space, impeding the easy movement of persons or vehicular traffic.
The release noted that no-parking and business signs are evident all over the city and easily noticeable in busy business locations such as Robb, Regent and Water streets among many others.
The release highlighted that when no-parking signs were removed from the Opposition’s Freedom House Headquarters last week, they alleged that it was a deliberate attack on them by the City Council.
The Town Clerk however said in the release that all agencies and businesses etc. will be subjected to the same treatment once in violation of Council’s rules and regulations; noting that signs belonging to major companies such as Digicel and GT&T along with other small businesses were also removed by the council.
