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The Dispatch/Maryland Coast Dispatch
June 14, 2013
Tweaks Ahead For SidewalkRegs
By TRAVIS BROWN
STAFF WRITER
BERLIN – Town merchants turned out in force Monday for a public hearing on sidewalk obstructions and exceptions in Berlin. After nearly an hour of comments, the Mayor and Council chose to table voting on the ordinance until their next meeting and to look at ways to “tighten” the language in the document as well as consider the requests made by merchants. The most popular request made during the hearing was for merchants who were located off-Main Street to be allowed two sandwichboard signs. Currently, all vendors in town are only allowed a single sign. While this may be adequate for the businesses located on Main Street who catch the most foot traffic, Berlin Chamber of Commerce Secretary Mike Wiley told the council, “The merchants off of Main Street have a visibility problem.” By allowing the more secluded merchants the option of a second sidewalk sign, Wiley said the chamber expects a significant number of visitors to further explore the town and find shops they may have never encountered otherwise. Shelly Bruder, owner of Bruder Hill, agreed, saying, “We have a hard time not being on Main Street.” Bruder’s current sandwich-board sign has already brought in much
more business than she believes would have visited otherwise. Since the town began taking a renewed look at sidewalk obstruction over the past month, Bruder said that she has been polling new customers. A huge number of them only found the store because of its sign. Allowing off-Main Street vendors a second sign could provide an economic boost without creating an unreasonable amount of clutter, according to Bruder. Though the merchants were united in asking for a second sign option, the town’s Historic District Commission (HDC) opposed the idea. “We support our merchants; we want them to do well. We want people to shop in their stores, to eat in their restaurants,” said HDC Chair Carol Rose. “We want everyone to do well. That being said, there should be standards with these sidewalk signs.” Rose listed four standards that the HDC recommends the town work into any new sidewalk obstruction ordinance. The HDC suggests that sandwich-board sign only be made of wood, stay at the current dimensions allowed, be painted and be regulated to only one sign per business. Furthermore, HDC member Joel Todd asked that whatever standards the town adopts that the HDC continue to serve in its role reviewSEE NEXT PAGE
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