2 June 2005

Ponsonby pedestrians walk freely after sandwich board seizures

Auckland City Council cracked down on illegal sandwich boards yesterday, with the seizure of non-compliant boards cluttering the footpaths in Ponsonby and Jervois roads.

The council has received public complaints about illegal signs limiting pedestrian movement and cluttering the streets, says Warren Adler, Auckland City’s incident management project manager.

“We’re pleased with the results of the operation, which has visibly removed clutter in some locations, providing better access for pedestrians,” says Mr Adler. “This was just the start, but we did it to raise awareness among Ponsonby business owners of the regulations they must follow when using sandwich boards – and further sweeps will occur.”

Twenty-four signs were removed during the operation, primarily for the presence of more than one sign per 10 metres of road frontage, as is permitted in the bylaws. Several were removed for exceeding the one metre height limit or for being placed too far from the kerb, obstructing pedestrians.

Businesses were also alerted of illegal good displays, planter boxes, side screens and excess chairs and tables outside their properties that can block the footpath.

As this is the first time an operation of this type has been carried out by the council, it will not charge business owners for the return of seized sandwich boards. However, in future the owners will have to pay a fee to get illegal signs back.

ENDS

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