LYNNWOOD — A group representing the Futon Factory in court believes it is one step closer to winning the ongoing sign code game against the city of Lynnwood.
According to a press release from the store’s legal counsel, Institute for Justice, it “scored an important victory in its fight for Free Speech” Jan. 21 when a Snohomish County Superior Court judge didn’t dismiss its lawsuit against the city which it says is aimed at protecting Free Speech rights of small businesses in Lynnwood.
City attorney Greg Rubstello said the city objects to The Futon Factory using “A” boards and/or sandwich boards, where a person wears a sign over the shoulders and waves to passers-by on a street corner. The city’s sign code allows for such signs no more than eight feet away from the store building, Rubstello said, adding that Futon Factory employees have been walking with the signs blocks away from the store and on busy street corners. Rubstello said the activity is a possible safety hazard to drivers who may be distracted or slowing to read the signs.
Because the issue is in court, the city isn’t enforcing that portion of the code, Rubstello said. In the lull, Futon Factory and other businesses along 196th Street SW, such as the Quiznos sandwich shop, which uses a human-size Quiznos soda cup-costumed employee, which waves to passers-by on the sidewalk to advertise its business.
According to the owner of this Quiznos, they weren’t aware the city’s sign code and they didn’t know if they would continue use of the costume.
Futon Factory representatives said the city, by not letting them advertise in this way, is violating their First Amendment rights to free speech.
According to a press release, city code enforcement officials told store officials that if the signage strategy didn’t stop, the store would be fined.
“Rather than buckle to the city’s pressure,” the press release stated, “The Futon Factory added the message ‘The Futon Factory believes in Free Speech’ to its signs.”
Rubstello said city officials are also waiting to see what will happen in Superior Court with a similar situation involving The Blazing Bagel Guy and the city of Redmond.
“We have taken a hands-off approach on enforcement during this time while the Redmond case is up for appeal and while the Lynnwood Council can look at provisions to its sign code,” Rubstello said.
According to Rubstello, some of the possibilities the council could choose are to change or broaden the sign code, leave it as is and fight the lawsuit or address the complaints and allow for some of those types of sign uses.
If the code doesn’t change and the city starts to enforce it again, Rubstello said officials would go out and educate business owners before citing violators.
While the Jan. 21 court ruling in Snohomish County didn’t throw the issue out, Rubstello said it is unclear whether the lawsuit will go forward.
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