Signs of the times

LYNNWOOD — Every election season, candidates lose a portion of their campaign signs and that’s just the way it is, according to police and campaign sign manufacturers.

This is something that happens to all candidates in all areas, said Art Boruck of Boruck Printing and Silk Screen in Seattle, who manufactures many of the local candidates’ campaign signs.

“Most of (the candidates) know that, or they should if they don’t,” Boruck said. “Candidates usually like to blame the other candidates for stealing them, but usually it’s a kid or the weather that has done something with the signs.”

Boruck has almost 35 years experience with campaign signs and is a resident of Shoreline. Right now, like every year a couple weeks before the election, he is busy getting reorders done for candidates who have lost a portion of their signs one way or another.

Legally, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace and Brier all deal with stolen campaign signs as they would any other theft.

Lynnwood Police Commander Paul Watkins said if the amount of property taken is $250 or less it is treated as a misdemeanor and above that amount would be treated as a felony.

“All too often, this crime happens under the cloak of darkness,” Watkins said, “and we don’t have any leads or suspects.”

Watkins said if they could find out who was stealing signs – if that is what is making them disappear – then they would pursue charges accordingly.

Some experienced with political signs have said they are less likely to be stolen or disappear when they are on private property and not in the public right-of-way. Each city has its own regulations on location size and time limits of political signs.

According to Darryl Eastin, a senior planner in Lynnwood, signs which between four square feet and 32 square feet can be located anywhere except within public right-of-way or on city owned property, Eastin said.

“If the sign is no more than four square feet it can be on edge of public right-of-way. However, they can’t be located on or overhang pavement, street medians, sidewalks or any area where people walk, ride bicycles, drive or park vehicles,” he said.

No political signs shall be located on any Lynnwood city park property or within the public right-of-way adjacent to city park property or street medians.

Eastin also said it is the responsibility of the owner of the signs or a property owner who has the signs on their property to have the signs taken down within seven days of the election.

According to Peggy Dare, a planning specialist in Mountlake Terrace, political signs can go in the public right-of-way but can’t exceed 16 square feet in size.

“Smaller signs can be formed to be bigger, but not larger than the 16 feet maximum,” Dare said.

Sign owners need permission from the property owner if they wish to put a sign on private property. Dare said there are no restrictions on size or number of signs when located on the premises of a candidate’s headquarters.

No permit is needed for political signs in Mountlake Terrace and there isn’t a time limit noted in the city’s code.

Lynnwood officials said there hadn’t been any complaints of signs being lost or stolen in Lynnwood this year. But in Mountlake Terrace, Police Chief Scott Smith said there had been one complaint.

“There’s very little we can do about it when there are no suspects, no leads – unless we have specific information,” Smith said.

“It’s something that happens every year, and we never know typically who does it, whether it’s kids or others,” Smith said. “It’s something we just expect.”