Walton TDC halts installation of signs
A workshop will be held in late march to hear residents? concerns
Andy Meinen
Thursday February 28th, 2008
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SANTA ROSA BEACH ? The installation of the big blue signs on Walton County Road 30A is on hold, at least for now.
The county?s Tourist Development Council decided to halt the process until a workshop is held the last week of March with residents.
Tracy Louthain, spokeswoman for the TDC, said the meeting, which hasn?t been officially set, will let both sides air their differences over the blue road signs that have caused such an outcry over the last few months.
"We believe there is an amicable solution out there," she said.
Louthain said she will announce the time and location of the meeting in a few days when she gets the gathering finalized.
South Walton resident Claire Bannerman is coordinating with the TDC to set up the workshop and get the signs removed. She said the metal signs degrade the beauty and character of CR 30A and South Walton. Bannerman has been active in the issue and has been questioned repeatedly about the signs from strangers and friends.
"I get cold calls from people I don?t know telling me that they don?t like the signs," she said. "The whole buzz lately has been the blue signs."
So why do so many people have such a problem with them?
"It?s the size, the font and the placement is horrific," she said.
Residents are protective of the area, she added.
Bannerman said she and many others are proud of the signs that had been installed by communities such as Rosemary Beach, WaterColor and Alys Beach; not so with the "big blue monsters" the TDC began to install last month.
The TDC spent about $260,000 to install 49 signs that include wayfinding, gateway and neighborhood markers for each community. Louthain said most of the 49 road markers have been put in, but noted that all installation along the CR 30A corridor has stopped. She isn?t sure how many signs are left to be put in.
Bannerman said the workshop will be a time for both sides to find a solution. However, the TDC should listen closely to residents? comments or its image could be damaged in the public?s eyes.
"Sometimes we all make mistakes," she said.
But the TDC will have a "loss of standing with residents, locals and visitors" if something isn?t done about the signs, Bannerman added. "The TDC didn?t connect with the sensitive citizens along 30A."
Dave Rauschkolb, owner of Bud and Alley?s, agreed.
He said that he?s willing to start a fund to pay for the removal of the signs. He took a $1,000 check of his own to the TDC last week, but the council couldn?t take it.
Louthain said if the TDC and residents decide at the workshop to set up a nonprofit group or a bank account to raise money for the removal process, then that would be the appropriate time to collect money. The TDC doesn?t have the ability or framework at this time to accept donations for the removal process, she said.
The area?s attraction is at the heart of the issue for Rauschkolb and others, and the blue signs take away from that.
"The more you can do to preserve the character of the area, the more people will come because that is inherently beautiful," he said.
Daily News Staff Writer Andy Meinen can be reached at 654-6905.
