CRAWFORD – After discussion at the Zoning Change Committee for the Town of Crawford, a survey regarding commercial sign law has been sent out to businesses throughout Pine Bush and Bullville. The survey was produced by Jo Ann Keegan, who heads the Architectural Review Board.

"The reason we're doing this is to see what the businesses here want," says Keegan. "Ideally we'd have a law that was uniform, but fair, and still had some flexibility in it for individual cases."

When you talk to business owners in Pine Bush, it quickly becomes apparent that signage is a very important issue.

"My sign is the biggest draw I have in this town," says Mary Anna Di Spigna, proprietor of the Heaven on Earth health food store on Main Street, near the junction with Route 302.

"Signs have to be visible to traffic, because there is no foot traffic, and the only way to do that is to have something a little more aggressive in your windows."

From the other end of Main Street comes a supporting view from Terry Williams of Williams Business Machines.

"People don't walk through this town as much as they do in, say, Cold Spring. All we get here is car traffic and so the only way to get attention is through our signs. "That means we have to have a great sign that will entice drivers to, one: park their cars; and two: come and find us. They have to make an effort to come here. That's why we have to change our signs on a regular basis. We have to let people know that we have something new in the store….That's why we have to have a street sign out there."

Unfortunately, street signs, or billboard signs, are not allowed by the current town code.

Ellen Quimby, of Quimby & Smith Country Store, is aware of the difficult balancing act that a sign law in Pine Bush has to achieve.

"Sidewalk signs don't bother me. We need them. It's a very fine line between having everything look gaudy and stepping on other people's rights."

Williams points out the inevitable, when it comes to Pine Bush.

"Everybody wants the town to look better. But that's a tough thing to do when there are four gas stations in three blocks."

Indeed, throw in the Chase Bank and the town's score on the Cute Country Place Chart drops significantly.

But it could be worse — or so feel those who are concerned about things like electronic signage.

"Flashing or non-flashing," says Jo Ann Keegan. "That is the question. Anything moving on a sign is non-conforming to code. There are other things that are banned. No balloons are allowed, for instance."

But electric box signs, lit from within, like Williams Business Machines' sign, are allowed. However, modern electronic message signs with moving letters are not. "It gets real tricky," says Keegan. "That's why we're doing the survey."

Mary Anna Di Spigna, for example, has been planning on repainting her windows at Heaven on Earth. "My windows are my best opportunity to get people to see my store when they drive by. I've been looking for a painter to do something really nice."

She wasn't aware, however, that the code currently allows paint on only 50 percent of the window.

"I didn't know that. Tricky."

Phil Jamison, Chair of the Planning Board, observes that "the biggest problem with our sign law is enforcing it fairly, and consistently. The only consequence of an illegal sign in our town now is the loss of the sign."

Jamison explains that keeping control of signage is vital for the town. "If we didn't control it, then everyone puts up more and more signs and you get this visual noise and you don't look at any of it. Business owners have to keep in mind that it's in their benefit, too, to have a sign law."

That said, Jamison is aware of the need for signage. "We need to listen to the business owners; signs are necessary, we know. And the technology is changing, like the new signs at gas stations that change the price electronically. So this isn't a static situation and we need to reword things so it's easier for the building inspector to enforce."

There are plenty of questions for everyone — not just business owners, but residents too. Should there be big directory signs at either end of the main street? Would that help attract drivers to the local businesses? Should flashing electronic signs be allowed?

"When people drive by at night, if your store isn't lit up then no one's going to see you," says Di Spigna.

Do residents want to see a string of glowing signs down Main Street? What if those signs improved the business climate in the town?

"We won't produce anything until we've heard back from the businesses in the town," says Jo Ann Keegan. She also says that people should not be worrying too much about this. "I'm a small business owner too, I understand the pressures."

Regarding the survey, Keegan says that she'd "like to have some of them back by the end of August. It would be nice to present something at the next meeting of the zoning Change Committee on September 10.