Title
RESOLUTION TO REPEAL AND REPLACE THE SEDGWICK COUNTY SIGN CODE.
Presented by: Chris W. Labrum, Director of Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Adopt the resolution.
Body
In Reed v. Town of Gilbert, 576 U.S. _____, 135 S. Ct. 2218 (2015), the Supreme Court of the United States held, in pertinent part, that content-based restrictions for the treatment of signs did not survive strict scrutiny, meaning that such content-based restrictions were unconstitutional in that they violated the First Amendment.
Like the majority of municipal sign codes prior to Reed v. Town of Gilbert, the Sedgwick County Sign Code has classifications based upon content. As a result, County staff has amended the County's sign code to remove content-based classifications so that the sign code would not run afoul of the Supreme Court's holding in Reed v. Town of Gilbert.
The proposed resolution would repeal and replace the County's existing sign code.
Alternatives: (1) Take the recommended action;
(2) take no action; or
(3) adopt a modified version of the resolution.
Financial Considerations: n/a
Legal Considerations: The Sedgwick County Sign Code needs to be modified to comply with the Reed v. Town of Gilbert decision, as portions of the current sign code are unconstitutional, in light of the Supreme Court's ruling. Authority is contained within K.S.A. 19-101 et seq. Approval is by simple majority vote.
Policy Considerations: n/a
Outside Attendees: Unknown
Multimedia Presentation: n/a