Trustees Approve Raising Village Park Sign

The Sussex Village Board allotted money Tuesday to raise the sign at the entrance of Village Park.

The 4-2 vote allows village staff to spend up to $5,000 to raise the height of the sign by at least 12 inches due to concerns some residents have about visibility of messages being advertised.

Trustees Steve Berger and Fred Gallant voted against the proposal.

“We’ve received a number of comments and questions as to why the sign is so low,” Parks and Recreation Board Chair Robert Fourness said. “Particularly when you head west it’s very difficult to see the sign, particularly if we have snow on the ground and you get only a very quick glimpse.”

Fourness said the electronic sign was put up several years ago to commemorate the anniversary of the park and to advertise programs to the public, but due to zoning issues it was put relatively low to the ground.

Because the sign is so low, he said many people have said they can’t read it. By raising the sign he said it will help with visibility especially if there’s snow on the ground, which can further block the sign.

The project is expected to cost $5,000, which includes $1,000 to move the sign up, $3,000 to raise the pillars and $1,000 as contingency. The funds will come out of the parks capital cash fund and a $1,500 surplus set aside the past several years.

There are some concerns with the readability of the sign given the size of the lettering, but Fourness said it cost more than $20,000 to build and raising the sign is the most reasonable option at this time.

“I don’t believe you’re going to get anything better out of the sign than you’ve got now,” Berger said.