Task force attacking signs, graffiti

Flint’s Citizens Nuisance Task Force is a group determined to clean up the city by eliminating public nuisances, such as illegal signs and graffiti.

The city’s sign ordinance covers all signs, including yard sale, political and lost pet signs, and prohibits all signs on the parkway (the area between the street and sidewalk) or on utility poles and traffic signs.

According to the ordinance, “No person shall attach any notice, sign, placards, carpet or other encumbrance on any tree, fountain, post, railing, fence or other structure in or surrounding any public park ground or boulevard.”

There are also time restrictions on some allowed signs.

“Yard sale signs shall remain posted no longer than nine days, nor more than two occasions within a 12-month period.”

According to task force President Michael Tobias, “It’s just litter on a stick.”

Tobias doesn’t think the ordinance needs to be updated.

“The real problem with the city is enforcement. We’ve got the laws, but nobody wants to enforce them.”

With elections approaching the group must deal with an increasing number of illegal political signs.

“If the person running for office can’t place the signs legally and pick them up, I can’t vote for them,” Tobias says.

Tobias says the group is removing hundreds of signs every week, “We’ve removed a lot of stuff, but five years later we’re still removing stuff. It’s like there’s no bottom to this pit.”

“We have various places in Flint where the telephone poles are like totem poles,” complains task force Secretary David Caswell,

The group has been given permission by Angela Watkins, acting city attorney, to continue enforcing the sign ordinance.

A March 24 letter from the city attorney reads, “The city of Flint has no objection to the Citizens Nuisance Task Force providing this volunteer service to the city. Please feel free to make it known to the public that your organization is engaging in the process of removing the illegal signs posted in the public right-of-way and from telephone and Consumers Energy poles as described.”

“We have five serious offenders that I’m turning over to the city attorney,” said Tobias.

One person has been arrested for the offense and continues to illegally place signs claiming he is being denied the right of free speech under the United States Constitution.

In May 2007, the group was joined by several other groups to hold “Graffiti Free Flint Day” to kick off a citywide campaign to eliminate graffiti. Hundreds of people worked together to cover graffiti. Graffiti has been removed from 1,051 areas since then.

The group has studied how other cities, particularly Lansing, deal with nuisances.

“In some other communities, code enforcement is self-sustaining,” Tobias says.

In Lansing a private attorney is used to help enforce such ordinances. The funds drawn from this practice are used to pay the attorney.

According to Scanlon, group treasurer, “There’s a lot of money out there that can be collected if the city went after it. The sign ordinance is really just a small part of code enforcement in Flint.”

“If there was code enforcement on the quality of life issues, our group probably wouldn’t even exist because people would know if they did something illegal there would be consequences,” said Tobias.

“This is probably one of the dirtiest cities. If you expect people to move into this city, you have to have a clean city,” added Tobias.

The task force began in 2002 when a group of Flint residents decided they had to do something about cleaning up Flint. The group is made up of 12 to 15 active members, and volunteers are recruited as necessary.

The group has received money from organizations such as Weed and Seed groups and Keep Genesee County Beautiful, as well as individuals.