The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-08-06
Boards of Supervisors May Remove
These at Their Own Discretion
According to Attorney
General.
COUNTY ASKS RELIEF
Death kneH to Outdoor Advertising
Signs Is Sounded in Rulino
Which Recently Was
Made.

| County board of Supervisors and
| county road supervisors have authori-
u to remove from the public high
ways any and all advertising signs
placed therein. This is the opinion of
| the attorney general, as given yes
terday to the county supervisors and
attorney of Cerro Gordo county. The
| officials of Cerro Gordo plan to order
removed, within thirty days, any and
all advertising signs on Carro Gordo
! roads and highways.
The board in its letter to the attnr-
ney general asked if It bad the au-
thor1ty to remove signs bearing ad-
verns1ng matter. Heretofore the aues-
ton OF signs as an article of adorn-
ment for public highways has fur
n1shed topic for debate in many
counties in the state Tourists and
| residents of given sections have. com
planned that the highways were fast
becoming mere lanes of billboards, in
stead of beauty spots. II has been
charged that the signs took AWAY the
natural beauty Of many iowa high
ways and that they further ohstruct-
ed the view of drivers.
Cerro Gordo Submits Question,
The outdoor advertisers in turn put
up fancy billboards, declared they
helped enhance the natural beauty of
the highways, and were commercially
correct. The attorney generals office
with its opinion may, however, sound
| the partial knel of outdoor signs on
| the public highways.
| The Cerro Gordo supervisors wrote
| to the attorney general as follows:
| Our thought was to notify all per
sons, firms and corporations whose
signs may now be in the public high
ways, to remove the same within thir-
4 ty days, or they would be removed
| by the road patrolmen under fl. in
| structions of the board Of supervisors.
| We would like your opinion on the
question of whether the board of SUI
pervisors has authority to take such
! action"
Attorneys Generals Ruling.
The attorney generals opinion says
in part:
"A public highway from side to
side, and end to end, belongs to the
| public, and the question is too we'll
| settled to dispute. 1t has been re-
! peatedly held that an obstruction
need not entirely block traffic In or
| der to be the subject of removal. 1t is
classed as an obstruction if it is
shown that it is an impeachment or
| hindrance which tends to interfere
with free passage along the high.
ways.
1T might further be stated that no
person has right to appropriate a
part of the highway to his own use by
using it for the posting Of signs and
advertising matter. The highway be-
! longs to the public and the public
may protect its use of such premises
| by removing all distractions placed
! therein.
'"That advertising signs are OBJ
stac1es tending to impede passage
along highway can be established
by inquiry of any tourist who has
tried to follow a marked trail and
been Obliged to stop at a corner and
read over a dozen signs to ascertain
the official trail marker
The attorney general then holds
that the Cerro Gorio board Of super
visors may remove advertising signs
in the highways Of that county. His
ruling, of course, applies to other
counties, and it is said other county
officials will order the removal of
advertising signs on their respective
county roads and highways.