Ringgold sign committees continue to multiply

Sign in Ringgold, Ga., is source of controversy.
Sign in Ringgold, Ga., is source of controversy.
photo Ringgold Mayor Joe Barger wants to prevent ginkgo trees in Citizens Park from being replaced with maples.

Ringgold, Ga., leaders must like committees.

They voted to create a new sign committee to replace their old sign committee, which had been created earlier this month to supersede a third sign committee.

But even that might not be enough, the mayor said. He said Committee No. 3 is not legal. So next up: Committee No. 4?

The latest action in the debate about the electronic community sign in downtown Ringgold unfolded during the City Council's meeting Monday night. First, the elected officials agreed to rescind their votes from their Jan. 12 meeting because they weren't sure exactly what they voted for.

On that night, the council voted to create a committee that would find a new home for the electronic sign within three months. Later that same night, they voted again to create a different committee, one that would have a year to move the sign.

But what if they couldn't find a new home after one year? Some councilmen thought the sign would remain where it is, located on Nashville Street. Others thought city employees would take the sign down.

Split on the issue, the council voted Monday to hit the undo button. Then they voted to create a new committee. This time, they will appoint residents who have said they want to keep the sign downtown, as well as residents who want to move it.

Though installed downtown years ago, the electronic sign became a source of dispute in Ringgold about two months ago when local attorney McCracken Poston protested its presence in a series of Facebook posts.

Some residents have petitioned to move it, arguing that a blinking display that changes from one advertisement to another every couple of seconds doesn't belong downtown. They say electronic billboards don't fit Ringgold's historic, the-town-that-time-can't-touch vibe.

On Tuesday, Mayor Joe Barger questioned the five-member council's latest decision. According to city code, the mayor creates committees with support from the council. But he said this committee is operating backward.

He said the council is going to appoint the committee members and he is supposed to approve their decisions. That runs against the rules, he said.

"It's illegal," he said. "I couldn't stop them. I told them, 'Go by the charter.' They didn't."

Barger wants to move the sign because he thinks it distracts drivers traveling through downtown.

Councilman Earl Henderson, who also thinks the city should move the sign, voted against the motion Monday night. He isn't sure of the best way to proceed.

"Some people have emotional attachments to the sign," he said. "I just hope cool heads prevail. ... The sign serves a great purpose. It really does. Somewhere in all of this is a solution."

Barger was surprised to watch residents fill Ringgold City Hall the past two months to debate the sign's location. Usually, he sees only a handful of people at council meetings.

"The more they come to meetings and better express their opinions, the better off the city will be," he said. "If they will do that, it will help the council to always do what's right. [The council thinks] they're helping the city.

"Maybe they don't know better."

Councilmen Nick Millwood and Randall Franks did not return calls seeking comment, Councilman Terry Crawford has a stated policy of not talking to the media, and Councilman Jack Haynes' listed phone number does not work.

Contact staff writer Tyler Jett at 423-757-6476.

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