{"id":63085,"date":"2021-01-14T12:00:44","date_gmt":"2021-01-14T17:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/?p=63085"},"modified":"2021-01-15T14:38:33","modified_gmt":"2021-01-15T19:38:33","slug":"meslin-if-a-billboard-falls-in-a-forest-part-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2021\/01\/14\/meslin-if-a-billboard-falls-in-a-forest-part-4\/","title":{"rendered":"MESLIN: If a billboard falls in a forest\u2026 Part 4"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Exactly fifteen years ago this week, I received this short and uplifting e-mail from Toronto city staff:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em><strong>January 12, 2006<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Hi Dave,<\/em><br \/>\n<em>We have researched these two [billboards] and we have no records of any permits. I have issued a notice to the owner to either obtain a permit or remove the signs. I will keep you updated\u00a0you as to the progress of these signs.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>thanks, <\/em><br \/>\n<em>Christine Muccilli<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Municipal Standards Officer<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This concise confession was, I thought, the final step in <a href=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2014\/06\/19\/if-a-billboard-falls-in-a-forest_1\/\">my efforts to clear some corporate clutter from a greenspace in my neighbourhood<\/a>. \u00a0Shortly after, I was told that <em>\u201cOur contractor is in the process of having the signs removed\u2026.. This should happen today or tomorrow at the latest.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Yet 5,479 days later, the illegal billboards are still there.<\/p>\n<p>I recently <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/meslin\/status\/1348687381906534400\">wrote on Twitter<\/a> that <em>\u201cThe success of the billboard industry&#8217;s goal to mark public space as their own territory can be used as a litmus test for any city, in determining who&#8217;s in control: citizens or lobbyists. In Toronto, the answer is lobbyists.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n<p>Nowhere is this more clear than these two illegal signs at Bathurst and Davenport, adjacent to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tollkeeperscottage.ca\/\">The Tollkeeper\u2019s Park<\/a>.\u00a0 City staff know there are no permits, but they seem unable to enforce their own bylaw.<\/p>\n<p>But as disappointing as this journey has been so far, I\u2019m no quitter.\u00a0 My 30 years as a community advocate has taught me two things:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Change takes longer than it should<\/li>\n<li>Change is indeed possible<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In other words, persistence is the key ingredient required in this game.<\/p>\n<p>The billboard companies who want to spread their ad-creep into every corner of our neighbourhoods and parks have an upper-hand.\u00a0 They can afford to pay full-time lobbyists to get the rules bent in their favour, secure exemptions from any rules that stand in their way, and obstruct city staff who are trying to enforce our bylaws.<\/p>\n<p>But we have a few things <em>they<\/em> don\u2019t have: public opinion, karma, and volunteer passion.<\/p>\n<p>2021 is our year.\u00a0 The \u201cillegal billboard\u201d drama has gone on <a href=\"https:\/\/bilton.wordpress.com\/2009\/10\/21\/ad-hawk-activism-eye-weekly-10-7-09\/\">for too long in Toronto<\/a> and it\u2019s time to reclaim the commons.\u00a0 The Toronto Public Space Committee has launched a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.publicspace.ca\/illegal_billboards\">new offensive<\/a>, targeting not only the Tollkeepers signs, but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/u\/0\/edit?mid=1z3ZvsBaADtH4awKPgSp5IBghg5LdNfL2&amp;usp=sharing\">fifteen other locations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Some of them are Window-Blockers:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63088 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.12.26-PM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.12.26-PM.png 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.12.26-PM-300x191.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63089 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.20.05-PM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"363\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.20.05-PM.png 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.20.05-PM-300x182.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63087 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2020-07-27-at-12.43.32-PM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2020-07-27-at-12.43.32-PM.png 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2020-07-27-at-12.43.32-PM-300x214.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Others are Sky-Blockers:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63091 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/410-Keele.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"323\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/410-Keele.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/410-Keele-300x162.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>And some Random Greenspace Weeds:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63092 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.27.51-PM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"342\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.27.51-PM.png 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Screen-Shot-2021-01-12-at-5.27.51-PM-300x171.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This kind of work is never easy. Municipal bureaucracy seems designed to scare aware ordinary citizens who try to get involved.\u00a0 We had to file a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.toronto.ca\/city-government\/accountability-operations-customer-service\/access-city-information-or-records\/freedom-of-information\/\">Freedom of Information Request<\/a>, just to get access to a spreadsheet showing which billboards in Toronto have permits and which don\u2019t. This should be public information, and easily available through the city\u2019s so-called \u201cOpen Data\u201d program.\u00a0 Instead, we had to pay a fee, fill out a form, wait a few weeks, then pay another fee to cover the shipping cost for a USB stick to be mailed to my house.\u00a0 Every part of that, is absurd.<\/p>\n<p>According to records we\u2019ve now secured from the City, more than 750 billboards in the city don\u2019t seem to have any permits. But even the locations that <em>do<\/em> have permits might be illegal.\u00a0 For example, a billboard company might have a permit from 1955 to install a small wooden sign, but now they\u2019ve installed an giant electronic video screen.\u00a0 The location \u201chas a permit\u201d, but the sign is illegal.\u00a0 The only way to determine this, is to look at the details of each permit.\u00a0 But the City is charging us $70 to look at the details. $70 per permit! Considering there are more than two thousand permits that need to be looked at, we\u2019re talking about an upfront cost of $140K, just to look at public documents.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these ridiculous obstacles placed in our way, I\u2019m feeling quite optimistic. There are three recent developments in particular that are boosting our momentum, and strengthening our campaign:<\/p>\n<p>First, Toronto filmmakers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/shortdocs\/filmmakers\/cat-mills\">Cat Mills<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/shortdocs\/filmmakers\/felicity-justrabo\">Felicity Justrobo<\/a> have secured funding from <em>Al-Jazeera<\/em> to produce a documentary film about the Toronto Public Space Committee\u2019s campaign to liberate our public spaces from corporate ad-creep. I&#8217;m so excited about this, because we need more ways to teach civic literacy and advocacy skills, and this could be a perfect tool to recruit and train new campaigners.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63093 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-600x600.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-940x940.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat-62x62.jpg 62w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/cat.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Second, we have a new secret weapon: my 11-year old niece Elica. She recently met with <a href=\"https:\/\/joshmatlow.ca\/\">Councillor Josh Matlow<\/a> to discuss the Tollkeeper billboards. She\u2019s taking the lead on that location, since she lives two blocks away. She\u2019s not a voter yet, but Councillor Matlow would be taking a risk if he chose to underestimate her wrath.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63094 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-600x600.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-940x940.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica-62x62.jpg 62w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/Elica.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Lastly, Montreal is leading the way!\u00a0 Just a few months ago, following many years of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/canada\/montreal\/billboard-ban-draws-legal-threat-1.912240\">legal battles<\/a>, the local Borough Council of Plateau Mont Royal succeeded in getting <a href=\"https:\/\/montreal.ctvnews.ca\/after-10-years-a-legal-battle-and-a-free-speech-debate-plateau-now-billboard-free-1.5190262?cache=qvshrwvqjpjtx%3FcontactForm%3Dtrue\">every single corporate billboard in their district physically removed<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63096 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n-600x201.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n-600x201.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n-300x101.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n-768x258.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n-940x315.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123441476_10157259852801783_4265269879423362827_n.jpg 1070w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63095 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n-600x210.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"210\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n-600x210.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n-300x105.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n-768x269.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n-940x329.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/122297912_10157245858621783_1204987919242784794_n.jpg 1083w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63097 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123829020_10157269743501783_8569234383781696687_n.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"583\" height=\"423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123829020_10157269743501783_8569234383781696687_n.jpg 583w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/123829020_10157269743501783_8569234383781696687_n-300x218.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 583px) 100vw, 583px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.teardown.build\/\">my book,<\/a> <em>Teardown<\/em>, I talk about the two phases of reclaiming the visual environment in our public spaces: \u201cClearing the Clutter,\u201d and then re-imagining what we can do with the \u201cConcrete Canvas.\u201d In other words, getting rid of illegal billboards (or in Montreal\u2019s case, <em>all<\/em> billboards) is just the first step. The goal isn\u2019t to create a sterile public realm, void of expression. Rather, our streets, alleys and parks provide an endless opportunity for neighbourhood-led art projects, community information-sharing, and interactive experiments. Elica reminded Councillor Matlow of this opportunity, by proposing that the two signs at the Tollkeeper\u2019s Park could be handed over to her school across the street, to display students\u2019 art! She even provided him with three examples of her own art, as they would look pasted up larger-than-life on the Bathurst billboards.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63101 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4-600x389.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"389\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4-600x389.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4-768x497.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4-940x609.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/4.jpg 962w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63099 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2-600x389.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"389\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2-600x389.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2-768x497.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2-940x609.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/2.jpg 962w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-63098 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1-600x389.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"389\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1-600x389.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1-768x497.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1-940x609.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/01\/1.jpg 962w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Community art reminds us who we are, and makes each neighbourhood unique. While every commercial billboard is a hollow attempt to commercialise your mental attention, each example of local art is a small burst of humanity.<\/p>\n<p>This particular journey began fifteen years ago. But it ends in 2021. Get <a href=\"http:\/\/www.publicspace.ca\/join\">involved!<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Montreal photos courtesy of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/alexander.norris\/\">City Councillor Alex Norris<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/fGVQmU\">Top photo by Adrian Berg (cc)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exactly fifteen years ago this week, I received this short and uplifting e-mail from Toronto city staff: January 12, 2006 Hi Dave, We have researched these two [billboards] and we have no records of any permits. I have issued a notice to the owner to either obtain a permit or remove the signs. I will<a href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2021\/01\/14\/meslin-if-a-billboard-falls-in-a-forest-part-4\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"sr-only\">&#8220;MESLIN: If a billboard falls in a forest\u2026 Part 4&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4008,"featured_media":63112,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[157,13,47,2,32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-civic-engagement","category-green-space","category-parks","category-politics","category-streetscape"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>MESLIN: If a billboard falls in a forest\u2026 Part 4 - Spacing Toronto<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2021\/01\/14\/meslin-if-a-billboard-falls-in-a-forest-part-4\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MESLIN: If a billboard falls in a forest\u2026 Part 4 - Spacing Toronto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Exactly fifteen years ago this week, I received this short and uplifting e-mail from Toronto city staff: January 12, 2006 Hi Dave, We have researched these two [billboards] and we have no records of any permits. I have issued a notice to the owner to either obtain a permit or remove the signs. 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