LETTER: Citizen Asks, ‘Change Sign Laws to Help Wilton Small Businesses’

To the Editor:

I am a Wilton homeowner and taxpayer. I strive to shop local at every opportunity. I have several friends who are Wilton entrepreneurs and I root for their success and survival daily. Yet some of our town rules and ordinances seem to fight their opportunity to succeed all too frequently.

Wilton should be a premier shopping destination in Fairfield County — much like our neighbors New Canaan and Westport. Our businesses should not only receive our Town’s support, but they deserve and earn it every day! Thriving small businesses in Wilton are good for Wilton and its tax base.

I assume our town leaders understand that.

In the .2 miles along River Rd. from Stop & Shop to the Village Luncheonette, there are 10 large signs announcing to all in great BIG BOLD letters that, in that short distance, there are at least 10 buildings available with space to rent or lease — presumably as a result of businesses that closed. In the 200 yds. on Rte. 7 from Wells Fargo to the old Seymours Hardware store (the Dunkin Donuts strip mall), there are five even bigger signs advertising ‘Lease’ and ‘Rent’ availability. But can our entrepreneur retailers renting space advertise that their businesses are open — barely! Does the “Landlord Lobby” of Wilton hold some special sway and deserve dramatically different rules to advertise their lack of tenants over the actual tenants who are doing business? It’s all upside down! These Town Ordinances need to change and change now!

Signs, just by their existence, are not a blight on our roadsides. There are currently several handsome signs promoting our local establishments; take a peek at the Ring’s End sign next time you drive by. It looks incredibly tasteful and welcoming. Yes, the recent “odd” short-lived Big Box Corporate signage at Stop & Shop was tacky and ugly — and thankfully quickly removed. But our local small retailers, who want to promote their businesses would not do that. They want signage that exemplifies their high quality and good taste — not plastic flapping in the wind.

Wilton retail store owners who rent space, other than for very short durations and a defined, small number of days a year, have strict limitations on temporary signs proclaiming “they are open for business today.” Megan Abrahamsen, owner of Blue Star Bazaar, eloquently spoke to our Board of Selectmen and wrote letters to the local Press outlets more than six months ago. She seemed to receive a sympathetic ear, but to date, no action of help or support is visible. First selectman Bill Brennan asked that the Chamber of Commerce take up the issue and get input from the town’s retail renters and work with P & Z to come up with a viable strategy. Yet six months later, neither Megan nor other entrepreneur friends I know in town have heard anything from the Chamber or been solicited by the organization for their thoughts and views on the issue. And no public meetings on this topic have been scheduled by the P & Z Committee or announced. And yet, almost every few weeks, another small business closes or moves to a more retail friendly town nearby. Wilton’s economic loss continues …

I appreciate that our elected town leaders and volunteer committees are dealing with the continued focus on the Miller-Driscoll renovation, and there are gas pipeline issues and potholes to deal with, but can’t they multi-task a bit more and also try to help our local business thrive? The arcane rules of years-gone-by need serious study. And at least visually and communicatively, they are being allowed to continue to fester and impede the worthy business environment in our Town. That needs to change. And the calendar is now six more months along … The time for action is now.

Jonathan T. Woods