SALINA, Kan. — Salina City Commissioners Tuesday authorized Mayor Greg Lenkiewicz to execute agreements to pause enforcement of a federal judge’s ruling in November Salina’s sign codes are unconstitutional and authorizing appeal of that ruling to the 10th US Circuit Court of Appeals,
This centers on an ongoing battle between the Cozy Inn and the city over a mural on the north wall of their building, which the city said is not allowed under city sign codes. The court ruling held Salina’s sign codes were unconstitutional based on murals having to be non-commercial.
As part of an agreement entered into between the Cozy Inn and the city, the establishment will be able to complete the mural at the center of this controversy. An agreement entered into by both parties sets out parameters if the city prevails on its appeal, which would include compliance timeliness that could include seeking a variance.
Special counsel Todd Messenger said this case has become one of national interest, as the center of it is based on what constitutes a sign. “We got to know what it is if we’re going to regulate it,’ he explained, and even though there is a 150-year history of regulating signs, there has never been a court case on what constitutes a sign, which Messenger said is at stake in this case.
Both sides have also agreed to waive claims for attorneys fees and costs. Messenger said the cost of this appeal to the city should run between 50 and 70 thousand dollars, the higher sun if the case goes to oral argument.
