Yuba County code enforcement cracks down on illegal signs, illegally parked vehicles
YUBA COUNTY — We've all seen "yard sale" signs posted along roadways. Some of them eventually get taken down or get blown in the wind.
Residents in Yuba County have been complaining about unsightly signs, and code enforcement is listening, cracking down on illegal signs and also illegally parked vehicles.
"People oftentimes place them on county property and then they don't return to remove them, so then it ends up being a littering issue that plagues the entire community," said Jeremy Strang, Yuba County's building and code enforcement manager.
Yuba County's crack down includes snipe signs, which can be anything from a "happy birthday" sign to an advertisement posted on power poles or stop signs.
"There are signs that have been left behind advertising garage sales, which invites other littering to occur, which is what we're seeing here," Strang said.
Yuba County's local zoning law prohibits off-premise advertising. Rules for political signs can vary, but code enforcement says, generally, they should be kept on private property and not in the county's right of way.
Code enforcement noted that their efforts to crack down on illegal signage are not related to the November election. They are addressing citizen complaints and following county ordinances, focusing on education first.
"We're trying to get awareness to some of the issues of some of the citizen complaints and where they take us. Education also is us going out and talking to you. If there's a phone number on the sign, we're going to let you know. If you're parked illegally, we're going to let you know through a tag on a car," Strang said.
Yuba County Sheriff's Deputy Shane Bronson clarified that the tag might either be green or orange.
"When you come across a vehicle that's blocking the sidewalk, you potentially cause the bike, pedestrian or kids having to go into the street," Bronson said.
Code enforcement said that for now, they will be storing the signs they take down for pick up by the owner, but they will be starting enforcement around January, which would mean fines and citations. They will mainly tackle signs that could cause visual impairment for drivers. They'll be giving folks the opportunity to correct the problem before any enforcement.
