Clock Ticking on Abandoned Signs Advertising Closed Businesses in Marion

Store front signs continue to advertise a massage parlor that was the subject of an October prostitution sting and a salsa bar right of the main square even though the businesses have been closed for months. 

Abandoned signs for the closed Spy Bar and Asian Massage caught the eye of Marion City Council members, who want to enact a law to more quickly get signs removed after a business closes, a planning and zoning official said. 

"It wasn't just one business, several businesses have left signs," said Dave Hockett, assistant director of planning and zoning in Marion. "They've moved to Cedar Rapids and the signs stay up advertising a business that is no longer there. There's no reason for sign to be up."

A public hearing will be held during City Council meeting on Thursday, July 11 for a law that would speed up the process for getting abandoned signs down. That would be followed by the first reading of the ordinance.

The ordinance would allow the city to begin the notification process after 30 days as opposed to six months, which is in city code now. The business or property owner would then have 30 days to appeal. 

The law primarily targets businesses, but it could also pertain to churches, schools or other operations, Hockett said. 

If a business owner doesn't respond, it would be the property owners responsibility, he said. If a business or property owner refuses, the city could cite them, he said. 

"Six months is a long time. You notify them and then they appeal. All of a sudden you have a sign up for a year after a business has closed," Hockett said.