Fernandina Beach inn owners file suit over sign code

[Erik Sine]

Fernandina Beach inn owners file suit over sign code

They claim they have been unfairly treated by historic district rules.

By KEVIN TURNER, The Times-Union

FERNANDINA BEACH - After more than $50,000 in fines for neon signs in their front windows and years of complaints about noise from a bar next door, the owners of the historic Florida House Inn bed and breakfast have filed a lawsuit against the city, its code enforcement board and one of its code enforcement officers.

As of Wednesday, city officials had not been served with the suit, City Clerk Mary Mercer said.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville last week, says the city has harassed, intimidated and unfairly treated inn owners Joe and Diane Warwick and has violated their First Amendment constitutional rights with its sign code that restricts neon signs in the city's historic district.

Cincinnati attorney Jennifer Kinsley, who represents the inn, said Wednesday the city's sign code is tantamount to censorship.

The suit also says the Warwicks' 14th Amendment rights to due process and equal protection have been violated through a lack of enforcement against alleged violations of the city's noise ordinance by the neighboring Green Turtle Tavern.

The neighboring bar has an outdoor patio and sometimes features live music. The resultant noise is the focus of the Warwicks' complaint, Diane Warwick said in a statement Wednesday.

"Because the city has not enforced its noise ordinance, it has damaged the Florida House's business," Kinsley said.

The Florida House, built in 1857, is a cornerstone in the Fernandina Beach Historic District. Two years ago, a sign committee recommended the city ban neon signs in the district.

After protests from downtown businesses, the city instead adopted a sign code that allows neon signs to hang 10 feet behind windows. That's not possible at the inn's Frisky Mermaid Bar & Grille, Diane Warwick said.

So, the Warwicks have kept their neon signs in the windows and have racked up more than $50,000 in fines since June 9.

Code Enforcement Board Chairman Jose Miranda said Wednesday fines against the bed and breakfast continue to increase by $250 a day.

Additionally, the lawsuit alleges the City Commission violated the state's Government-in-the-Sunshine Law when Florida House's code violations were discussed Jan. 22 during a closed attorney/client session on another matter.

[DAVE THE NEON GUY]

Since I have been going to Fernadina Beach for more than 40 years I can easily respond to this BULLSHIT. Some asshole in a business suit came to a City Council Meeting in a high dollor suit and tie, fake rolex, and a nice brief case and sold Nassua County on the fact that they needed a STRICT Sign ordinace that would protect the integrity of the CITY, which consist of BUSINESS owners, who by the way pay and collect MORE taxes than the average JOE. This particular vendor pays taxes and does NOT bother ANYONE....Most of the people who got more money than sense are MILES from this vendor.

A good City Council would tax him, collect it, be glad he/she got it, and worry about SHIT that meant a damn....any questions as to how I feel?

I love Fernadina Beach.....my kids have grown up there.....and politicians are Fu#@in up.

[imanut]

Since I have been going to Fernadina Beach for more than 40 years I can easily respond to this BULLSHIT. Some asshole in a business suit came to a City Council Meeting in a high dollor suit and tie, fake rolex, and a nice brief case and sold Nassua County on the fact that they needed a STRICT Sign ordinace that would protect the integrity of the CITY, which consist of BUSINESS owners, who by the way pay and collect MORE taxes than the average JOE. This particular vendor pays taxes and does NOT bother ANYONE....Most of the people who got more money than sense are MILES from this vendor.

A good City Council would tax him, collect it, be glad he/she got it, and worry about SHIT that meant a damn....any questions as to how I feel?

I love Fernadina Beach.....my kids have grown up there.....and politicians are Fu#@in up.

I'm sorry ----- didn't understand you. How do you feel about this situation???

gn

[renagade bender]

put a for sale sign on the neon and sue the town for prohibiting the sale of merchandise (art) in a commercial zone.

[manuellynch]

Try the Floridian push to use only Amber lighting in hotels by the water. Makes it confusing for luminaire manufacturers who are trying to make brighter whites to be given a request to focus now on Amber.

Florida code restrictions are odd.

[ksoday]

I would guess that the "suit" in question above is none other than Bill Brinton. He is well know in the state of Florida for things just like this. We run into him quite often when fighting code issues here. We defeated him in Jacksonville a couple of years ago. If he and his groups, Scenic America and Scenic Florida, had their way, there would be no signs at all. Once, in a heated discussion in Jacksonville, he stated that there was no use for signs that displayed messages of "sales" or "specials" because "that's what coupons are for".