La Plata town council adopts sign code moratorium, updated market fee schedule

The La Plata Town Council adopted two ordinances in expedient fashion on Tuesday, as motions for an adjusted fee schedule and a sign code moratorium carried without discussion.

The council members debated the sign ordinance at length in their work session last week, eventually deciding to move forward with the suspension of code enforcement. After this week’s adoption, the legislation is officially in place and certain sign requirements will be ignored during the first week of October and the third full week of November.

The moratorium will give the council additional time to establish a sign code befitting its ideals and the views of La Plata residents. After inheriting the issue from the previous council, the group has struggled to come up with requirements that restrict rogue signage but also allow business owners to market their products.

The ordinance regarding the fee schedule is intended to resolve an error made in a previous revision of Farmer’s Market permits. In March, the council had agreed to separate permits by particular days to increase the amount of vendors at the market. In the past, residents who purchased a spot would have the space for Wednesday and Saturday, even if they were only attending one of the days.

The change allows for the purchase of single days, meant to expand participation. The problem was the earlier ordinance failed to reflect the updated fee guidelines.

“In the spring, the town had updated the structure of the farmer’s market to allow for more flexibility,” said Town Manager Daniel Mears. “Inadvertently, the fees and schedule structure we adopted reverted back [to the previous iteration]. This ordinance is to put in place individual seasonal rates for Wednesdays, Saturdays and an off-peak season.”

Councilman Matthew Simpson pointed out the new ordinance is still not entirely accurate, listing a “holiday” fee instead of the agreed-upon “offpeak” designation, although the primary takeaway is the inclusion of separate rates.

In addition to the pair of ordinances, the council also adopted a resolution concerning a new financial relationship with Multi Bank Securities, as recommended by Town Treasurer Robert Oliphant. The town had previously invested idle funds into the Maryland Local Government Investment Pool or through Certificate of Deposit Account Registry programs, but will seek a greater return with Multi Bank Securities.

“These investments have served the Town well, however, there are other investment options … allowed under the Town’s investment policy that offer all the security of these investments with the potential for slightly better returns,” reads the ordinance, first introduced by Mayor Jeannine James.