Solicitor: City cannot regulate flags, including those with ‘off-color’ messages
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
OCEAN CITY – People may not like all of the political flags flying around Ocean City, but citizens have the right to fly them.
At Thursday evening’s Ocean City Council meeting, City Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson said “complaints have been trickling in” to the city about flags, especially ones that contain “off-color” messages, but all the city can do is advise citizens there has been a complaint. They can’t ask them to take the flags down.
She also noted that even the city’s ordinance about political yard signs can’t be enforced.
“We’re starting to see a lot of flags, other than American flags, and different countries, and colleges, which is so very typical in Ocean City. We’re starting to see flags with candidates’ names on them,” she said, speaking to members of council and to the public. “I just want to remind you and the listeners that those do not require permits. We do not regulate those. You are certainly permitted to put any kind of flag that you wish on your private property.”
There is a political sign ordinance, but it does not apply to the flags. There is no ordinance for that.
Some of the complaints stem from the “off-color” messages on the flags, “but we cannot compel those flags to be taken down,” she said. She added the city sometimes does contact the property owner to let them know young families have complained “and in almost every case the flag is taken down. That is a courtesy. They’re not required to do that but we appreciate it when they do.
“People are certainly free to express their political beliefs by flying whatever flag they choose to fly,” McCrosson said.
First Ward Councilman Michael DeVlieger said he has fielded calls on the issue, but he tells people to let the flags fly. “It’s America, baby,” he said.
The political sign ordinance on the books in Ocean City limits signs to 30 days prior to an election, but even that may go.
“It’s been my opinion, that is not an enforceable ordinance because it is based on the content of the message,” McCrosson said. “And in my view that is a First Amendment issue so we don’t enforce that. Those are typically the yard signs before a municipal election. It should probably be taken off the books.”
Councilman Keith Hartzell, drawing support from other members of council, said he hoped that everyone who ran for office in Ocean City would stick to the ordinance. Signs, he said, “take away from the charm of the town.” He referenced the proliferation of home sales and rental signs that “overwhelmed” the city until council took action a number of years ago to limit those signs in size, quantity and location.
Noting that he thinks the political yard signs are a “pain in the neck” because of the headache in putting them out, Hartzell said he knows the city can’t enforce it “but people don’t like them.”
McCrosson said one way to handle it is for people running for office coming to voluntary agreement on their own limits for the yard signs. Several council members agreed.