A sign in Conway is “any device, fixture, placard, structure or attachment thereto that uses color, form, graphic, illumination, symbol, or writing to advertise, announce the purpose of, or identify the purpose of any person or entity, or to communicate information of any kind to the public, whether commercial or noncommercial,” according to the sign code.
A New Hampshire bakery owner testified Friday that his excitement about displaying a painting by high school students of giant pastries quickly turned to annoyance after a zoning code officer told him it was a sign and had to be changed or removed.
Jeremy Gibbs, the zoning officer who issued the citation, testified that he was following the town's definition of a sign, which some lawyers and even the judge remarked seemed to cover “everything.”.
“I was artistically offended for the students,” said Young, who's suing the town of Conway because he says it violated the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech.
Sean Young said the the work atop his bakery is art, and was never intended to be a sign.
