Town staff presented a report and mock-ups suggesting a unified signage and branding approach for Signal Mountain’s parks, trails and town properties, proposing standardized sign shapes, colors, wayfinding maps, QR-code connectivity to the town website and consistent use of the town seal.

The staff presentation, requested by the Parks and Recreation Board, highlighted inconsistent existing signage across parks and municipal properties—examples included routed-wood hand-painted signs, outdated map boards and cluttered bulletin boards. Staff said clearer, higher-contrast signage with FHWA/FHWA-appropriate fonts, QR codes linking to rules or facility reservation pages and consistent town identifiers would improve navigation and communication. Examples from nearby Red Bank and Chattanooga were shown to illustrate durable metal-backed signs, trail wayfinding and compact rule/ordinance references.

Staff noted the project could be expensive if custom, metal-backed signage is chosen and recommended exploring phased approaches, grant opportunities and partnerships with university design programs as lower-cost options. Council members broadly supported further study and suggested bringing the idea into the town’s strategic planning process to weigh cost, timing and public input; they also suggested low-cost improvements and incremental replacement as signs reach end of life.

Staff asked several implementation questions for council feedback, including whether building signage should be included, whether the town should create official town colors and fonts, and how to handle existing routed-wood signs that some residents may prefer to keep as heritage features. Council members suggested creating a display for retired routed signs, pursuing student capstone projects for design work and considering grant applications if available.