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Select Board debates size, ownership and control of proposed digital sign in Bristol
Summary
The Bristol Select Board reviewed a proposed land‑use amendment to authorize and specify a town‑owned electronic sign, debated screen‑size limits (six square feet proposed) and agreed to seek legal review and a public hearing before finalizing policy on sign content and operation.
The Bristol Select Board discussed revisions to a land‑use ordinance to allow one town‑owned exterior electronically changeable digital sign and to clarify permissible screen size and content control.
Board members spent the bulk of the item debating screen size and wording. One member argued enlarging the screen beyond the current six square feet would “take the aesthetics of the town to an extreme” and said, “I just don't think we should open the door to that,” opposing any change that would allow substantially larger screens. Another member proposed ordinance language reading, in part, that “the town of Bristol shall own and operate one exterior electronically changeable digital sign and that shall not exceed six square feet in screen size,” and the board agreed that the ordinance should state location and ownership clearly.
Members also discussed who would control content. Several said content policy is better handled by board policy than by ordinance language so the select board — not town meeting — can adjust which departments or outside partners (parks, schools, fire company) may post notices. A member noted that detailed content restrictions are a policy decision rather than an ordinance matter.
The board asked staff to send the draft ordinance for legal review and discussed scheduling a public hearing; members mentioned targeting Feb. 19 for a hearing but flagged calendar conflicts and the possibility of coordinating hearings with planning and harbor committee sessions.
Next steps: staff will route the draft to legal counsel, finalize recommended ordinance language to state municipal ownership and a screen‑size limitation, and bring a public‑hearing date back to the board for confirmation.
