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Commissioners agree to light courthouse gold for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, caution on public signage
Summary
At the Aug. 3 meeting commissioners approved a request to light the courthouse dome gold and display signs in September for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, while staff cautioned that approving signs on public property invites broader First Amendment requests.
Speaker 3 presented a request from Stacy McLean (who was unable to attend) asking the county to "turn the dome gold and to have signs displayed for childhood cancer awareness month in September." The request noted yellow as the recognized color for childhood cancer awareness and emphasized local impact, including the speaker's personal knowledge of two recent childhood cancer diagnoses in the area.
A county staff member cautioned the board that "if you start authorizing signs, you have to approve any signage request that would come before you," noting First Amendment limits on restricting messaging on public property. Commissioners discussed that the county could change the dome color without opening a broader sign-approval policy and then voted to approve changing the dome color and displaying the signs for the awareness month.
The board recorded no additional restrictions on messaging; staff flagged the legal point about signage and suggested the board consider the implications for future sign requests before authorizing signage on multiple county properties.
