April 30, 2018
By Les Conklin
“It’s like deja-vu all over again.” “It’s like deja-vu all over again.” “It’s like deja-vu all over again.” It’s like …
Scottsdale resident Alan Grochowski was talking to me and I heard and understood what he was saying, but my brain kept replaying Yogi Berra’s immortal words; “It’s like deja-vu all over again.”
It was Saturday morning, April 21, 2018 and Grochowski and I were at the Scottsdale Scenic Drive Exhibit area, located on the east side of North Scottsdale Road just south of Jomax Road. Alan, like many area residents, is angry about the temporary real estate signs that are posted every weekend along Scottsdale’s roadsides.
“It’s a Scenic Drive!” Grochowski exclaimed. “Why does Scottsdale allow all these signs? Most of the developments that the signs publicize aren’t even in Scottsdale.”
“It’s like deja-vu all over again,” my brain murmured.
Signs and More Signs
“Look at the signs,” Alan said as he pointed toward Scottsdale Road. “The advertising company has it down to a science. They leave the stakes and clutter there all week. See, the stakes are color coded. When the weekend begins, a worker puts the appropriate development sign on each stake. See the pouch on the back of the sign. That’s where the stake goes. It’s ingenious, but don’t they know this is Scottsdale’s Scenic Drive? To make matters worse, the biggest sign “exhibition” is at Happy Valley and Scottsdale Roads, the southern entrance to the Scenic Drive.”
“It’s like deja-vu all over again,” my brain mumbled.
Grochowski continued to vent. “Friends of the Scenic Drive is out here picking up litter while the city and developers are littering the roadside with those signs. Don’t they know there are many other ways to attract attention – social media, mobile phones, GPS, websites, etc. Many of the signs are illegal anyway. I’ve complained to the City of Scottsdale but nothing happens. Don’t they care about residents, about tourists?”
I told Alan that I was in complete agreement with him and would contact the city. I also promised to take photographs of a few of the signs and include them as part of an article in The Peak.
Good News and Bad News
The sign situation really was “deja-vu all ove over again.” I wrote articles on this exact subject 20 years ago. Below, you’ll find a link to the article that I posted back then on the Desert Foothills Scenic Drive website. The good news is that we – and many residents were involved – did eventually get rid of the signs. The bad news is that it took years of effort and now we have to do it again.
Since the names of the developers have changed, you will find pictures showing part of today’s sign mess below.
Friends Calls for Elimination of Unnecessary Signs, March 1998What about political campaign signs?
Political signs on Scenic Drive before Friends initiated and policed voluntary ban supported by Scottsdale City Council
Oh yes, political campaign sign season is just around the corner (pun intended). Below is a link to a letter that I wrote to the Tribune Newspapers 20 years ago. Perhaps, this old letter will help bring a cleaner more scenic environment in the months ahead. We can only hope that candidates will observe the current voluntary ban.
Unfortunately, kindness to the environment is often a matter of political convenience and the mistakes of the past are repeated. Yogi was right! “It’s like deja-vu all over again.”
Friends Calls for Ban of Political Campaign Signs, April 1998
Roadside Sign Clutter, 2018 Exhibition
For Additonal Information
About Scenic Drive Article
Scenic Drive Information Directory Article
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