A proposed ordinance which included a controversial regulation on signs and flags will be sent back to the Ellettsville Plan Commission with amendments, the Town Council voted Monday night.
The Unified Development Ordinance, which was created to update the town’s zoning districts, increase residential density and improve aesthetics. If passed in its current form, it would have required permits for things such as political flags and yard signs.
Some council members expressed that not adopting the UDO at the meeting would postpone Ellettsville’s growth. Council member William Ellis shared his dissenting opinion saying, “I do not understand how a five-week delay will hinder growth. I really don’t. We have to stick the landing on this.”
Read the proposed UDO here.
Members of the public also shared their opinions saying the restriction on signs and flags inhibited freedom of speech and expression.
One proposed solution was to approve the UDO, since the portions of concern represented 15 pages of the 209-page document, and delay enforcement of the debated sections until it could be voted on and changed at a later meeting.
This too was met with pushback during the public comment section of the meeting. Jeff, one member of the public who commented said he strongly urged the board not to pass the UDO at the time in the event the regulations get lost in the shuffle.
“Because once they’re down and approved, it’s too easy to say ‘eh, we don’t have time to fix that now, we don’t have time to change that now,’” he said.
The town council must now write up and vote on the amendments to the UDO for the Plan Commission to address. That vote will take place at the next town council meeting on August 26.
If so, the UDO could then be approved at the next meeting on September 9. The council must approve or disapprove the UDO by October 9.
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