Arabic version: مجلس دنمارك يأمر بإزالة لافتات على جانب الطريق وتحذيرات من خسائر سياحية
The Shire of Denmark has issued letters to some Great Southern businesses ordering the removal of roadside signs along the South Coast Highway, warning operators they have 28 days to take them down or face possible enforcement action.
According to ABC News, the letters told businesses to remove unauthorised signs that “may not” comply with the shire’s policy, prompting concerns among hospitality and tourism operators about lost passing trade.
Brendan Laing, who runs a cafe and leather shop about 15 kilometres west of Denmark on his family beef farm, told ABC he uses roadside signage to show he is open and to direct visitors from the highway. He said removing the signs would hurt his business, which employs about half a dozen people across three hospitality businesses and has little foot traffic at its remote location. Laing said the signs were important to show they are open and their hours of trading.
Shire President Aaron Wiggins said the action responded to safety concerns raised by the state road utility, Main Roads. “They’re in high-speed, high-traffic areas right on the roads and around corners,” he said, arguing it was a safety issue the shire could not ignore. Mr Wiggins said the shire could have communicated the issue better but stood by its decision, adding the council was in the process of updating its “very old” signage policy and was open to consulting with industry and residents. He also said the signs under discussion were in what is still considered the road area and that was “never going to be acceptable.”
Winery owners David Britten and Melissa Boughey told ABC they had earlier had signs confiscated and had since tried to relocate them to safer positions. Ms Boughey said the winery did not receive a letter but argued any new policy needed to help tourism and hospitality businesses capitalise on visitors. She said correctly placed signage acted as a pre-emptive alert to upcoming turn-offs on fast roads; without it, at 90 kilometres an hour, drivers can “just whiz by and not notice.”
Main Roads told ABC the signage issue was a matter for the shire. Tens of thousands of people travel through Denmark each year to visit forests, beaches and sample local produce, and tourism has become a major industry for the town. The shire says it will update its signage policy and consult with industry and residents while maintaining its position on removing signs it deems unsafe.
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