Ban proposed on ‘feather signs’ in Hempstead Town

Hempstead officials are to consider enacting a law banning so-called “feather signs” or “surfboard signs,” which the town supervisor says are an eyesore and potential hazard for drivers and pedestrians.

The often-colorful signs, sometimes also called “teardrop signs,” generate attention by flapping in the wind.

Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray and Councilman Anthony Santino will unveil the proposed law designed to prohibit the signs today at 12:30 p.m. outside a shopping center on Sunrise Highway in Baldwin.

Murray and Santino issued a statement yesterday that said the signs flap “annoyingly in the wind” and “are a new wave of advertising, but are nuisances for residents and distractions to motorists and pedestrians.”

In addition to being eyesores, the town has received complaints of the signs “toppling onto streets and sidewalks, creating potentially dangerous situations for drivers and walkers,” according to the statement.