State reverses its decision on barn signs

COLUMBUS (AP) -- State transportation officials have reversed their decision that barn owners buy a permit for Mail Pouch Tobacco signs or paint over them.
Barn owners and historic preservationists were upset the state had sent notices saying the signs were advertising requiring a permit. They argued the signs had historic value because some are a century old and have become tourist attractions.
The Ohio Department of Transportation has decided to ask Jacksonville, Fla.-based Swisher International, which sells the tobacco, to pay for the signs instead, ODOT spokesman Brian Cunningham said Thursday. The state will work with the Federal Highway Administration to waive the permit fees for barns that have tobacco signs not maintained by Swisher as advertising, Cunningham said. Permits for the tobacco signs cost $225, plus a $125 renewal fee every two years.
The permits are necessary because the federal Highway Beautification Act requires states to regulate advertisements within 660 feet of a federal highway.