You see these all over New England:
LL Farm Stand sign
Nice, right? Quaint. Country-style. Helpful.
Nah. Lloyd Allen — owner of the LL Farm Stand — had no sooner nailed a few signs along the Post Road than someone called to say “take ’em down!”
Knowing this town pretty well, I’ll go out on a limb (ho ho) and say the complainer is probably the same person who posts his or her own “Tag Sale Today” and “Lost Puppy” signs on telephone poles.
And never takes them down.
Double L Farmstand has become an almost daily stop for me on my way home.
It complements the local farmers markets which are not open every day for those of us that cannot always get to them. The signs are not in any way offensive to me, actually quite the opposite, charming in fact!!! Please don’t stop local people doing local business…..we already have enough awful “super”markets selling poison food and produce!!!! C’mon enjoy the signs, enjoy the country feeling. And to those of you who are guilty of all those nails and staples and dreadful signs in poles that somehow are never updated or removed, get busy!!!!!!
Considering that I have been battling head to head with the taxing authorties in Vermont for close to a decade now concerning overvalued commercial real estate, I much prefer Westport. Mr. Allen needs to think “out of the box” like the dermatologist lady on Long Lots. Perhaps balloons with his statement??
Lloyd of LL Farm Stand has the idea to feature an old fashioned farm stand and these signs are part of the allure. Enjoy the time of old pleasure and think of simpler times. Dedicated customer, Bean
Tag sale signs that stay forever are not confined to telephone poles…How about our self-important Westporters who have no issue with sticking their signs in everyone else’s yard and never coming back to remove them.
I’ve got an easy solution, when a sign appears in my yard , for which I pay taxes, and I have not been asked for permission, it gets an immediate trip to the garbage.
But asking a local merchant to remove a seasonal tomato sign…what typical stupidity!
WESTPORTERS SHOULD GET A LIFE.. I HAVE LIVED IN TOWN ALL MY LIFE AND IT NEVER CHANGES
Gee, that is optimistic. Why try to change anything then??
I Love the Signs. They remind me of everything that was great about my childhood. Rolling hills and farm country!
Keep your signs up Lloyd.
If signs are against town ordinance, they should not be put up. Period. If they are, there should be sanctions. Since newspapers are hurting so badly, I am sure advertisements would be welcome at the “Minuteman” and “Westport News.” Remind me to post this come election time as well.
I love the signs. We have the same issues where I live. I have to go to the planning board for my banner. Meanwhile, there are shops on the Avenue with all kinds of signs over their windows. Selective citation.
I would say that LL Farm Stand got more promotion from this blog than any sign.
I am a huge LL fan and I like the signs. They remind me of the signage that used to direct us to Rippe’s and the farm stand on North Ave . Hopefully Roger’s observation (above) proves true!
Just curious…was the complaint about the signs being on a tree (in which case a sign post could be substituted), or because they were on the median? (Presumably state or municipal land.) Who would have standing to complain? I don’t think the town zoning office accepts anonymous complaints, does it?
thanks, and by the way, my first ad that I ever ran in The Westport News said, “in memory of Rippe’s Farm.”
But… but… but the signs are not laser-printed on stainless steel! Of course they can’t stay on the tree!
The tree next to the BP station (where I bike each day) has over two hundred staples in it. Pay for an ad!!
http://www.hgtv.com/landscaping/qa-do-nails-hurt-trees/index.html
This link should make you feel better about hurting a tree…
Thanks!
How about if the person/organization that posted any sign got charged (fined) a small amount for every day each sign was up? Hundreds (thousands?) of dollars a day times hundreds of days a year would go a long way toward closing a budget gap AND pay the salary of a new official whose job it would be to document the offenders.
Good idea. Or pay for the a guy to impose the fines and then go take them down.
It’s bad for the trees.
The town of Greenwich is pretty strict about flyers posted in its public places.
And we all should know by now that the advertised tomatoes have to be trucked in from somewhere. Real tomatoes won’t make their debut here for another couple of months. Is LLoyd selling the same stuff we can get in Stop & Shop, but adding a farm-market feel?
Start with this thought. All large stores in Westport use a central warehouse, put fruit and vegetable in them, and you get to buy them 3 weeks later. The tomatoes I have now, come from Maryland, and I have been buying from the same woman for 15 years. You can taste the difference and feel the difference when you eat fresh picked produce.
This sign is right near the Roseville/Hillspoint intersection where we live, and it really reminds me too of the fondly remembered Rippe’s and Wakemans’ Farm stands. I’d like to know “who complained” and is there anything the RTM can do to make some exceptions. I like the feel of an oldtime farm stand, so hope that there will be a solution. Glad you stayed in town, Lloyd, after you had to close on the Westport/Southport border!
as always, it is a concerned, but misguided, neighbor with a tendency toward “policing” the universe. I grew up in Texas, and handmade signs run rampant along farm roads. I myself think roadside signs are charming, and trees welcome not only signs but direct TV satellite discs (yup, just saw one in a Maple tree at a little farm over on Bayberry. The town zoning board has actually loosened sign laws for local businesses due to economic conditions. PS: Paid ads don’t work, roadside signs like, “local strawberries” do. Have a nice day.
Lady Bird put a hault on billboards and tried to limit those signs. I concur with your premise that they “run rampant” in rural Texas but big cities have a cowboy driving around taking them down. If people would take them down once they sale or market is completed, fine. But they don’t and they get to be an eyesore.
I agree, and by the way, my first job out of college was for Lady Bird in Austin, TX.
I worked for Anne Richards in her failed reelection campaign against “W”. I met Lady Bird. Her accent so strong I could barely understand her. Nice though. She had a very nasty dog that went everywhere with her. Everyone joked it was LBJ reincarnated.
The guard dog.
Snoopy.
(from our letter to the editor of the Westport News, 8/15/97): We just moved to Westport and have quickly become big fans of Double L Farmstand. Our weekly visits are not only fruitful, but also entertaining. The controversial signs lend the area much country charm. And they let us know what’s “just in” and fresh. We’d be willing to chip in and help defray the cost of moving the signs to more appropriate, legal spots.