Kevin Clifford/Nevada Appeal Mark Johnson, owner of Heavenly Times Hot Tubs & Billiards in Mound House, explains Friday afternoon that the Nevada Department of Transportation wants the sign taken down because it is within 150 feet of Highway 50.
Property owners in Mound House are grappling with how to get customers off the highway into their businesses, especially if they are banned from advertising within 150 feet of the roadway.
That's the dilemma of Mark Johnson, owner of Heavenly Times Hot Tubs & Billiards in Mound House, whose sign could be tagged for removal by the Nevada Department of Transportation.
Tuesday a representative of NDOT told Johnson the sign was in the right-of-way and would have to be removed.
"I know the Nevada Revised Statutes, but that right-of-way happens to be 150 feet wide," Johnson said. "I don't want to have to put a red neon arrow over my business."
He said if this decision stands it could mean a lot of signs in Mound House would have to come down, hurting business in the area.
"You can't put any signs on our right-of-way," said Scott Magruder, NDOT spokesman. "No signs, realty signs, advertising signs at all."
Tracy Larkin-Thomason, NDOT district engineer, said the right-of-way in that area is 100 feet in both directions from the center line of the highway, and Johnson's triangular sign is in the right-of-way.
Johnson said he understood the concern of NDOT, but that a 150-foot right-of-way makes it impossible for him to direct consumers to his business.
Johnson said his sign, which has been up for two months, has the name of his business on it and meets the proper criteria set by Lyon County.
"It isn't tacky or a nuisance, or anything like that," he said, adding that the map he was shown showed no exact measurements.
Ironically, Johnson is a former NDOT employee.
"I know there have been problems," he said. "A lot of people were parking cars in the roadway, and putting up real estate signs. But from a business standpoint, we're just trying to direct people off the highway to our business."
Johnson said that with businesses in the area struggling, he'd like to see NDOT make exceptions.
"I know why they have that rule," he said. "But if everyone has to take their signs down, that's going to hurt us here in Mound House."
• Contact reporter Karen Woodmansee at kwoodmansee@nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111 ext. 351.
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