28.00 Signs and Structures

28.01 Signs
28.011 Erection or display of prohibited; exception
28.012 Efface, alter, destroy or removal of
28.013 Attachment of
28.02 Structures - Erection and Maintenance of
28.021 Erection prohibited; exception
28.022 Authorized permits for specific purposes
28.023 Denial
28.024 Authority to suspend or revoke
28.025 Time restrictions
28.026 Liability
28.027 Violations punishable by law

28.01 Signs

.011 No person shall erect or otherwise display, in a public area of property governed by the Board, any sign or poster that advertises or otherwise calls attention to a person or activity, except on bulletin boards provided by Michigan State University.

.012 No person shall efface, alter, tamper with, destroy or remove any sign or inscription on any property governed by the Board.

.013 It shall be unlawful for any person to attach any sign or poster to any property other than a bulletin board governed by said Board.

28.02 Structures - Erection and Maintenance of

.021 No person shall construct or otherwise erect or maintain any structure anywhere within the confines of property governed by the Board unless a permit has been granted by the Secretary of the Board of Trustees or his/her designee. It shall be a violation of this ordinance to construct, erect or maintain any structure without a permit.

.022 Areas may be designated by University regulations and/or administrative rulings for the erection and/or maintenance of structures relating to authorized activities taking place on campus and for the erection and/or maintenance of symbolic structures representing constitutionally protected expression. Reasonable time, place and manner regulations which are consistent with preservation of the campus landscape and environment, protection of university activities, and protection of the health and safety of all users of the area may be enacted by University units and incorporated into permits. No person shall violate the terms and conditions of a permit.

.023 Permits shall be denied if: (a) it reasonably appears that granting the permit will result in interference with public health and/or public safety, (b) it reasonably appears that granting the permit will result in unreasonable interference with the operations or use of University buildings or grounds, and/or (c) the structure cannot reasonably be accommodated in the particular location considering such things as the number of structures the area can reasonably accommodate, the number of applications which are pending for use of the area and interference or impairment of the use of the area or surrounding area for normal university activities.

.024 A permit may be suspended or revoked under any of the conditions as listed in subsection .023 that constitute grounds for denial of a permit, or for violation of the terms and conditions of the permit. Such a revocation shall be made in writing, with the reasons for revocation set forth, except under emergency circumstances, when an immediate verbal revocation and suspension may be made to be followed by written confirmation within 72 hours.

.025 No permit shall be issued for a period in excess of 14 days, although pursuant to procedures established by the University, permits may be renewed for additional periods of 14 days if the reason for issuing the permit still exists, there has been no breach of the terms of the permit, the number of applicants who can be accommodated in the area is not exceeded, and/or there are no other applicants waiting to use the area.

.026 Any structure which is erected or maintained in violation of subsection .021 or in violation of any permit granted under subsection .022 may be impounded by the University. The person who erected the structure and/or directed that the structure be erected is responsible and liable to the University for the costs of removal, storage, or other disposition of property. Property impounded pursuant to this subsection shall be deemed to be abandoned and may be disposed of by the University if not claimed by the owner or an authorized representative thereof within 30 days. The 30 days shall begin to run when the rightful owner of the property has been notified, if the owner can be identified, or from the time the property was placed in the University's custody, if the owner cannot be identified.

.027 A person who violates subsection .021 of this ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished as provided by law. A person who violates subsection .022 of this ordinance and who has no prior violations is responsible for a civil infraction and is liable for a civil fine of $100. A person who violates subsection .022 of this ordinance and who has a prior violation under this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished as provided by law.

Enacted: September 15, 1964
Amended: November 12, 1990
December 10, 1994
April 14, 1995