By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com


On the heels of a mural being finished on the side of a South Lyon building, City Council is preparing an ordinance to regulate similar future artwork.

Last week, a large mural on the side of the Grande Trunk building on Lake and Lafayette in downtown South Lyon was completed. As the project was being wrapped up, City Council, in their building, was approving the first reading of their new mural ordinance. The proposed language differentiates art murals from commercial messages and graffiti and delves into requirements for ownership, the lifespan of murals, and their removal if needed. Murals would also be restricted to side or rear walls, not the front.

Planner Kelly McIntyre said that the City has expressed an interest in this over a number of years and began earnestly looking into it back in February 2019. With a couple ways to do it, the City elected to add the new language and criteria to the existing sign ordinance. McIntyre said that because of this, they need to adhere to the 2015 Supreme Court decision that rules all sign regulations must be content neutral. She then laid out what they can and can’t look for. She said they have regulated the numbers, sizes, dimensions, placement, illumination and maintenance standards. They can’t look at the subject, design, theme or artwork. They can look at it to determine if it is signage and to determine if it is appropriate for all audiences, and/or is distracting.

If a mural is found subjectively obscene by a resident, they can make an appeal to the Zoning Board of Appeals. McIntyre said she suspects that most murals will be self-policed by building-owners who have the community’s and their own best interests in mind.

City Council raised questions about copyright issues. It was believed that if they do not use an artist’s work for profit, but rather promotional or educational reasons, then that is something that can be taken care of in the application process.

City Council voted unanimously to accept the first reading.