Atascadero's rainy-day to-do list

I owe a “good job” shout-out to the city of Atascadero for finally ridding its downtown streets of most of those ugly sandwich board signs. I hope they address those feather-looking banners, too.

I’m most tickled that the non-conforming sign that has been in the landscaped flower bed right at the off-ramp from Highway 101, in front of the Von’s center, is finally gone. It appeared last May, right at the height of the city/Chamber of Commerce goal of clearing the city of its non-conforming signs. This non-conforming PVC pipe and plastic sign remained until just a few weeks ago. Not what I’d call a timely take-down, but the flower bed looked great, until a new sandwich board sign was put in that space just last week. But it was gone by Monday morning.

I actually feel sorry for both the city and chamber folks who are doing nothing more than trying to get businesses to obey the sign ordinance. Responsible businessmen should willingly comply with the city’s sign laws, and all regulations, in fact, and not wait for enforcement. I don’t adhere to the “It’s better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission” school of thought.

I have heard from many, many people how pleased they are with the crackdown on non-conforming signs.

Most pressing right now, however, is getting prepared for what we hope is a very wet winter. Most experts put the probability of this being an El Niño rain cycle at 90 percent.

I recall annual rainfall totals of 35 inches and more during past El Niños. Our yearly average, by the way, is 17.5 inches.

As a reporter I remember covering numerous flooding incidents in and around Atascadero, such as water flooding into stores along Traffic Way between El Camino Real and Palma, Atascadero Creek spilling over its banks and into homes, especially near Atascadero Lake Park, and even the Salinas River flooding Sycamore Road, causing those in River Gardens to need an emergency access across the railroad tracks to Traffic Way. I’ve seen the Salinas River flowing bank to bank. If I lived in The Lakes residential development next to the Salinas River, I’d be just a little concerned.

The city is right on the mark checking out trees, especially along the public rights-of-way. Trees or limbs on the ground pose a traffic hazard for cars, pedestrians and even the flow of water.

And, at the top of my list, I hope the city’s priority is getting the weeds growing in the dry Atascadero Lake bed mowed before you can’t get in there.

This story was originally published September 14, 2015 at 10:48 AM with the headline "Atascadero's rainy-day to-do list."