Thursday, March 31, 2011

Area musicians say law against fliers prevents event promotion

By Stacey Carmany

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YOUNGSTOWN - Posting fliers on telephone poles has traditionally been a low-cost way for local bands and musicians to promote upcoming shows and events.

To look at the telephone poles on Lincoln Avenue near the Youngstown State University campus, which are plastered with years worth of promotional fliers, you might think that city officials and university leaders condone the practice. You would be wrong.

In fact, YSU policy restricts how and where fliers can be posted, and a Youngstown City Ordinance prohibits the practice altogether.

Some area musicians say those police are threatening their ability to promote shows in the city.

One such musician is Asleep drummer Nick Kloss. He says the very livelihood of bands like Asleep, who can’t spend a lot of money on promotion, depends on those telephone poles.

“I don’t know how we’re supposed to promote in Youngstown and bring people in and make these shows as good as they can be when we can’t promote,” Kloss says.

Kloss recalls a run-in he had with University Police in November when he and a bandmate were hanging fliers on the poles on Lincoln Avenue to promote their Thanksgiving show.

He says they were stopped by campus police, who said it was a misdemeanor to hang fliers on the poles. He says the officers threatened to send their information to city police and told them they could be arrested.

That’s because hanging fliers on poles is classified as third-degree misdemeanor under city ordinance 541.09 (a), an offense punishable by a fine “not to exceed $500.” And the poles on Lincoln are considered city property.

University police have the authority to enforce city ordinances under a mutual agreement with the city police department. YSU dispatcher Adam Guerrieri says campus officers will stop anyone they see hanging fliers and warn them about the law, but says he can’t think of a single instance in his nine years with YSU Police when someone has been cited.

Khaled Tabbara, front man for The Zou, says his band had been hanging fliers on those poles for years, and it wasn’t until recently that they were stopped by officers.

Tabbara says he and bandmates were hanging fliers for their Halloween show last October. He says that as they were getting ready to post the first flier, they were stopped by YSU police. He says that the officer took their information and politely warned them that it was against the law to hang fliers there.

Det. Sgt. Chuck Swanson of the city police department says officers do their best to enforce all city ordinances, though he admits enforcing the handbill rule can be difficult and isn’t always a priority.

“You really have to catch a guy doing it to enforce it,” he says.

Swanson says many people are simply unaware of the ordinance. He says those found violating the ordinance are generally issued a misdemeanor citation and are ordered to appear in court, though they could be arrested.

The handbill ordinance stipulates that anyone wishing to post a flier on a utility pole within city limits must first obtain permission from the city Engineering Commissioner. Kloss says he has tried to get permission, though that proved to be an impossible feat.

An impossible feat indeed, considering that the city of Youngstown doesn’t have an Engineering Commissioner. Charles Shasho, the city’s deputy director of public works, says that position no longer exists and the ordinance probably needs to be updated.

Shasho says he would probably be considered the Engineering Commissioner for the purposes of the ordinance, but that he doesn’t have the authority to grant anyone permission to post fliers on the poles, because those poles don’t belong to the city, but to the utility companies.

It is somewhat easier to get permission to hang fliers on the YSU campus, although the university places certain restrictions on where they can be posted.

Any YSU student wishing to hang fliers must get approval from the Student Government office on the second floor of Kilcawley Center. The content of the fliers can’t be vulgar or offenseive or contain any nudity, profanity, or any other content that violates university policies, according to Stephen Mesik, Student Government Association vice president.

Though university policy stipulates that only students can post fliers, Mesik says SGA is generally pretty lenient when it comes to approving fliers for upcoming shows. He says SGA approves pretty much anything that benefits students, including live entertainment.

“As long as its in good faith, we generally stamp things,” he says.

But even an SGA stamp of approval comes with restrictions. Fliers must be posted indoors, and only in designated locations in specific buildings.

Mesik says some buildings have their own policies and procedures about posting fliers, including the Williamson School of Business and, ironically, Kilcawley Center. Individuals wishing to hang fliers in those buildings should stop in the administrative offices for information on how to get approved.

Needless to say, this has all proven to be quite the hassle for many local bands.

Tabbara says he would like to see outdoor display boards where bands would be permited to post fliers. He says promoting shows is something that also benefits the city by bringing business downtown.

But until that happens, he and other local musicians must find other ways to promote upcoming shows and events.