Allison Love wants a banner to let jewelry owners know the days when she's buying gold.

These businesses and others are raising a common complaint about a city of Rock Hill rule they say makes it harder to compete in tough economic times. The city limits the number of times stores and restaurants can put up promotional banners to twice a year under a policy aimed at preventing clutter on the roadways.

Merchants say that's not often enough.

"There's still Ron Paul signs up all over Rock Hill," said Melanie McCarter Vogel, manager of Brownlee Jewelers. "Why don't they go fuss at those people? He's not even running for office anymore. It's just bugging us, so we're going to do something about it."

Striking a balance

The current dustup resembles past disputes over signage in Rock Hill.

Three years ago, the city took heat from the billboard industry for outlawing new billboards and requiring existing ones to come down within seven years. More recently, local real estate agents criticized new limits on realty signs that direct people to homes for sale.

In each case, defenders said they want to prevent Rock Hill from becoming Tackyville USA.

"If we didn't have some sort of rules, everybody out there would have a sale of the day, and we'd have a cluttered environment," said Barre Mitchell of Rock Hill. "I think there should be some rules. I'm just not exactly sure what the frequency should be."

Maybe the best solution is for the two sides to work out a compromise, said Mitchell, chairman of the city Economic Development Corp.'s Quality of Life Committee. Some sensible limits should remain in place to protect the streetscape, he said.

Under the current guidelines, businesses can get permits to put up banners for 30 days at a time, no more than once every six months. Violators can face fines of $1,000.

"We really do need to look at that a little more carefully," said Councilwoman Susie Hinton. "I think we need to talk about it."

Some store owners are angry because they say they see others cheating and not getting caught.

"We'll see banners on buildings, we'll see handwritten signs," said Vinnie Centro, owner of Marco's Pizza. "We'll see it all over the place. If you criticize one, you've got to criticize them all."

Part of the problem appears to be uneven enforcement inside the city versus in the county. The county has similar rules, but it uses four code enforcement officers to cover a much larger area.

"It would be difficult for us to keep up," said Susan Britt, the county's planning director.

The rule has been around in Rock Hill since at least 1999. What's new is that merchants are pinning their case on the sputtering economy.

Among those calling for change is Rock Hill school board Chairman Bob Norwood, who bought Fast Signs in August after 25 years in the insurance business. Fast Signs makes promotional banners.

"With the economy slowing and businesses trying to get the word out, it seems like it would be a good idea for everybody to loosen up a little bit," Norwood said. "It's difficult when you've got to open the doors every day and you only have a limited amount of time to advertise."

No more clowning around?

One group not complaining is the clown industry. Clinton Family Ford hired a clown to stand on Dave Lyle Boulevard a few weeks ago holding a sign.

A compromise being floated would give businesses an allotment of days to put up banners, then allow owners to choose their days throughout the year. Merchants would register the days on a city-run Web site.

City staffers say they are reviewing the overall sign policy but haven't settled on any answers. No timetable has been set.

"Nobody's asking for free rein, and nobody's looking to tacky up the city," said Vogel, manager of Brownlee. "We would just like to have some leniency."

The billboard industry and real estate agents took on the cause. Now, business owners are taking their turn and hoping for a different result.