Sign Police Invade Boston's Back Bay

"Marilyn Tushman, in heels, sprinted after the truck, banging on the window and screaming at the men for taking her metal sign advertising 'fine Scottish cashmere for ladies and men at discount prices.'

'You stole my sign!' she shouted.

The men didn't deny it. Not only did they refuse to give it back, they handed her a $200 citation for violating a little-known city law against sandwich boards and freestanding signs on public sidewalks.

Up and down Newbury Street's concourse of ritzy salons and purveyors of haute couture, five city Inspectional Services Department workers yesterday hauled away signs and heaved them into the back of the truck, often with highly agitated store managers or owners buzzing around them."

"Such signs have been illegal for decades, but in the past the city has only occasionally handed out citations and has only rarely hauled away the offending advertisements en masse. Some business owners say they are a staple of urban life, adding character and life to the streetscape. But others say they are nothing but clutter and that complaints are on the rise. Under pressure from two neighborhood groups trying to improve the look of the Back Bay, the city launched yesterday's operation."