New Law Eliminates Store Display Permit

Seeking to lift some restrictions on the way Thousand Oaks merchants hawk their wares, the City Council Tuesday approved an ordinance making it easier for local businesses to display their merchandise outdoors.

The ordinance eliminates the need for a city permit for most outdoor displays.

“We do need to reduce some of the regulation on our small business,” Mayor Andy Fox said before the meeting. “We are an over-regulated town in some ways.”

However, the ordinance restricts the size, height and location of displays. Merchandise must be placed along the store’s front or sides and can stand no taller than 12 feet. Anything taller than 6 feet must cover no more than 25% of the storefront.

Trees for sale do not need to meet the height requirements.

In January, some local business owners complained that an earlier version of the ordinance was too strict. In particular, they were alarmed by a proposed requirement that all merchandise on display outside a store be able to stand on its own, without the support of tables or racks.

Thousand Oaks Planning Commissioners agreed that the requirement was unrealistic and struck it from the proposed ordinance.