LAKE PLACID — In response to feedback from local shop owners, the village of Lake Placid Board of Trustees is proposing repealing an ordinance that bans businesses from displaying clothing outside their shop. This change, along with two other proposed local laws, will be open for public input in back-to-back hearings scheduled for Monday, July 21 at 5 p.m.

The decision to repeal the law comes after the board had previously put forth an amendment changing the penalty from a criminal penalty to a civil one. However, about half a dozen shop owners came to the hearing to argue against the law in its entirety, saying that having some outdoor displays goes a long way in helping bring customers indoors.

“The more we talked about it, and the more input that we received, it just seemed like, why was clothing getting singled out?” said Trustee Marc Galvin, who also owns The Bookstore Plus.

This ordinance was initially created in 1991. At the time, Main Street had a lot more clothing stores — 10 T-shirt shops, Trustee Andrew Quinn said. The character of Main Street has changed since then, and with more restaurants and fewer retailers, the sidewalks don’t seem so cluttered, the board agreed.

Mayor Art Devlin said the board would see how it goes when the law is repealed, and they will only consider a revised law if any problems arise.

“If we do do something, we’re going to have to rewrite the law anyhow,” he said. “If we give it a chance and it self-polices, it’s just not a problem.”

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Other proposed laws

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The village board is also proposing a law creating uniform closure hours for all public parks that fall under the village’s jurisdiction. The proposed closure hours are from 2 to 4 a.m. — late enough to accommodate late-night walks home from bars, and early enough to allow for early-morning exercisers, Trustee Jackie Kelly said. She said the law is designed to give law enforcement a way to deal with “inappropriate” incidents that occasionally happen in public parks. The proposed penalty for breaking this law is a civil offense resulting in a fine not exceeding $250.

The second proposed law regulates peaceful assembly and public demonstrations. An “assembly” is defined in the law as any group of 25 people or more gathering in public for a rally, march or similar “expressive activity.” A permit is needed for any assembly on public property or any march or similar activity that might affect the use of sidewalks and roads in the village. The law does make an allowance for “spontaneous” assemblies responding to current events.

Devlin said the village decided to draft a law because of a recent uptick in people wanting to organize demonstrations, which he said the village hadn’t really seen much of before this year. Because the village didn’t have a set policy, they wanted to make sure the guidelines were clear and consistent.

“Keeping in mind public safety, whether it’s for the demonstrators or for bypassing pedestrians, just so that we have more of a notice so we can adequately provide public assistance if it’s needed,” Kelly said.

The law includes additional details about applying for a permit and outlines the responsibilities of organizers and prohibited behavior. To read the proposed laws, visit the public notices page on the village website at tinyurl.com/435kve52 and look under the “local laws” tab.