Oneida County zoning administrator orders Minocqua political sign removed

A political sign on the side of the Minocqua Brewing Company (MBC) is the subject of what’s become a battle of sorts between the brewery’s owner, Kirk Bangstad, and Oneida County. 

Bangstad is also the Democratic challenger in the November election to Republican Rob Swearingen, the incumbent in the 34th District of the Wisconsin state assembly. 

At issue is a sign for the Democratic presidential campaign of Joe Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, a sign Oneida County zoning administrator Karl Jennrich said in a letter to Bangstad dated Sept. 29 doesn’t comply with the county sign ordinance. 

In fact, Jennrich, in that letter, ordered the sign removed because it’s a political sign measuring in excess of the 32 square feet in size outlined in the county ordinance. 

He didn’t mention anything in the letter regarding a fine, however. 

Since that time, Bangstad, through posts on the Minocqua Brewery Company Facebook page, let people know his attorney had informed him how much the fine could be and kept people up to date with efforts to raise money for legal costs. 

He’s also made the issue a political one. 

“So the Minocqua Brewing Company has been told by a group of aging white male Republican County Board Supervisors that the huge Biden sign hanging from our building is illegal and must be taken down, or we will be fined daily until it is,” an Oct. 2 MBC Facebook post reads. “We’re absolutely sure that if this were a Trump sign, we wouldn’t have received this ludicrous letter yesterday which is posted here. That’s why we’re creating the #freeourbidensign Legal Defense Fund today, and we need your help. First, we know our lawyer is better than the Old Boy’s Network lawyer in backwards Oneida County and we also know whatever ordinance they have against our sign violates our first amendment rights.”

Bangstad did not return calls from The Lakeland Times, but Jennrich on Wednesday said the matter was initiated by a complaint from the town of Minocqua “concerning the size of a political sign.”

“I sent staff out there to take a look at the signs,” he said. “They saw, you know, a lot of signs on that building but one in particular appeared to be greater than 32 square feet.”

Jennrich said in the course of enforcing the ordinance, his department doesn’t look at the accumulation of signs.

“Ironically, as recently as three years ago, we didn’t even allow political signs up to 32 square feet,” he said. “Prior to an ordinance amendment, it was 12 square feet or 11 square feet.”

Jennrich said photos were taken of the sign and he sent Bangstad the letter ordering its removal. 

“The brewery itself was closed and we can’t send staff there with ladders and measure the sign,” he said. “Apparently, by sending that out, I started a firestorm, which I’m somewhat used to.”

Jennrich said prior to this, the political signs he’s seen for Biden/Harris and for Donald Trump are 32 square feet or less.

“People are saying there’s a lot of Trump signs that are bigger,” he said. “Show me where they are, give me an address or a fire number and we’ll deal with them appropriately.”

Jennrich said when he sent the letter to Bangstad and in a subsequent email reply from Jennrich to Bangstad, the county board’s representative for Minocqua, Lance Krolczyk, was carbon copied along with the town of Minocqua. 

That’s resulted in Krolczyk getting what Jennrich said are “derogatory” comments and that Krolczyk is a “political crony.”

Krolczyk said in an email Wednesday he’d received 45 emails so far. 

“Deleted the threatening ones,” he wrote. “My question to Kirk is would he have attacked the supervisor if they were a Democrat? Hard to tell the location of most emails but they mention driving up and seeing large signs on buildings and think it can be done anywhere.” 

Jennrich said the reality of it is, Krolczyk has nothing to do with the sign. 

“He did not complain and he wasn’t even aware of my letter (to Bangstad) until he got a copy from me,” he said. “That’s what I want Mr. Bangstad to know is that if you’re upset, be upset with Karl Jennrich or Oneida County zoning.”

Regarding next steps, he said he didn’t know what Oneida County will do as he’s under the understanding Bangstad has no intention of removing the sign. 

“I’ll have to discuss it with counsel and the zoning committee and see what they want to do, if anything,” Jennrich said. “I’ve got bigger fish to fry than political signs right now. We’re in the middle of construction season and we have a lot of permits and a lot of issues going on, but I’m more than willing to discuss this with counsel and the committee to see how they’d like me to proceed.”

He said the intent of the political sign portion of the ordinance is to control the proliferation of signs. 

“Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, some of these bigger signs can be an eyesore,” Jennrich said.  “I know it’s freedom of speech but the county wanted to regulate them somewhat.”

Brian Jopek may be reached via email at [email protected].