With a purchase cost of approximately $17,000, the Golden Hour Senior Center placed a new electronic sign. The sign features information about what upcoming events the center has planned as well as some advertising thrown in the mix, but while an electronic sign does have its uses, we also can’t help but wonder if the sign is ultimately a waste of funding.
With the sign’s placement at the south east side of the Golden Hour Senior Center Building, it naturally is only viewable by northbound traffic along Uinta Drive. This presents a couple of inherent problems as far as how effective the sign is.
Given the placement of the sign, it’s very difficult for drivers traveling south on Uinta Drive to see it. People are not going to turn their heads as they drive by to see what’s placed on the sign. If one were to do that, they may find themselves colliding with the back of the vehicle directly ahead.
Northbound vehicles travel on the furthest lanes away from the senior center, closer to businesses like Taco Time, Club 86, as well as the Green River Star’s building.
As the senior center’s sign is placed on the side of the building and not in a space within the direct line of sight of the driver, a person has to look for the sign even if they’re on the northbound lane.
Most signs are placed so they’re easily viewable by those passing by. Examples of this include the signs at Taco Time, Ace Hardware and Monroe Intermediate School.
They can be easily viewed without taking one’s eyes off of road. The same can’t be said for the sign at Golden Hour.
Finally, it can be argued that $17,000 could have been spent on something with a much more direct impact on the seniors themselves.
Beth Whitman, director of the center, approached the Green River City Council and other groups last year in an effort to increase the amount of money awarded to the center. At the time, Whitman argued the center needed the funding to keep up with the cost of food and other expenses.
While the $17,000 used in purchasing the sign came from a grant awarded to Golden Hour, wouldn’t it have been better to use it on something directly supporting the seniors?
Using the money to purchase food, or replace damaged furniture, would be much better uses than spending it on a hard to see sign.
What’s done is done and the Golden Hour Senior Center now has a pretty spiffy, albeit ineffective sign.
This should be a lesson in planning a purchase before signing one’s name, and money, on the dotted line.
Reader Comments(0)