The message on this sign, on East Greenwich Avenue in late August, was repeated on several others that West Warwick officials ordered property owners to take down.

The Providence Journal Steve Szydlowski

WEST WARWICK — Perennial candidate Thomas K. Jones, who this month lost a Republican primary for the District 27 House seat, has complained to the American Civil Liberties Union that an ordinance governing the size of campaign signs infringed on his right of free speech.

At issue are a number of four-by-eight-foot signs he erected that bore a message opposing the $150-million water park and resort planned for the West Warwick Business Park.

Jones said he removed a number of signs last week from the yards of supporters who said they’d gotten letters threatening them with fines for violating the sign ordinance.

Jones contends that the letters were prompted by the signs’ content, not their size. Officials vigorously deny that.

According to the letters, the ordinance states that no more than one political sign can be posted on a residential lot and that it can measure no larger than 8 square feet. The letters stated that a violation can mean a $500 fine.

“I had to concede because I got elderly people getting threats and what not, getting certified registered letters to take the signs down,” Jones said. “I can’t run that risk. It’s not just me involved in the ball game. I can go to the park and strike out, but I’m not going to put someone else at risk.”

Town Manager James Thomas said each of the signs was actually two signs stacked one atop the other and that they were a “public safety issue.”

“The bottom line is that this administration supports the First Amendment,” Thomas said. “It didn’t matter what was on the signs. He’s claiming that we limit his freedom of expression. We’re not trying to limit anyone of that, as long as he keeps it to eight square feet. I don’t think that’s asking anything unreasonable.”

The signs are the work of a group called Concerned Citizens of West Warwick Against the Water Park, a spinoff from an anti-casino organization.

Jones, who is its vice president, said: “This group was behind the scenes for a while; meeting for many months…We didn’t like the water park and we knew it wasn’t going to be a good water park to bring in.”

Jones and other opponents say the project would siphon resources from existing businesses and burden taxpayers.

Jones claims the group, formed after a recent meeting of the Town Council and the Kent County Water Authority, has about 800 members, from several communities.

Last month, about 40 signs appeared in West Warwick, Warwick and Coventry emblazoned with the group’s message and urging residents to vote against candidates who support the water park. The group also put up signs claiming that parents would have to pay $350 for a hotel room if their children wanted to use the water park.

According to Jones, at least six residents received notices from the building official’s office. Building Official Frank Venezia could not be reached yesterday for comment.

Thomas, the town manager, said the town has worked to treat all candidates fairly and has notified them of the ordinance limits and asked candidates to take down signs that don’t adhere to the rule.

“We’re not selectively enforcing,” Thomas said. “We’re treating everyone the same. But [Jones] seems to want to press the envelope of what’s legal.”

But Steven Brown, executive director of the Rhode Island Affiliate of the ACLU, said Jones may have a legitimate complaint. One of the organization’s volunteer lawyers is examining the complaint, he said.

“The problem with the ordinance is it does set an 8-square-feet requirement on political signs, but other signs, commercial signs, can be much larger,” Brown said. “Our position is that inverts the core First Amendment right to political speech. Political speech has to be given more protection than commercial speech. But the zoning turns that around and forces political signs to be much smaller than other signs. And we believe that is unconstitutional.”

The organization sent a letter to Venezia on Sept. 8, urging the building official to not pursue any action on the violation notices that residents received because of Jones’s signs. Instead, Brown suggested the town review and revise the zoning ordinance, which he called “problematic” and “confusing.” Brown said his office has not received any response to the letter, though Jones said no one was fined.

On Sept. 9, Jones lost his fifth bid for state representative — beaten by Ericka J. Atwell, a political novice and college student who was running with GOP endorsement. In November, Atwell will face the District 27 incumbent, Democrat Patricia A. Serpa. Jones says he will launch a write-in campaign.

tbuford@projo.com