Garage / Rummage Sale Sign Guidelines

Read the Garage/Rummage Sale Guidelines (PDF).

1. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
   1. Personal property. Property which is owned, utilized, and maintained and acquired in the normal course of living in or maintaining a residence. It does not include merchandise that was purchased for resale or obtained on consignment.
   2. Rummage sale. Includes all general sales, open to the public, conducted from or on a residential premises, including but not limited to all sales titled "rummage", "lawn", "yard", "estate", "porch", "room", "backyard", "patio", or "garage", sale.
2. Property permitted to be sold. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or offer for sale at a rummage sale property other than personal property. Unless otherwise permitted specifically in the regulations for the zoning district, rummage sales are permitted only in residential zoning districts.
3. Permit. A person offering property for sale at a rummage sale, and conducting such sale at or upon a residential property, shall notify the village clerk, and shall conduct such sale subject to subsections (4), (5), (6), and (7) as hereinafter set forth.
4. Hours and place of operation. Rummage sales shall be conducted only between the hours of 8 am and 7 pm. No more than three rummage sales in one calendar year may be conducted from any premises. Each sale may last no longer than three consecutive days and must be conducted on the seller's property.
5. Signs. Signs for "rummage sale," "garage sale" or similar signs shall be subject to the sign regulations set forth in section 121-327 of the Village of Brown Deer Code.
6. Removal of signs. All signs, no matter where placed, must be removed within 24 hours of the close of the rummage sale.
7. Penalty. Any person who violates or fails to comply with any provision of this section shall be subject to the provisions of section 1 to 7 of the Brown Deer Code. (Prior Code, Section 22-January 1, 2001; Ordinance of September 20, 1954, Section 22-January 1, 2001; Ordinance Number 13-05, Section I, September 16, 2013) There are state laws and village ordinances governing the posting of advertisements and signs. Wisconsin state law, Statute 84.30, prohibits the posting of advertisements within the right-of-way of state highways that receive any type of federal funding, such as West Brown Deer Road and North Green Bay Roads.
   "Right-of-Way" is an area of land over which people and goods have a right to pass. Right-of-way are governmentally owned and they typically extend beyond a road surface and feature utilities and other improvements. In Brown Deer, improvements in the right-of-way often include ditches, sidewalks, light poles, and utility poles. However, signs can be posted on private property alongside those roads, with the permission of the owner of the property.
   • The Village Code of Ordinances, Chapter 121, Article IX also prohibits such signs within any village-owned right-of-way, but allows signs on private property alongside these roads, with the permission of the owner of the property. Village ordinance further prohibits the placement of signs on any tree or living vegetation and on utility poles with the owner's written permission. This information must then be filed with the Village Clerk. Utility companies normally do not grant permission for such postings. Village Code Chapter 121 Section 121-327(2). The Police or Public Works Departments, at the direction of the Village Manager, could potentially remove any signs found in violation of Village Ordinances and the sign owner is possibly subject to a fine.
   • A Right-of-Way Application is available