The Millbrook Town Council voted 5-2 Tuesday night to allocate $38,000 toward redesigning the municipal welcome sign, citing longstanding resident complaints that the current sign, installed in 1987, comes across as ‘standoffish’ and ‘possibly judgmental.’
The new sign will feature a rounder font, a subtle wave graphic, and the phrase ‘Welcome to Millbrook!’ replacing the previous ‘MILLBROOK — POP. 4,211,’ which several residents described in public comment as ‘cold’ and ‘like it’s daring you to enter.’ Councilwoman Patty Enderle, who spearheaded the initiative, called it ‘long overdue.’ ‘We’ve had visitors say they felt unwelcome before they even got their car doors open,’ Enderle said. ‘One family from Ohio said the sign made them feel like they owed the town money. That’s not the message we want to send.’
Not everyone is thrilled with the redesign. Local resident Gary Holt, 61, testified during the public comment period that the original sign had ‘character’ and that the new design ‘looks like something you’d see outside a day spa.’ Holt has since started a petition demanding the town instead spend the money repaving Elm Street, which he says has had the same pothole since the Clinton administration. The petition has collected eleven signatures, nine of which are from Holt’s immediate family.
The sign is expected to be installed by early spring, pending final approval of the wave graphic’s exact curvature, which will go before a subcommittee next month. Mayor Dale Furman expressed cautious optimism about the project’s timeline. ‘We’re not going to rush something this important,’ Furman said. ‘A town’s first impression is everything. Well, that and the pothole on Elm Street, which we’re also going to get to eventually.’
