FENWICK ISLAND – The Fenwick Island Town Council is continuing to mull a law that will restrict commercial vehicles being used for advertising purposes only despite warnings of enforcement challenges.

During last Friday’s Fenwick Island Town Council meeting, Councilman Bill Weistling returned to the discussion of commercial vehicles being used strictly for advertising, asking for updates from staff.

Last month, the council discussed regulating advertising on commercial vehicles at length. The subject was initially brought up by the Parking Committee, which forwarded the issue to the Charter and Ordinance Committee for feedback.

At that time, Chief of Police William Boyden explained the department’s challenge would be enforcement.

“If they have a vehicle parked, and once they know there is an ordinance they are going to start moving the vehicle around. I don’t want to mark the ordinance against one or two businesses,” he said. “Once we get an ordinance that is workable and we get it passed … the police department can go to those businesses that use vehicles as billboards and educate them. You will probably see 99.9 percent of the problem disappear.”

The council went back and forth over potential restrictions to include in an ordinance, such as sizes of advertising on vehicles, but felt that staff needed to conduct further research in how the state and neighboring municipalities handle the issue.

Boyden confirmed last month he would be in contact with the Town of Fenwick Island Solicitor and Delaware Attorney General’s Office for feedback and return to the council for further discussion.

This week Boyden stated neither the Chief Magistrate nor Attorney General’s Office would give an official opinion without a proposed or passed ordinance.

“Unofficially their opinion is it is going to be very hard ordinance to enforce. The police can enforce it but once it gets to the court level it will be very hard for the courts to enforce the ordinance, especially with parking lots and the movement of the vehicle,” he said.

Weistling asked the Parking Committee to take another look at it. Councilman Gardener Bunting responded the Parking Committee will continue to discuss the matter at its next meeting on Sept. 18 and return to the council with the results of that discussion at next month’s council meeting on Sept. 26.