For Hollywood East sign, few are singing hooray

The sign on the courthouse lawn will be removed by Monday. (Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff/file)

The backers of Plymouth Rock Studios are expected to announce today their second choice of location - either in Plymouth or Plympton - for a proposed $300 million movie-making facility.

Whatever the decision, one thing is for certain: It will be the new home of the 50-foot "Hollywood East" sign now on the Plymouth County courthouse lawn in the heart of Plymouth's historic district. And some can't see it gone soon enough.

The sprawling sign, unveiled last Friday, obscures a 20-year-old Korean and Vietnam war monument - enraging the town's veterans. By the end of last weekend, their outcry was loud enough to prompt a hasty promise from Plymouth Rock Studios to cart the sign away.

It is expected to be gone by Monday.

The white block letters spread across the lawn of the historic 1820 courthouse drew strong reaction from many in town, including Plymouth's top leaders.

The town center is governed by the local Historic District Commission, which holds all properties to a strict standard. All owners are forbidden to make even modest changes to their properties' exteriors without a review by the commission, and approval of suggested changes is frequently denied.

Selectmen were therefore particularly upset that the 250-square-foot Hollywood East sign passed muster with the Historic District Commission. In fact, the panel's approval had been unanimous.

Selectman Butch Machado said he frequently receives complaints from people in the historic district about the unbending nature of the commission.

"They don't allow people in the district to put on little decks or even small signs out on the sidewalks," Machado said. "And then they allow this."

Selectman Kenneth Tavares agreed. "I was shocked the Historic District Commission OK'd this in view of what they have required others to do in the district," Tavares said. "I know of a number of instances when people have had to seek relief, but with this, it seems all the rules were thrown out."

Historic District Commission member James Baker said his panel allowed the Hollywood East sign because it was only temporary and because it was to be accompanied by a kiosk containing courthouse history.

The stated purpose of the Hollywood East sign was to draw tourists, who generally gravitate to the waterfront, up the hill to Plymouth's downtown stores. Merchants hoped tourists would want to take their pictures in front of the sign, a replica of the Hollywood landmark, and then do some shopping in the downtown.

"Although the sign is bizarre and raises a question over what it's all about, it's that question that will intrigue people and draw tourists to the center," Baker said. "There's also precedent. Back in the 1940s and '50s, they put up all sorts of things on that lawn."

Historic District Commission vice chairman Anthony Provenzano acknowledged that the panel is generally quite strict, but the temporary nature of the Hollywood East sign won its approval. The sign was to be removed by October, he said.

"When it's a temporary installation, we don't apply the normal standards we use for a permanent sign," Provenzano said.

Paul McAuliffe, Plymouth's director of inspectional services, said the town's attorney told his department early on that it had no authority to regulate the Hollywood East sign.

"It certainly doesn't meet the zoning for a sign in this town, but since it's on county property, that was the end of our involvement," McAuliffe said. "The town could have weighed in if it was for a purely commercial enterprise, but they said this was for the common good, to help the businesses."

Selectman David Malaguti said that whatever the sign's purpose, his initial reaction upon seeing it last Friday evening was shock. "I drove by and said, 'Oh no,' " Malaguti said. "It's the only impression you could have. It's unbelievable."

While most in town enthusiastically support the plan to open a major movie studio here, many said the Hollywood East sign gives the impression that Plymouth Rock Studios isn't so much joining the Plymouth community as taking it over.

"I told them back in January, 'You need to become part of us. We don't need to become you,' " said Tavares, who was upset over the sign. "That lawn is the front door to the Plymouth community, and we want to keep some dignity. . . . This sign belongs someplace else."

Machado said it is important that the town's history doesn't get overshadowed by the glamour of Hollywood.

"I support this [studio] project with my whole heart, but we have to remember Plymouth's real image and claim to fame: This is where it all began when the Pilgrims landed, and this is what the whole country celebrates," Machado said. "The movie project may be glamorous, but we have to keep sight of what we really are."

Not everyone was angered by the Hollywood East sign. Loring Tripp, former longtime Planning Board chairman, said the sign is where it belongs, on the courthouse lawn. "History has been ongoing here for the last 400 years, and this is another piece of that history," Tripp said. "I think we're reinventing Plymouth. This is bringing positive attention to the town."

When the sign changes location, the rules will change as well, if its location is outside the historic district.

Townspeople and officials should know some time today just where they can expect the sign to reappear.

Plymouth Rock Studios had given up on its initial target, 1,000 acres in south Plymouth, due to land title problems. Studio representatives have said little about their search for a new site, but have indicated they are looking at land in Plympton as well as a couple of large properties in Plymouth.

Christine Legere can be reached at christinelegere@yahoo.com.