SHARP-EYED sign readers will have noticed various attempts by local government candidates to be more environmentally-friendly when it comes to putting up campaign signs.
There may even be budgetary reasons in addition to candidates wishing to be a bit more green in their outlook.
Some candidates, such as first time council hopefuls Dan LeFrancois, Stacey Tyers and Tamara Ainscow, have forsaken commercially-made signs in favour of ones that are hand-lettered.
Tyers said her signs first saw life as ones encouraging people to vote 'yes' to extinguish the HST during the referendum earlier this year.
"Actually, I gave out that offer to the other candidates, hoping they would want to recycle as well. But Dan was the only one to take me up on it," she said.
The less money she spends on signs, Tyers added, the more she hopes to donate to charity when the election is over.
Others who were defeated in the last local government elections in 2008 are re-using signs.
City council candidate Marylin Davies, who was on council until defeated in 2008, is one of those re-users – her signs urge voters to re-elect her which is technically true.
Hal Stedham, a contender for one of the two Terrace seats on the school board, also falls into the re-user category. He was on the school board until being defeated in 2008.
And one candidate, Chris Gee, does not have any signs up at all and made a point of condemning sign use at the Nov. 8 municipal all candidates meeting.
But the overall nod to sign recycling – and local historical political trivia – just may go to mayoral candidate Bruce Martindale.
Those curious about the origination of the large Martindale signs now up around town will have noticed someone else's name on the back.
That name is Miles Richardson, a prominent Haida politician who was the federal Liberal Party of Canada candidate in the 2004 federal election here.
Those large Martindale signs began their lives as ones promoting Richardson in that election.
Political junkies will recall that two locals ran for the Liberal nomination that year – Martindale and then-Terrace mayor Jack Talstra.
Martindale dropped out in the middle of the nomination race to support Talstra who then subsequently lost to Richardson.
So you have to wonder who has been keeping those Richardson signs tucked away all of these years.
To close off the political circle, Talstra was defeated by current mayor Dave Pernarowski in the 2008 municipal election and Martindale is now running against Pernarowski.
One final observation, Richardson ran third in the 2004 federal election, behind Tory incumbent Andy Burton and NDP winner Nathan Cullen. It was Cullen's first federal election victory.