Campaign signs are in full bloom in Pittsfield. Here’s what the candidates say about making their mark on yards across the city

Pittsfield Reporter

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PITTSFIELD — The approaching preliminary election on Sept. 19 has candidates breaking what has long been an unspoken rule in Pittsfield — no lawn signs until after Labor Day.

Almost overnight properties across the city have been blanketed in a series of new lawn ornaments proclaiming the names of mayoral and city councilor candidates.

To date, mayoral candidates say they’ve placed more than 2,000 yard signs across the city. Former City Council Vice President John Krol says his team has put out 1,100 of his campaign’s signature blue signs.

City Council President Peter Marchetti has 840 signs in green throughout the city and City Councilor Karen Kalinowsky said Monday she’s distributed about 200 of her peach and purple signs.

Political signs for the mayor’s race have popped up all over Pittsfield. City Councilor Karen Kalinowsky repurposed old City Council race signs with the help of a sticker for her mayoral campaign.

The candidates say they know the old retort “lawn signs don’t vote,” but the mayoral candidate said they’re grateful for every city resident who’s willing to give them a foothold in their yard.

“When you earn a lawn sign knocking on the door, having a conversation and having someone agree to share their property with your campaign — that is meaningful,” Krol told The Eagle in an interview on Wednesday. “So we definitely appreciate every single one of those signs because for our campaign they definitely mean something.”

Krol said his team took a strategic approach to its lawn sign campaign, which had its first major rollout on Aug. 13.

He said the campaign had five teams and vehicles with three or four people in each team visiting various parts of the city to plant signs. The candidate said the whole effort took about four and a half hours — and caused them to miss a breakfast reservation — but resulted in 700 lawn signs popping up.

That guerilla approach has worked in spades, Krol said. He said his campaign is currently fielding about 10 to 15 requests for lawn signs a day from other property owners.

Political signs for the have popped up all over Pittsfield — well before the traditional Labor Day start of the campaign. The preliminary election is set for Sept. 19.

Marchetti took a similar approach. He said that while he was the last mayoral candidate to get signs in the ground — he says the Labor Day tradition is an unofficial rule still ingrained in him — his team put out 600 signs on the first day.

“I was just waiting until it was closer to the election because lawn signs are expensive and they disappear off of lawns for a whole host of reasons,” Marchetti said.

It’s an effort that doesn’t come cheap. Krol reported to the state office of campaign and political finance that he spent just over $7,000 on a lawn sign contract.

Kalinowksy took a different approach — the city councilor paid just under $900 for brochures and stickers, which she used to repurpose old yard signs from her city council campaign.

In a post to her Facebook account in early August, Kalinowsky’s team wrote that the stickers “not only showcases her commitment to sustainability but also reflects her resourcefulness and budget smart spirit.”

Meg Britton-Mehlisch can be reached at [email protected] or 413-496-6149.

Pittsfield Reporter