Duffy

Plaintiffs Paul and Eunice Duffy, newspaper distributors, appeal from the judgment entered in favor of defendant City of Arcadia (City) declaring that subdivision 9 of Arcadia Municipal Code section 6439, which sets a height limit for newspaper racks, is constitutional. We affirm.

I.

Facts and Procedural Background

In 1977, City adopted Municipal Code section 6439 to regulate the size, placement and condition of newspaper racks on its streets. Although plaintiffs then distributed newspapers in City, they brought no legal challenge to the newly enacted ordinance.

In 1983, City discovered that at an unknown time, plaintiffs had replaced their formerly conforming newspaper racks with 18 double-deck newspaper racks at 8 different locations in City. The new five-foot-high racks violated subdivision 9 of Arcadia Municipal Code section 6439 which states: “No news rack shall exceed four (4) feet in height, thirty (30) inches in width or two (2) feet in thickness.”

In 1984, City wrote to plaintiffs, informing them that the newsracks violated the local height limits and asking them to remedy the matter.

Plaintiffs responded by filing suit for declaratory and injunctive…