There is a lot of pressure from businesses in Cary who would like to remove many of the sign restrictions in place, prompting the formation of a task force -- which is partially comprised of business owners and sign manufacturers -- to review changes in the sign ordinance.

However, I would like to speak on behalf of the silent majority who feel the sign ordinance should remain fundamentally the same.

Within the last year, my wife and I moved to the Triangle from out of state.

When we chose where to buy a house in the region, Cary stood out from the rest.

It wasn't just a sign ordinance that led us to choose Cary as a place to live, but that is one element among many that defines Cary and puts it one step above the others.

It is no coincidence that Cary is consistently selected as one of the top 10 places to live in the country by leading magazines and Web sites.

The silent majority has spoken by looking at the exceptional population growth.

People aren't exactly leaving in droves from Cary because of restrictions on signs.

The town has grown from about 22,000 people in 1980 to about 134,000 in 2009 -- a 516 percent increase.

The strong demand to live here from those new residents is due to the same reasons that my family chose Cary.

It is understandable that the businesses say they need to ease restrictions for visibility to attract additional customers during this recession.

However, we won't always be in a recession.

The economy will improve again.

When that happens, I doubt the business owners will come back to the Town Council to say: "Our business is doing well, let's put the sign ordinances back in place."

Let's not make permanent changes because of a temporary condition.

I urge the task force and Town Council to tread very cautiously when considering guiding Cary down a path towards permanently changing what makes it one of the top 10 places to live in the country.

Jim Dahlem is a Cary resident.