A Minnesota administrative law judge has dismissed a resident's complaint accusing Arden Hills City Council candidate David Radziej of using a lawn sign logo that mimics the city's own leafy tree emblem, but the fight over the design is far from settled. The Arden Hills City Council is scheduled to consider new enforcement options, including cease-and-desist letters and consultation with a trademark attorney, at a meeting on Monday.
Judge Suzanne Todnem ruled on September 18 that the campaign's use of a look-alike logo on lawn signs did not amount to a prima facie violation of state campaign law, according to Minnesota Star Tribune. Resident Kristine Poelzer had filed the complaint with the Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings after raising the issue during public comment at city council meetings, arguing that the city's hills-and-tree logo on non-official signage creates the perception of city endorsement. The dismissal, detailed in a Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings ruling, turned on the fact that Minnesota Statute § 211B.02 governs false claims of endorsement by political parties, organizations, or individuals — not municipal graphic logos, according to the Minnesota Revisor of Statutes.
A Tree Logo With a 16-Year History
Radziej's campaign sign features a full tree and a plunging R, while the official Arden Hills logo shows a leafy tree on a hill above the city name — a design the city adopted in 2001. Councilmember Brenda Holden has said Radziej's logo is not identical to the city's and noted that he used the design for 16 years before the city adopted its logo-use policy in January, the same report notes. Radziej has used the tree design in his campaigns for city council and mayor since 2010, and previously served on the Arden Hills City Council himself.
Councilmember Kurt Weber has said the city attorney considered Radziej's signs substantially similar enough to the official logo that they could qualify as trademark infringement, per the same account. Jessica Jagoe called Radziej to discuss the logo-use policy and later sent him a follow-up letter, but as of the September 14 council meeting, she said she had received no updates about the signs. Radziej declined to comment on the logo-use policy, though a city emblem designer said, in an email attributed to Radziej, that his campaign signs do not use the same logo as the city's.
Council Weighs Its Next Move
The Arden Hills City Council unanimously agreed on its City Logo Use Policy, which prohibits use of the logo in partisan or non-partisan campaign messages or materials — the policy was on the agenda for the council's November 24, 2025 meeting and was approved on January 12, 2026, according to City of Arden Hills records. The policy, however, lacks an enforcement procedure, leaving the council to decide how much authority it actually has heading into Monday's meeting.
Councilmember Tena Monson called the sign dispute a gross abuse of city policy and said the council's role is to enforce its own policies, the Star Tribune reported. She has expressed interest in allowing city staff to remove signs that continue displaying the logo after a correction is requested. Proposed options on the table include sending cease-and-desist letters and contacting a trademark attorney, though the council remains divided on whether Radziej's sign actually violates the policy in the first place — a dispute the Star Tribune describes as unresolved among council members.
Legal Limits on the City's Power
Complicating any crackdown, Minnesota Statute § 211B.045 preempts local sign ordinances from restricting the size or number of noncommercial campaign signs during a window that runs from 46 days before a primary election until 10 days after a general election — a stretch spanning June 26 through November 13 this year, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State. Cities do retain authority to remove signs improperly placed on public rights-of-way, but that authority does not automatically extend to policing a sign's graphic content.
David Schultz, a professor of political science and legal studies at Hamline University, has said Arden Hills has a compelling interest in preventing candidates from using the logo in ways that imply city endorsement, since city imagery on campaign materials can suggest the city is spending money on a candidate's campaign, per the Star Tribune. The League of Minnesota Cities has published guidance on sign ordinances and First Amendment protections.
Three Candidates, Two Seats
The dispute lands in the middle of an active race: Radziej is one of three candidates competing for two open seats on the Arden Hills City Council in the November 3 general election, alongside Jess Birken and Ben Lindau, according to Ballotpedia. Lindau and Birken serve on the Arden Hills Planning Commission, which advises the council on land use and zoning matters.
Whether the city's logo-use policy can extend to a candidate's own lawn signs is the question Arden Hills council members will take up again on Monday, with state election law and First Amendment protections still standing squarely in their way.
