THE COLONY, Texas — A medical group specialized in treating penile birth defects is challenging the City of The Colony after it denied their building sign for a related charity non-profit. Three other signs for the Hypospadias Specialty Center were approved for the building.
The 501-3c named Operation Happenis [sic] is a play on words that relatives of Dr. Nicol Bush, a pediatric urologist, came up with. The sign features the word "penis," which the City confirms to WFAA was the basis for the denial.
"The one word nobody wants to talk about," said Jennifer Bogdanowitz, who is the charity coordinator for Operation Happenis.
The sign was deemed non-compliant with Code of Ordinances, Chapter 6, "Buildings, Construction, Health, and Sanitation," according to a city representative.
The code reads:
Sec. 6-258. - Prohibited signs: (b) the following signs are also prohibited: (1)Any sign containing graffiti, obscene, indecent or immoral words, pictures, descriptions or other matter deemed to be of detriment to the health or morals of the citizens.
"You're gonna call your charity that? We had people question the name we came up with," said Dr. Bush.
Dr. Bush, who has done thousands of hypospadias repair surgeries, says the public has a very hard time with that word. The group is very used to fighting the stigma that comes along with the word penis.
Dr. Bush said the non-profit is purely about helping families who struggle with the isolation and shame that often come with a penis birth defect.
"I think this is the epitome of irony that we can't talk about a body part that half of the world has," said Dr. Bush.
Hypospadias, according to the Mayo Clinic, is a birth defect in which the opening of the urethra is on the underside of the penis instead of the tip. Bogdanowitz told WFAA that people from all across the globe come to their facility in The Colony.
The city representative told WFAA that The Colony is "in no way opposed to the organization or the services it provides. It's a matter of the sign in question being consistent with the definition of prohibited signs from the ordinances, and we welcome the applicant to avail themselves of the appeals process."
The group has an appeal hearing with the Sign Board of Appeals set for Wednesday, Mar. 18 at city hall.
The City told WFAA that if the denial is upheld by the board, it can be taken up by the city council.
"You can't say happiness without saying penis," laughed Dr. Bush.
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