According to a release from Kansas Justice Institute, Steve Howard, the owner of iconic burger joint “The Cozy Inn” filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Salina, Kansas, on Monday, February 19, 2024, after city officials told Howard he had to stop painting a mural on the side of his building. The Cozy, as locals call it, is a Salina landmark that has been serving hamburgers for more than 100 years.
Kansas Justice Institute, like the Sentinel, is owned by the Kansas Policy Institute. It has successfully represented clients whose constitutional rights have been violated by cities and the State of Kansas.
Murals adorn the walls of countless buildings in this vibrant and unique North Central Kansas town, and Howard wants The Cozy Inn to be a part of Salina’s artistic culture. He hired local artist Colin Benson to paint a whimsical mural depicting burger-esque flying saucers piloted by aliens attacking the restaurant with blasts of ketchup and mustard. But city officials ordered Howard to halt work on the half-finished mural.
According to city officials, because The Cozy sells hamburgers, and the flying saucers in his mural look like hamburgers, the city considers his mural to be a regulated sign — instead of unregulated artwork — and, therefore, a violation of the city code.
Kansas Justice Institute says the First Amendment does not allow the city to restrict speech, such as murals and other artwork, based on the message it conveys or the identity of the mural’s owner.
The lawsuit does not seek money from the City of Salina. Instead, the lawsuit argues that the City of Salina’s restrictions on murals violate the freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment.
“Downtown Salina is vibrant, unique, and beautiful. The Cozy’s artistic mural is too. The First Amendment protects the right to finish the mural,” KJI Director of Litigation Sam MacRoberts, said. “Salina is a great city with a set of really bad, unconstitutional laws and policies.”
According to MacRoberts, the government cannot restrict a mural simply because it contains references to the business on which it is painted. The First Amendment prohibits content-based restrictions on speech and artwork and does not allow the City to pick and choose which murals to allow and which to prohibit based on the message or content of the mural.
“Over 90% of our customers are travelers,” Howard said. “I want them to feel the fun and excitement when they get here. My customers traveled hundreds or thousands of miles, and they are excited, but now they are finally here, and it is fun when they see the aliens who traveled light-years to get here.”
According to KJI, at a Salina City Commission meeting, a city official explained that a coffee shop could freely paint a mural depicting a dove and the word “peace” because that has nothing to do with coffee, but if the coffee shop painted a mural depicting a “steaming cup of coffee and a coffee pot” that would be regulated as a sign. But the exact same mural depicting a steaming cup of coffee and a coffee pot would be treated as an unregulated mural if it was painted on a business that did not sell coffee. This case is part of KJI’s litigation campaign challenging laws that interfere with the right to free speech. It’s also part of KJI’s litigation efforts to fight back against city hall. In 2019, KJI successfully sued the State of Kansas over its raw milk advertising prohibition, and just last year, KJI sued the City of Ottawa, Kansas, over its home-based business prohibitions involving beekeeping and gardening.
Howard — who was raised in Saline County — bought the restaurant in 2007 after years working in maintenance for the local school district.
Since he bought The Cozy, it has been featured on the Travel Channel’s “101 Tastiest Places to Chow Down” and “America’s Top Ten Hamburgers.” USA Today Picked it as the “Best Burger Joint in Kansas.”
“Salina is my hometown; I love it here,” Howard said, “I want to finish my mural.”
