Restaurant seeks to save rooster statue

HATCH, N.M., Oct. 20 (UPI) -- The owners of a New Mexico restaurant said they are trying to convince officials to let them keep a fiberglass rooster atop a truck in the eatery's parking lot.

Teako and Josie Nunn, owners of Sparky's Burgers, BBQ and Espresso in Hatch, N.M., said the rooster sits atop a 1964 Chevrolet panel truck in the restaurant's overflow parking lot across the street. State officials told them the fiberglass statue, which bears a sign promising "soft-serve ice cream" constitutes illegal off-premises advertising on wheels, the Las Cruces (N.M.) Sun reported Wednesday.

Teako Nunn said he is seeking options to bring the rooster, which stands 12 feet tall with the truck included, into line with the rules, including possibly taking the wheels off the truck.

Bridget Spedalieri, spokeswoman for the New Mexico Department of Transportation, said the Nunns must correct the violation or officers "would be forced to proceed with action to remove the advertisement and forward this matter to our legal section."