New Hampshire bakery wins ‘ludicrous’ legal spat with local authorities over donuts

A New Hampshire bakery owner has won a legal victory over the local authority after it tried to tear down its donut art.   

Leavitt’s Country Bakery, located in the heart of the picturesque New England town of Conway, was ordered to take down an art mural on the front of its store for violating zoning laws.

The mural on top of the local institution known for its homemade doughnuts was made by local high school students and features New Hampshire’s famous White Mountains in whimsical baked goods form.  

Conway local authorities, however, did not see the funny side. 

Last year they ordered Leavitt’s Bakery owner Sean Young to take the art down as it allegedly contravened the town’s zoning laws. The mural was apparently four times larger than those permitted for commercial signs. 

Young however argued that the mural was art, not commercial advertising, and filed a First Amendment lawsuit against Conway seeking $1 in damages.

Now U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante says the donut art can stay. 

‘Conway’s application of its sign code, and specifically its enforcement of the sign code to the Leavitt’s sign in the particular manner it employed in this case, does not withstand any level of constitutional scrutiny,’ the Judge wrote in his ruling. 

Leavitt’s Country Bakery is located in the heart of the picturesque New England town of Conway

The ruling comes after a tense bench trial in February where both the bakery and the town presented their evidence and eyewitnesses.

Young told The Wall Street Journal that he was ‘thrilled’ by his victory. 

‘I think our mural is a wonderful depiction of everything that makes the Mount Washington Valley such a great place to live,’ he told the publication. 

Robert Frommer, who represented Young previously, said ‘you don’t lose your right to free speech because you open a doughnut shop. 

‘Whether you put up pastry mountains or paint real mountains, that’s the artistic choice of the shop owner, not the government.’ 

Leavitt’s Bakery has been in operation since the 1970s and occupies a quaint 1,300-square-foot red cabin.  

The case drew headline attention since New Hampshire, which goes by the state slogan ‘live free or die’, leans toward the libertarian rather than interventionist form of local government. 

For example, the state charges no sales tax and takes a laissez-faire approach to road safety – with no requirements for adults to wear a seatbelt in a car or a helmet on a motorcycle. 

Leavitt’s Bakery owner Sean Young was told to take the art down as it allegedly contravened the town’s zoning laws

Young filed a First Amendment lawsuit against the town authorities in Conway seeking $1 in damages

Bismark donuts are showered with powdered sugar at Leavitt’s Country Bakery

Young bought Leavitt’s Bakery during the pandemic and shortly afterwards had the idea to commission the mural from art students at the local high school.

‘Probably a year after we bought it, a friend of mine who knows the local high school art teacher said, “Hey, they’re looking for a place to do an art project,”‘ Young previously told the Journal. 

The students leapt at the opportunity and were proud of the work they created.  

During the legal wrangle, local residents of the tight-knit community were divided over who was in the right. 

Fourth-generation Conway resident Lisa Parent attended zoning board meetings to support Young in his appeal. 

‘I’m very familiar with your sign policies, which are all over the place,’ she told the board at one such meeting last year.