Others like the proposal, and while some agree the town should have prominent welcome signs, they oppose the construction of three Hollywood-style installations of 2m-high letters spelling out Alexandra at town entrances.
Comments on the proposal can be written in a book at the Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery, alongside a full-sized model letter "A".
Those behind the project are encouraging people to comment on the idea until the end of January.
To date, people have said the concept is "tacky and excessive", "not at all memorable", "childlike in design and arrangement", "quite boring", "lacking creative visual impact", and "absolutely hideous".
Other comments include "more effective than a bunch of fruit", "big bold and beautiful", "delightfully simple", and "will certainly be remembered".
One resident said "Please stop wasting our money," while another said, "Anything will beat the ultra tacky blossom they [Promote Alexandra] wanted to mount on the Central Stories building."
Another said the signs would be a target for vandalism and tagging.
Central Otago artist Grahame Sydney, of Cambrians, said the idea was "nonsense".
"The naming and branding of townships and cities in this country is an exercise in meaningless, pointless, vacuous hype.
Central Otago's own World of Difference logo is similarly meaningless, if not downright hypocritical - a world of difference compared to what?" Mr Sydney said.
He suggested the project was a waste of "precious funds" and reinforced the "sad" notion people entering the town did not know where they were.
"Only the confused, bewildered, drug-addled and demented need to be told where they are," Mr Sydney said.
Each sign would cost about $27,000 made from letters precast in concrete and schist.
It is the first proposal notified for public comment by the Alexandra entranceway working group, which was established last year after the Alexandra community plan process.
Group liaison officer Clair Higginson said the plan identified welcome signs into Alexandra as a priority, and so the entranceway group was formed.
Ms Higginson said the group encouraged debate on its proposal so it would know whether to proceed.
"Unless you provoke some reaction, it's very hard to know what people will think.
"When it was proposed that we get a clock on the hill here, there was a lot of concern and now we take it as part of us.
"The group will be guided by what people say," she said.
