subject: Cities Take a Hard Look at Billboards [print this page] Cities Take a Hard Look at Billboards Cities Take a Hard Look at Billboards
A recent ruling by Virginia Beach City Council has resulted in the ban of all LED billboards and signs. The July 23rd decision drew applause from the members of the cities beautification club that had been lobbying for the by-law for some time. The 6 to 5 ruling will not affect existing signs, and digital billboards, which were not a part of the discussion, are also under review by the city.
The Garden and Beautification Club argued that the flashing LED signage distracted drivers, devalued real estate, and should be considered sign pollution. Those in favor of the signs felt that the LED advertisements were a sensible way of attracting customers to their struggling businesses and were helpful to the visitors of the tourist-oriented community. They also felt that the signs were an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional signage and billboards which require constant upkeep and use far more energy to illuminate.
Virginia Beach is not the only city involved in this debate. Los Angeles, Richmond KY, and Baltimore are among the many cities that are struggling with the concept of the modern signs. Some cities are allowing them with certain restrictions. Conditions such as how often the message changes, how close they are to the roadway, and how animated the lighting is, are all being considered. Certain cities are allowing the LED signs only if they provide some type of public service message such as weather info, time, date, etc...
Billboards have been a contentious issue for many years and the new generation of LED signs has added even more fuel to the fire. There is no doubt a billboard attracts the attention of drivers. Clear Channel Outdoor currently has 450 digital billboards and Ron Cooper, their Chief Executive, states "It's a very flexible, very responsible medium and very impactful...Consumers report seeing it, remembering the brand, remembering the advertisers".
Digital billboards do not come cheap with some costing upwards of $300,000; however, their revenue potential is also quite high. Single boards can accommodate up to six different businesses and at $1,000 - $5,000 per month for each advertiser the return on investment can be substantial. The signs also provide a steady revenue stream for the municipality in which they are located.
As for the issue of distracting drivers, the jury is still out. The Federal Highway Administration is in the midst of conducting a study and hope to have it completed by the end of the summer. For now, the only requirement they have put forth is that the messages on the screen change no quicker than every 4 seconds, to lessen the distraction.
Currently in the US there are more than 450,000 billboards, 2,000 of which are digital. Depending on where you live these numbers could be changing fast based on the decisions of local government and the FHA.
