Paul Clinton
CIVIC CENTER -- To curb the spread of unsightly advertising, the City
Council unanimously approved a 45-day moratorium on new billboard signs.
"We don't have many (billboards)," Councilman David Laurell said
Thursday. "But to be perfectly honest I would prefer that we have none
... I think the moratorium is the perfect thing so we don't do something
we're going to regret."
Council members installed the ban Tuesday because the city received
two requests for new signs, officials said. The ban will stand until city
staffers craft a more comprehensive policy outlining proposed
restrictions on the signs.
During the ban on new signs, staff members will consider ways to
restrict the size and content of future advertising in the city. They
will present their findings to the council.
Community Development Director Bob Tague said his department has taken
a handful of phone calls from residents unhappy with several high-profile
ad boards around town. The number one culprit: a large sign atop a
martial arts studio at the corner of Magnolia Boulevard and First Street.
That billboard is currently promoting a popular brand of SUV.
"We're always concerned about the signs that create a blighting
influence," Tague said. "That they're not attractive."
Tague said the city probably won't be able to dictate what type of ads
can appear. Cities that have attempted to ban certain signs, especially
those with sexual undertones, have been rebuffed in court, Tague said.
Advertisers have said restrictions on their ads are an infringement on
free speech.
Burbank is not the only community concerned about the negative impacts
of billboards.
On Thursday, a state bill sponsored by Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Van
Nuys) aimed at getting rid of billboards along Chandler Boulevard in
Valley Village passed the Senate.
In February, city officials in Azusa painted over a billboard ad for
the Los Angeles Avengers, an arena league football team. Azusa City
Manager Rick Cole, with a councilman watching from below, painted over
the last two words of a ad which said "On Sunday April 9th, Six Beautiful
Women Will Show You Their Panties." Cole is under investigation for
vandalism.
Former City Councilman Ted McConkey said one of the sexually
suggestive arena ads was put into the Rancho District near his home.
"That (sign) was really irritating," McConkey said. "They were
teasers, sexual teasers. The advertisers are pushing the envelope and
hiding behind the First Amendment."
Vice Mayor Bob Kramer said he would support a permanent ban on new
signs, regardless of their content.
"It's the sign itself, not the content," Kramer said. "I'm not a big
sign fan. It would be all right with me to ban all of them."
