Akron may temporarily ban new billboards

Council expected to vote for moratorium following outcry over firm's large signs

By Katie Byard
Beacon Journal staff writer

Published on Sunday, Sep 07, 2008

Akron will probably put a freeze on new billboards.

City Council members on Monday will consider a 120-day moratorium on permits for construction of the signs.

The action, prompted by criticism, comes as an Indiana outdoor advertising firm finishes putting up 13 billboards — up to 50 feet tall — throughout the city.

Residents of the Highland Square/West Hill area, where two of the large signs are located, have been vocal opponents of the displays, saying they deface the neighborhood.

''We'll have a cooling-off period while [city planners] develop some new standards,'' Akron Planning Director Warren Woolford said.

The majority of City Council members are sponsoring the ordinance calling for the moratorium.

The new billboards ''are just too close together,'' City Council President Marco Sommerville said.

The big red poles and platforms ''look terrible . . . we're going to have to find a way to make sure this doesn't happen anymore . . . they're very intrusive into the neighborhood.''

The moratorium would not affect the 13 billboards for which the Indiana company already has permits. Twelve are already built, said Bo Hagood, co-owner of J&B Outdoor Inc. of Fishers, Ind.

Hagood said Akron's regulations are already strict.

''They could put a moratorium on, but I don't think it's going to mean a whole lot, because there are very few legal locations left,'' he said.

The city has about 300 billboards; the signs are prohibited in residential areas.

City officials updated billboard regulations in 1992 and
2000. Billboards also are barred downtown and within 1,000 feet of the Ohio & Erie Canal Scenic Byway.

There is a requirement that mandates at least 1,000 feet between billboards.

The 13 new signs inch right up to the city's height limit of 50 feet and will stay within the 300-square-foot (10 feet high by 30 feet wide) limit for billboards in retail areas.

Woolford said the planning department will gather information about other municipalities' regulations and see how cities are grappling with digital billboards, which feature bright, changing messages.

F. Eugene Smith, a retired industrial designer who lives in West Akron and is a frequent critic of billboards, said he wants a permanent moratorium.

''With other forms of advertising, we can turn the dial or turn the page,'' Smith said. ''Billboards are different. They are right up in the public view. It's hard to ignore them.''

Sommerville said a ban on all new billboards could open the city to ''a lengthy court fight.'' He said he's willing to look at ''all possibilities,'' but changing city code ''is much more complicated than people would think.''

The Akron council meets at 7 p.m. Monday at 166 S. High St.

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Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.

Akron will probably put a freeze on new billboards.

City Council members on Monday will consider a 120-day moratorium on permits for construction of the signs.

The action, prompted by criticism, comes as an Indiana outdoor advertising firm finishes putting up 13 billboards — up to 50 feet tall — throughout the city.

Residents of the Highland Square/West Hill area, where two of the large signs are located, have been vocal opponents of the displays, saying they deface the neighborhood.

''We'll have a cooling-off period while [city planners] develop some new standards,'' Akron Planning Director Warren Woolford said.

The majority of City Council members are sponsoring the ordinance calling for the moratorium.

The new billboards ''are just too close together,'' City Council President Marco Sommerville said.

The big red poles and platforms ''look terrible . . . we're going to have to find a way to make sure this doesn't happen anymore . . . they're very intrusive into the neighborhood.''

The moratorium would not affect the 13 billboards for which the Indiana company already has permits. Twelve are already built, said Bo Hagood, co-owner of J&B Outdoor Inc. of Fishers, Ind.

Hagood said Akron's regulations are already strict.

''They could put a moratorium on, but I don't think it's going to mean a whole lot, because there are very few legal locations left,'' he said.

The city has about 300 billboards; the signs are prohibited in residential areas.

City officials updated billboard regulations in 1992 and
2000. Billboards also are barred downtown and within 1,000 feet of the Ohio & Erie Canal Scenic Byway.

There is a requirement that mandates at least 1,000 feet between billboards.

The 13 new signs inch right up to the city's height limit of 50 feet and will stay within the 300-square-foot (10 feet high by 30 feet wide) limit for billboards in retail areas.

Woolford said the planning department will gather information about other municipalities' regulations and see how cities are grappling with digital billboards, which feature bright, changing messages.

F. Eugene Smith, a retired industrial designer who lives in West Akron and is a frequent critic of billboards, said he wants a permanent moratorium.

''With other forms of advertising, we can turn the dial or turn the page,'' Smith said. ''Billboards are different. They are right up in the public view. It's hard to ignore them.''

Sommerville said a ban on all new billboards could open the city to ''a lengthy court fight.'' He said he's willing to look at ''all possibilities,'' but changing city code ''is much more complicated than people would think.''

The Akron council meets at 7 p.m. Monday at 166 S. High St.