San Jose should nix plan to build 2 new billboards
Billboards are eyesores. Three decades ago we noted that “some are informative. A few are amusing. But all of them are ugly.”
They also distract drivers, contribute to light pollution, and too often promote unhealthy products.
Cities should be taking down billboards, not erecting new ones.
The San Jose City Council banned the construction of new billboards on public land in 1972 and citywide in 1985 in an action that was called a “very strong commitment on the part of the City Council to beautify the city.”
It's a policy that is still supported by 93% of San Jose residents, according to a recent survey by city staff.
Yet in 2018, the City Council voted to allow up to 22 new digital signs and billboards on 17 city-owned sites. They would be placed on cityowned downtown buildings, parking garages and eight freeway-facing public properties, including some at the airport.
Council members today will consider a proposal to build two new electronic billboards — each measuring 1,000 square feet — along Highway 101 on Mineta San Jose International Airport property.
In exchange, media company Clear Channel is offering to remove eight traditional billboards, pay the airport a minimum of $600,000 a year and let the airport use 10% of the advertising time on the billboards to promote the airport.
The City Council should follow the lead of the Airport Commission and reject the proposal. The council should also make it clear that it values the city's scenic landscapes over the advertising dollars any other billboards might provide. Council members erred in 2018 when they failed to seek resident input before their 9-2 vote, instead listening to billboard industry executives, lobbyists and a representative from Lick Observatory, who opposed the plan because of the potential for additional light pollution.
Billboards are an $8.5 billion industry that pours millions into lobbying against restrictions.
All told, an estimated 10,000 electronic billboards have been constructed across the United States.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Clear Channel has more than 500,000 print and digital billboards worldwide, including billboards capable of tracking people's movements and passing the information along to advertisers.
Clear Channel “gathers location and tracking information from multiple sources — apps, data firms — and then analyzes the info for insights about how people behave after passing a Clear Channel billboard.”
Meanwhile, four states have banned billboards altogether.
It shouldn't come as a surprise that the four states — Alaska, Hawaii, Vermont and Maine — are renowned for their natural beauty and as places to relax and enjoy nature. Perhaps it's because no billboards exist to distract residents and tourists.