Posted: May 21, 2010

Editor's note: On Monday, May 24, Adams Outdoor Advertising requested to delay its request, according to a report in The Virginian-Pilot. The company asked for the delay because it said a number of supporters could not be present. No date was given for when the request might be made again.

By Philip Newswanger

philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com

Virginia Beach City Council is faced with a momentous decision: Vote down the emergence of electronic billboards or approve an ordinance that would allow them to be ubiquitous, but subjugated to tight standards.

City Council is expected to vote on the issue Tuesday, May 25.

Six City Council seats are up for grabs in November, so the voting might take an unpredictable twist.

Adams Outdoor Advertising, the company whose billboards are a routine sight in the region, is asking City Council to approve an ordinance that would allow the advertising company to transform its paper billboards into electronic billboards, or LED displays.

Adams has offered to petition City Council for each billboard and has agreed to give the city control over the billboards in case of an emergency.

The business community, advertisers, organizations devoted to finding missing children, police and safety officers, favor the electronic displays.

The business community in Virginia Beach is especially keen to see City Council permit the electronic billboards in the largest city in Virginia.

LED displays are popular among advertisers because of their efficiency and for projecting multiple messages in the space of seconds.

"I support this technology for businesses to get their message out," said John Wilson, chairman of the Virginia Beach division of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce and owner of W.B. Insurance, which represents Nationwide Insurance.

Wilson said an electronic billboard is better in appearance than a sign that is dilapidated and fallen into disrepair.

Wilson, as a representative of the chamber, was one of 10 voting members the city gathered to discuss the LED display issue.

Represented were individuals from the beautification front, the chamber, the sign community and Virginia Beach Vision, among others.

"It was clear from the outset that the city put together a committee that was very diverse," Wilson said.

The committee voted six to four in favor of moving forward with language that would permit electronic billboards in the city.

"Now it's a question of how those signs would be regulated," Wilson said.

The faction in favor of the LED displays argues that if churches and the Virginia Beach Convention Center can use LED displays, why can't the rest of the community?

"The city is using this technology more aggressively than anyone else," Wilson said.

The question remains as to how the displays will be regulated, Wilson said.

Agreements have been reached on what colors and how many will be used in the display and the size of the display.

The real issue, and one that's engendered many opinions, is how often the display changes.

The convention center sign changes every four seconds, Wilson said.

"The ordinance would be much more restrictive," Wilson said.

Ron Villanueva, a former City Council member who is now a state legislator, proposed that the displays change every five seconds, Wilson said.

The Beach's Planning Commission proposed in the ordinance that the displays change every hour, Wilson said.

City Council Member Glenn Davis, who sat on the committee, thought an hour was too restrictive, Wilson said.

"The mayor put forward once every 24 hours," Wilson said. "Dwell time is the biggest question mark."

"We are supportive of the change in the ordinance that would allow Adams to apply for the existing upgrade of the billboards," said Ira Agricola, vice president of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce. "Virginia Beach has one of the most restrictive sign ordinances on the East Coast due to the proactive stance of the beautification effort."

Agricola said that the chamber often hears from retailers, who depend on signs to advertise their wares, that Virginia Beach has a very restrictive sign ordinance.

The upgrade to an electronic billboard will cost Adams $100,000, so the company will put the displays in key locations, he said. The Council has to approve each upgrade.

Virginia Beach "should allow businesses to promote themselves with the new technology," Agricola said. "We would like to see a more moderate position out of Council that would take into account businesses."

Localities throughout Hampton Roads have different rules governing LED displays or they are in the process of establishing ground rules for electronic billboards.

The city of Newport News, for example, doesn't have a separate ordinance on LED signs, according to Christine Mignogna, the city's zone adminstrator.

"We are reviewing the entire sign ordinance," Mignogna said.

Animation is prohibited and the displays are permitted to change every three seconds.

"But we are proposing to change the time the message changes," Mignogna said.

Suffolk's regulations are more comprehensive and were crafted with input from the business community.

"The city of Suffolk revamped its sign ordinance in August 2009 working in partnership with our local chamber of commerce, and the Tidewater Builders Association and Hampton Roads Realtors," said Suffolk's assistant director of community development, J. Tim Davis, in an e-mail. "Included in the revised regulations was the issue of electronic message boards.

"We have, by regulation, been able to more clearly define what they are, where they may be located, and their maximum size and durational limits on changing copy," Davis said. "The 'new' regulations allow the electronic message boards in our business district only. All these boards must comply with the following standards.

"They cannot flash, they cannot jiggle and they cannot wobble, but they can change copy once an hour," Davis said. "We did extensive research and we have partnered with the business community. It was a comprehensive sign rewrite."

The time the sign changes was a relatively small part of the rewrite, but it got the most attention,according to Davis. He has not received any complaints in the nine months the ordinance has been in place.

Even the LED display on the Suffolk Cultural Arts Center had to conform to the new regulations, Davis said.

John King III, zoning administrator for the city of Chesapeake, said outdoor advertising, or a billboard, or any other freestanding sign or wall sign can contain an electronic message board if it meets the definition and criteria outlined by an ordinance governing such displays.

"A permit is required to convert an existing sign or install a new sign containing an electronic message board," King said.

Among the regulations, signs are permitted to change their message eight times every 24 hours. Signs that display the time and the temperature are the exception. Under the ordinance, they can change every five seconds. nib