Pioneer Press Mon, 17 Dec 2007 17:50:01 -0700
Getting close on billboards
There are a lot of billboards in St. Paul. Many have been here for decades. They're not all going away anytime soon. Clear Channel Communications wants to upgrade some of its static signs into electronic billboards on which messages change frequently. Concerned about safety and visual clutter, St. Paul put a moratorium on electronic billboards a year ago. That moratorium expires next month. The City Council last week passed a billboard ordinance that would allow some electronic boards along interstates in exchange for the removal of some static boards in neighborhoods. ... It's understandable that people see bigger issues in this dispute - a business's freedom to operate vs. a community's need to set standards and protect itself from liability. Those issues exist and are worth arguing over. But, practically speaking, there's a deal to be made, here in the realm of the possible, a deal that lets Clear Channel light up a few new signs in exchange for taking down many others.
[[keywords: Legal;Officials;Metro;]]
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