Insider received the following letter, dated November 22nd, by way of a Washington State owner/operator.  It is a quick read and Insider would suggest you take a second to read it through.

In the correspondence the City of Wenatchee shares:

• They are reaching out to all billboard operators within the city limits.
• The city intends to identify all existing billboards.
• Their intent is to amortize the billboards out over a 5 to 10 year time frame.

A little market research indicates that along with several smaller operators, both Lamar and Outfront have a solid presence in the city.

At least the Apple Capital of the World was nice enough to invite the operator to a City Planning Commission hearing on December 11th followed by a City Council meeting the next day.

Insider’s Take:

The correspondence is tied in to a Sign Code Update currently being considered designed “to craft a new sign code to reflect evolving community priorities, new technologies, and best practices in design and legal protection of free speech.”

Insider read through the proposed changes and most of the language relates to signs that are currently non-conforming or would become non-confirming as a result of the proposed or future sign code updates.  However, the letter, as it is written, appears much more inclusive of all billboards in the area.

Maybe not the best way for a city to start out conversations with billboard operators on proposed sign code changes.  Stating in your opening paragraph that your intent is to eliminate the billboards in the city certainly is an attention getter. The City of Wenatchee should get an earful on a number of topics, including just compensation for structures slated for removal.  We’ll provide updates as the process moves along.

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