In 2019, the City of Clovis New Mexico proposed a new sign ordinance which would have significantly impacted several Out of Home operators’ ability to conduct business in the city.  Proposed changes to the new ordinance included unconstitutional takings, retroactive legislation, content-based free speech violations as well as compelling immediate compliance or removal of nonconforming billboards.

Four billboard operators, Lindmark Outdoor Media, Choice Media, Fluhman Media, and Clovis Sign & Service came together and decided to combine forces to  move the city toward a more productive and effective sign ordinance.  Their efforts, along with effective legal counsel from Rothfelder & Falick, proved successful as the City, last Thursday, unanimously approved an ordinance which grandfathered nearly every type of sign currently existing in the city, regardless of size, height or property setback, and removed any trigger mechanisms requiring compliance if the respective business changed hands. Going forward, the ordinance requires billboards be at least 1,000 feet from each other and no higher than 40 feet, with no greater than 300 square feet of sign area.

Insider spoke with Lindmark Outdoor Medias’ Director of Real Estate & Regulatory Affairs, Ryan Zaloudik, to get his thoughts on the combined journey to effect a successful negotiation in creating the sign legislation.

Ryan, I understand that this process goes back to 2019. What were some of the issues you needed to see resolved in what the City was proposing from their initial revised sign code?

Brannon New with Clovis Sign had been involved with the city from the beginning.  Brannon reached out to us sometime in early December of 2021 and we started to get involved. My understanding was that the city had started working on changes in 2019. Brannon had said initially they were working toward a favorable ordinance, but it shifted to a harmful and unenforceable ordinance in November/December of 2021.

This also was a cooperative effort. Which OOH companies were involved and how did the group come together?

Besides us, Clovis Sign Company, Choice Media and Fluhman Media were involved. Brannon New made the connections with the other operators and brought us all together. He had also contacted Richard Rothfelder and so we all got together on a call to hash out our game plan.

Was it important to your Company to have the other operators be involved? 

For years, I have been a proponent of strength in numbers which is why I have always been involved with State Associations and have encouraged Trent (Lindmark) to have Lindmark Media join groups like the State Associations, the IBO and OAAA . Detractors (of our industry) tend to mobilize well and so we have to band together when it makes sense. Also, you can recognize some cost savings by splitting up the efforts as opposed to fighting alone.

Another important element was involvement from the business community. We reached out to our landowners and our local advertisers and encouraged them to contact the city, which fed into Brannon’s efforts to get the Clovis Chamber involved. The ordinance changes would have imposed the same amortization rules on on-premises signage and so naturally the chamber stepped in to represent their stakeholders. They even had a special meeting inviting the mayor and council members for a public comment session the Monday before the next council meeting.

Were you pleased with the final ordinance and what key elements were important in the final revision? 

I think very rarely do you get exactly what you want, but this was certainly a success. We were not working from a position where we could make the ordinance better for the industry, but they essentially revised back to an ordinance that was similar to the prior ordinance and clarified the grandfathered status of anything not in compliance. So overall, removing the amortization and saving a costly legal fights is a great success. We appreciate Clovis Sign, Choice Media, Fluhman and Richard Rothfelder for this group effort and a win!

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