We reported yesterday on Sky Digital’s sign application in Crookston MN. Sky Digital was also in the news in Grand Forks, North Dakota as their Planning and Zoning Commission voted 11-0 to block five proposed digital billboards last week. The vote was their response to an appeal Sky had filed with the city after city staff denied their request for the signs this summer.

The appeal came from proposals submitted to the city June 23. City staff in the Planning and Community Development Department denied the proposals, citing a cap placed on billboards in town. The code sets a hard cap at 101 boards which is how many there already are. That number can increase with population changes. The last time that was done was after the 2010 census, and it’s not expected to be done again until after the 2020 census.

Beyond that cap, though, city documents list other reasons for denials for most of the signs including two signs proposed for the downtown area where “off-premises advertising signs” aren’t allowed, and that signs needing to be placed on poles, rather than on the sides of buildings as proposed.

Sky had argued that a rival billboard company, Newman Outdoor Advertising, had been treated differently by the city.

The matter now moves to City Council, which will have the power to review the commission’s recommendation and make its own decision.

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