The Johnson City Press reports that after recently being approached by Lamar about entering into a new contract for a billboard location, Johnson City, TN city officials realized the structure was on city property and have asked that it be removed by Sept. 1.

The history is that Lamar originally entered into a lease with East Tennessee State University in 1972 to operate the billboard at the intersection of University Parkway and West State of Franklin Road, paying the university $50 a year.  In 1978, the city acquired the land from the state of Tennessee and has continuously owned the property since that time but apparently did not assume or enter into a new lease agreement with Lamar.  Lamar continued to make lease payments to the University.

In March 2020, the city asked Lamar to remove the billboard by June 1, which they extended to July 15 after the company requested more time.

Several days before that deadline, an attorney for Lamar told the city the billboard should be grandfathered in and that Johnson City would be exercising eminent domain if it removed the structure, which the attorney claimed would cost the city $281,000.

The city attorney indicates that billboards in the city are grandfathered in if they appear on private property and predate changes to the zoning code, but added that the city can’t enter into a new contract with Lamar Advertising because changes in ownership trigger the updated zoning rules.

Insiders Take: Lots of questions come to mind here:

• What happens if the University and/or the city never informed Lamar of the change in ownership?
• The University continued to take Lamar’s lease payments for over 40 years after the land was sold. Do they have liability for taking the funds?
• Does Lamar have a legitimate claim to just compensation?
• Can the parties come to terms on a new agreement.  The city has already turned down an offer for $3,000 annually

We have all had our share of unusual land ownership or lease ownership situations.  Care to share one with Insider.  You can let us know by using the form below.

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