Mixed reviews on new sign law

Getting rid of one person's eyesore could also eliminate a charity-group cash cow.

Proposed changes to Salt Lake County's sign ordinance, especially the rules for billboards, drew negative reviews from two divergent camps during a Tuesday public hearing before the Salt Lake County Council.

While opponents of billboards wanted even more restrictions than are proposed, a number of nonprofit groups asked that no further restrictions be placed on billboards because of their need for the advertising, much of which is donated by Reagan Outdoor Advertising.

All told, the current proposed changes received no whole-hearted support from either side. The council is set to vote on them this month.

The significant current changes, which would only apply to the unincorporated areas of the county, are:

• Billboards would be capped at 106, the number currently built or approved, and would only be allowed in industrial and commercial zones.

• A "sign bank" would allow billboard owners to remove an already existing sign from an area where they are no longer permitted and build a new one in a permitted area.

• High-tech signs, such as those with electronic advertisements that change, would be prohibited.

The changes were drafted earlier this year after 34 new signs, mostly in the Millcreek area, were approved. Speaking against the current proposal, resident Ken Smith said residents near the new signs will find themselves staring at a sight they did not plan on having. Instead of maintaining the current number of signs, he urged the council to ban as many signs as possible.

After the billboards were erected, "If they had a view of the city, those signs would seem like they're right in the living room," Smith said.

Colleen Barnes, marketing coordinator for United Way, said the council needs to consider the benefits of billboards and not treat the advertising tools as terrible things that need to be abolished. Without the billboards, many nonprofits would not have an effective way to reach both clients and donors, a benefit enhanced by the almost $1 million in advertising she estimated the United Way has received from Reagan.

"Billboard advertising works, and when it works for United Way, it brings in money for people who would have normally turned to government," she said.

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E-mail: jloftin@desnews.com