Community Council Opposes Pending Signage Ordinance

Council members unanimously voted their support Thursday for a motion to oppose a pending citywide sign ordinance, on which the Los Angeles City Council likely will vote in October.

"Proposed changes to the ordinance first made public on July 22 ... by the City Planning Department seriously weaken the ability of the city to protect its citizens from the negative impacts of outdoor advertising," the motion states.

"The end result of the [Sept. 15] Planning meeting was that our communities remain sitting ducks for digital on-site signs that are not regulated by this ordinance," Community Council Secretary Jennifer Malaret said. "Digital signs in the rights of way are not regulated by this ordinance. Bare minimum regulations on digital signage are contained in this ordinance and are proposed to be enacted before the results of a completed federal study on related traffic impacts have been released to the public."

Chair Emeritus Richard Cohen said "the billboard industry is one of the largest contributors to local politicians. It's revealing that the mayor has not told us what his position is."

Chairwoman Janet Turner said it was important to show solidarity with other community councils opposed to the sign ordinance in order to effectively generate support for future issues that might have a higher impact on Pacific Palisades.

"The revised ordinance now before the Planning and Land Use Management Committee seriously undermines the [City Planning Commission's] intent by proposing to grandfather a dozen pending sign district applications and proposals for special signage in specific plan areas," according to the motion. "This could result in hundreds of thousands of square feet of new off-site signage in the city without a single billboard being taken down."

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