Archive
READ ABOUT IT!
Jacksonville ranked one of the most dangerous cities for pedestrians!
Transportation for America, a national coalition dedicated to modernizing and making safe America's transportation infrastructure, has published its report on the most dangerous cities for walking (Jacksonville ranks No. 4). Now, if JTA has its way, Jacksonville's streets will become even more dangerous when littered with hundreds of driver-distracting advertisements. The citizens of Jacksonville should not allow JTA to compromise the safety of our City streets.
San Francisco votes against Proposition D!
The proposal would have allowed for the creation of a special sign district in which new billboards, including digital billboards, could be erected in downtown San Francisco. The bill failed to pass as San Franciscans made known their opposition to urban blight.
The vote was featured in the November 3, 2009 New York Times (page A15). Click here to read the article
Digital Billboard Pilot Project on I-75
Scenic America's Mary Tracy has sent a letter to FDOT outlining concerns about this significant development. Click here to read the letter.
Mayor DID NOT Veto Bus Shelter Ads!
Planning commission on Sept 24, 2009 with reference to this ad:
The Chairman: "...in terms of coverage..- the actual footprint of the ad, is that representative of what we would be looking at?"
Mr. Blaylock: "You could see examples of that, yes sir"
On October 13, 2009, the Jacksonville City Council rejected the recommendation of the Jacksonville Planning Commission and approved a controversial exception to the City’s sign ordinance. The vote was 10-6 in favor of Ord. 2009-401. Two of the original co-sponsors, Glorious Johnson and Art Shad, joined council members Bill Bishop, John Crescimbeni, Kevin Hyde, and Clay Yarborough, in voting against the bill. Michael Corrigan, who had to leave before the vote, stated that he would also have voted against the ill-advised bill. The exception will allow the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, partnered with an outdoor advertising company, to target drivers with large commercial ads along forty-three corridors across the City. The full extent of this scheme was revealed in a JTA document entitled: Major Shelter Corridors Targeted for Advertising Under New Bus Shelter Advertising Campaign. (Click here to see who is targeted for unwanted advertising.) The 24-four square foot ads will appear on the inside and outside of transit shelters that will be installed by an outdoor advertising company to be chosen by the JTA in an RFP process.The City Council rejected a proposed amendment that would keep the ads out of all residential districts. (Click here to see the proposed floor amendment.)
Scenic Jacksonville was formed to protect and promote the scenic beauty of Jacksonville, Florida by educating the public regarding visual pollution (such as litter, overhead wires, and sign proliferation, all of which and more can be addressed through beautification projects) and encouraging the adoption of meaningful policies for signs and outdoor advertising.