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Lee Building victory unleashes city to go after other billboards

February 25th, 2009 · 8 Comments

After years of court battles between the owners of the Lee Building and the city over the billboard on the top of the building, the city finally won last year. The sign at Broadway and Main has been getting slowly dismantled since then.

Now, with that out of the way, city staff are ready to go after other rooftop-billboard sinners. The buildings at 1880 Main and 2950 Granville, which have had their billboards up since the 1950s, are next in their sights. Along with that, staff are also laying out a program to oversee the removal of 313 other “non-conforming” billboards — those that are too close to residential buildings or SkyTrain lines.

The staff report going to council next week outlines the history of the anti-billboard trends in city, which started back in the 60s, resulting in a much stricter new policy in 1970.

I wonder when Chilliwack and the rulers of the land next to the road to the Tsawwassen ferry will get the same kind of billboard religion. For now, it’s like driving through a giant Yellow Pages advertising section out there.

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