Digital Billboards Could Be Coming to Savannah

Savannah, Ga

It is the newest wave in advertising and it may be coming soon to a community near you. Digital billboards offer brighter, cleaner looking images than paper ones and they can be changed almost instantaneously.
But are they too distracting for drivers? That's what the Chatham County Metropolitan Planning Commission wants to find out. They're holding a public workshop on Thursday night before taking up the issue again at their meeting next month.
Digital billboards are popping up in cities like Richmond, Virginia as well as Georgia cities like Atlanta, Albany and Brunswick. The images change easily, allowing multiple advertisers to use the same billboard.
"I'm all for it," said Todd Moyer of Savannah. "I work for a technology company and that looks very tech savvy. I would say that would be a very good appearance for the city."
Lamar Outdoor Advertising has more than 550 digital billboards around the country, including 21 in Georgia. Now, they want to bring them to Savannah.
"People say it's going to be like Vegas and Times Square and it's not," said Lamar Outdoor Advertising vice president Chris Di Silvestro. "The digital billboard looks just like any other billboard."
Billboards, especially digital billboards, are highly regulated. They're designed to adjust according to the available lighting. The billboards automatically dim at night, since they don't need to be as bright to be seen. In most states, they also can't contain any moving or flashing lights. That's because officials want to make sure they don't cause distractions on the road.
"We leave open the question about safety for people who are driving and viewing them," said Chatham County MPC executive director Tom Thomson. "That's why we only allow the change, six images per minute, with the idea that would not distract drivers."
The images can be changed almost instantly, remotely by computer. Di Silvestro says that immediacy can also help the community.
"In Minneapolis, 15 minutes after the bridge collapse, all digital billboards in the city were alerting drivers that they needed to detour their paths because of that disaster," he said.
The signs can also alert drivers to missing children. They were used in Brunswick when 6-year-old Christopher Barrios was abducted.
"One hour after we got approval from the sheriff's department, we posted the alert on all the digital billboards in Georgia," he said. "We had a picture up, a description and the information to contact the Glynn County Sheriff's Department."
Many residents, like LaJoy Brown, want to see that feature in more communities.
"That's great," Brown said. "Because then you will be able to find kids if someone's got them in like the grocery store and you pass by and say, 'hey I saw that kid.'"
Still, even if advertisers get the go-ahead, don't expect to see digital billboards everywhere. Georgia law states they have to be at least 5,000 feet apart. They also cost $250,000 to $400,000 each. Di Silvestro said if his company does get approval, they'll look for high volume traffic areas.
"You're best bet is probably Abercorn, due to the volume of traffic and exposure. It's a highly commercial corridor," he said.
The Chatham County MPC says no billboards will be allowed in the historic district or close to residential communities. They're holding a public workshop on the issue Thursday night, August 23 at 6pm in the MPC Boardroom. The Metropolitan Planning Commission is located at 112 East State Street, Savannah.

Source: WTOC