Idle sign on I-880 will see new life

Union City electronic billboard has been broken since last year


UNION CITY — Always eager to bolster revenue, city leaders have teamed up with an Indian company to replace a broken electronic advertising billboard built into one of Union Landing's two marquees along Interstate 880.
A working billboard — not unlike the one that greets motorists at Hayward's Southland Mall — could carry dozens of advertisements and possibly net the city about $200,000 a year, a city official said.
Union City had always intended to make money from the electronic billboard, according to a city report, but somehow it never happened. The city gave Union Landing businesses free advertising on the 8-foot-by-24-foot billboard until it stopped working last year.
It's now a black space on the advertising marquee, between signs for Michaels and OfficeMax.
But that should change by October. InfoSEP Inc., a subsidiary of a billboard manufacturer in Hyderabad, India, has agreed to pay for and install a new electronic board — at a cost of about $480,000. It also will sellthe advertising space.
The city, which still owns the marquee, will pay electricity costs and about $40,000 to remove the old board. They will share advertising revenue, with the city getting 80 percent of revenue after InfoSTEP recoups its initial investment.
If sales are strong, the city could net more than $200,000 a year, Deputy City Manager Tony Acosta told the City Council last week.
InfoSTEP, which broached the deal to city officials, operates similar signs in San Jose, Australia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, said Mahesh Pakala, the company's multimedia director.
At least one Fortune 500 company and several stores in Union Landing that aren't on the marquee are interested in buying advertising space, he said.
"We are expecting quite a good amount of revenue," Pakala said.
The city has veto power over the advertisers, which means no ads for massage parlors or cigarettes, Acosta said. Casino ads will be allowed.
In order not to distract drivers, state law requires that the ads be on the screen for at least eight seconds. Videos are prohibited.

By Matthew Artz, STAFF WRITER Inside Bay Area.