Video signs could be outlawed

Plumber Jim Scardina's video sign along Interstate 97 sparked safety concerns from two county councilmen.
Councilmen introduce bill to eradicate 'Las Vegas' style signsBy ERIN COX Staff Writer
It began with a motorist mesmerized by the motion on a sign beside Interstate 97.
Distracted, the driver swerved, nearly caused an accident, and decided to eradicate the video signs common in New York's Times Square and beginning to crop up around Anne Arundel County.
The motorist was County Councilman Jamie Benoit of Crownsville, and a new bill he introduced last night aims to prohibit all signs featuring moving video, flashing lights, sounds or scrolling text. Co-sponsored by fellow Democrat Josh Cohen of Annapolis, the bill refines the county's sign code and would outlaw the Scardina Plumbing and Heating sign that distracted Mr. Benoit.
At issue for the council is not only whether the handful of video signs in the county present a safety hazard, but also a fear that increasingly digitized, multimedia displays could destroy the aesthetics of Anne Arundel.
"I'm trying to protect the visual quality of life and prevent us from becoming the Las Vegas strip in 10 years," Mr. Cohen said.
The Scardina sign near the New Cut Road exit in Millersville has Santa sending well wishes during the holidays and messages to support the troops on other days. A digital sign at the back of the company's property had solicited customers for seven years, but the company switched to the full color sign in December, owner Jim Scardina said.
If the bill passes later this month, the business would have three months to halt the video images or face a $125 fine.
"It doesn't present a problem," Mr. Scardina said, explaining that he can meet the law's requirements without taking down the sign.
Other signs that could be deemed illegal are mostly in the Annapolis area: beside a hotel on Riva Road, for a storage center off Route 50 or near Westfield Annapolis mall.
"They're like cell phone towers," Mr. Cohen said. "Once you start looking, they're everywhere."
County law already prohibits animated signs and those with text that changes more frequently than every five seconds, but it stops short of specifically outlawing video, signs that flash or scroll text.
"There's a very strong argument that these signs are already illegal," Mr. Benoit said, emphasizing the more precise language would not require businesses to take down the signs and comparing using them to buying a Porsche that tops out at 140 miles per hour.
"Just because it goes that fast, we don't get to drive it that fast," he said. "We can only drive the speed limit."
The tighter rules Mr. Benoit and Mr. Cohen proposed do not affect digital billboards, whose entire image changes every six seconds.
Local law enforcement authorities said they had not heard of the video signs causing accidents.
"I've never heard of that being any type of concern," county Police Department spokesman Cpl. Mark Shawkey said, adding county statistics do not prove or disprove whether the signs cause accidents.
All the better to act now, Mr. Benoit said.
"I think the safety of our residents demands the county make the law clear before motion signs and accidents related to the distraction they cause become commonplace," Mr. Benoit said.
The Federal Highway Administration plans to commission a study on whether video signs are linked to more accidents.
David Hickey with the International Sign Association, a Virginia organization representing the on-premises sign industry, said the market for these signs has grown in recent years and is now a $3 billion-a-year industry. The color, video signs for small businesses begin at $50,000 and allow businesses to give customers time-sensitive information about their services.
Bob Burdon, president and chief executive officer of the Annapolis and Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce, said he supports a ban on video signs at street level that could distract drivers, but he said he thinks the higher, taller signs should be allowed to stay.
So does Richard Wallace, who works nights in Annapolis and looks forward to glancing at the colorful Scardina sign every time he drives home to north county.
"I really like that sign," said Mr. Wallace. "I find it a pleasant respite to see it."
A public hearing is set for 7 p.m. Sept. 4 in the Arundel Center, 44 Calvert St. in Annapolis before the council votes on the bill.

By J. Henson - The Capital