Ottawa city council agreed on a policy to allow billboard advertising on city property at their Sept. 28 meeting and, while their solution is very democratic, it doesn’t make much business sense.
After a series of tight budgets leading to unpleasant things like property tax hikes, service cuts and increased user fees, council asked city staff to look for other ways of raising money – a smart thing to do.
Through billboard advertising, staff found the city could earn up to $1 million a year, according to Greg Geddes, chief of the city’s corporate services office. But since there wasn’t a consistent advertising policy for the unified City of Ottawa, a debate began in council.
This is what they decided:
The city will accept proposals from advertisers, who will tell the city where they want a billboard, how long they want it up and how much they’re willing to pay. The councillor for that area then gets to say yes or no to the project. After that, council as a whole gets another chance to sink the project if they don’t find the advertising appropriate. Spoken like true government.
This plan accomplishes several things. Primarily it offers city councillors nice safety nets when irate residents come to complain about billboards going up in their neighbourhoods. It also ensures there will be plenty of opportunities for future debate in council.
The problem with this kind of plan is that it encourages a “not in my backyard” mentality.
Every time a billboard project is proposed, local residents will be able to lobby first their ward concillor, then council itself to stop it. And really, who wants a billboard on their street?
But what if a series of billboards pays for a new ambulance? What if they help send more buses to outlying neighbourhoods, so seniors can win back some of the mobility they lost in past budgets?
Let’s face it, billboards are ugly. But the revenue they generate could allow the city to invest in services that can benefit us all.
So when it comes to a billboard going up, it’s an issue of a few people living nearby making a small sacrifice for the good of the many.
It’s in these kinds of situations where our councillors need to be broad-minded and show leadership.
The business thinking that’s missing from council’s plan is that everything has a price.
If there are reasons why a billboard in a certain area would be particularly disturbing, then make it more expensive. Decide how much that inconvenience is worth.
This will either discourage the advertisers from building there, or at least make them pay a premium price.
This is the right way of discouraging things that might not be popular. Just set the price.
Billboard space in residential areas could be sold at a higher rate than space along roads or in commercial areas, for example. The revenues from these signs could go toward nearby services, to compensate affected neighbourhoods.
This strategy would give advertisers a clear message: Your business is welcome and this is what our space is worth.
By putting the onus on the advertisers to come up with proposals that include payment offers, the city is resigned to play a reactionary role.
This opens the door to the self-interests of small groups or individual coucillors winning out over the needs of the city as a whole.