Documentary March 28, 2012 This Space Available
Monday, 20 February 2012 21:37
Jim
Do you ever wonder who decides what goes into the public space around you? A provocative documentary and interactive discussion about the benefits of out-of-home advertising contrasted by the perils of urban blight will be premiered in Philadelphia March 28, 2012.
The documentary "This Space Available", Producer Marc Gobe tells an interesting story of how cities around the world are looking at public space and how their city presents itself to visitors and residents. March 28th is the initial showing in Philadelphia, Marc Gobe will be present.
Please take a momet to look at he trailer for this thought provoking documentary.
http://thisspaceavailablefilm.com/stills-trailers/trailer
Location Free Library on the Parkway, 1901 Vine Street.
Date Wednesday March 28, 2012
Time 6:30PM , length of documentary 90 minutes, Marc Gobe the producer will speak afterwards
Admission is free, registration required. email name, # of tickets requested (maximum of 4 per request) phone number and email to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Signage Committee Meetings Being Scheduled
Monday, 06 February 2012 22:01
Jim
The front of your business is your face to the world. And, the way your shop looks sends a message to your potential customers. Customers may only give your store a glance before deciding if they'll come in or keep going. A cheery, well-maintained, clearly-signed store says "Welcome! Come on in!" A faded sign, peeling paint, a jumble of signs and products in the window may make a customer hesitate for a moment, or just keep walking.
Your sign is one of the most important components of your storefront facade. Your sign is your opportunity to convey your message to potential customers. The first impression created by your sign and your storefront happens in a blink of an eye. Are your making the most of the opportunity?
This Signage Resource Center is a great place to start learning about a new sign for your business. You'll learn how to make it attractive, how to make it effective and how to make it legal. You'll find design guidelines and a gallery of signs to inspire you, the Philadelphia Zoning Code, and an outline of the city's permitting process - everything you need to get going. By following the steps to the right, you'll be on your way at an attractive new sign.
Click here for the SCRUB Sign Resource Center
What kind of signs would you like to see in your neighborhood? The Signage Working Group, Eva Gladstein would like your input.
Haverford Township Residents "No Billboards"
Friday, 03 February 2012 21:21
Jim
Haverford Township Residents joined together to protect their community from invasive billboards Thursday evening February 2, 2012. The Zoning Department attorney Jim Byrne along with Bill Kerr the attorney for Lower Merion gave excellent closing arguments. Four residents who are leading the opposition on behalf of several thousand prepared a statement for the zoning board, the statement read by Sandy Donato is below.
This website is a resource for any community threatened by the invasion of billboard blight. Please share your stories with us and let us know if you need our assistance. Read the statement below to learn about how to organize your strategy and work as a team like the residents of Haverford Township.
If you are fortunate enough to live, work or play in beautiful Haverford, Township Pennsylvania, thank your zoning board, commisioners and Sandy. They have worked dilligently on your behalf for three years.
Read more...
Illegal Billboard Topples Onto Brooklyn-Queens Expressway
Wednesday, 18 January 2012 16:48
Jim
Last Friday, January 13th, a fifty ton illegal New York Lottery billboard toppled over onto the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The billboard violated zoning regulations that prohibit billboards within 200 feet of a highway. The toppled billboard closed two lanes of westbound traffic on the BQE, left a hole in a body shop, severed a gas line and damaged a car.
To get the full story and watch live footage of the billboard toppling over, click here.
South Philadelphia Proposed LED Sparks Controversy
Friday, 06 January 2012 21:53
Jim
Proposed LED billboard sparks controversy
Area residents are hoping to defeat a modification plan for a placard adjacent to a Marconi banquet establishment.
By Joseph Myers
|Posted Jan. 5, 2012
Keith Franchetti and Barbara Capozzi hope a two-decade-old ordinance spares them from having to see the background billboard from giving way to a monopole-aided half-digital replacement.
Photo by Greg Bezanis
Contrasting expressions claim “Rules are rules” and “Rules are meant to be broken.”
Marconi and Packer Park residents have worked to uphold the former’s finality since mid-November, while a Cheltenham-based business owner has desired a variation on the latter’s meaning since mid-October, insisting that modernization often necessitates change. The parties have centered their pleas on the state of a 44-year-old billboard within the parking lot of Galdo’s Catering & Entertainment, 1933 W. Moyamensing Ave.
To promote their beliefs, the locals and attorney Stephen G. Pollock, representing Dominick Cipollini of Keystone Outdoor Advertising Co., Inc., will gather 7 p.m. Jan. 12 at St. Richard School’s Hall, 1826 Pollock St., for a public forum. The first will argue to leave the structure alone, with the legal professional set to say it must go in favor of a towering replacement. Their appearances will serve as preludes to Jan. 18’s Center City date with the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Read more...
New study shows billboards hurt nearby property values
Monday, 12 December 2011 22:49
Jim
A new study shows that billboards negatively affect the values of neighboring properties. It also found that cities with strict billboard controls are experiencing greater economic prosperity than those with controls that are less strict.
The report, “Beyond Aesthetics: How Billboards Affect Economic Prosperity,” by urban planner Jonathan Snyder, is believed to be the first study on the economic impacts of billboards on nearby real estate value.
Snyder found that in Philadelphia there is a correlation between a home’s value and its proximity to billboards. He found that homes within 500 feet of a billboard are worth $30,826 less on average at the time of sale than those properties further away from billboards. The study also found that each additional billboard within a census tract resulted in a decrease in home values of nearly $1,000.
Additionally, Snyder performed a survey of billboard controls and economic prosperity in 20 cities across the United States. His report found that cities with stricter billboard controls have greater median incomes, lower poverty rates and lower home vacancy rates than city with less strict billboard controls.
Snyder is an urban planner from Philadelphia with a Master in City Planning degree and a concentration in Community and Economic Development from the University of Pennsylvania. His research was generously support by a grant from the Samuel S. Fels Fund.
Greened Vacant Lots Create Safer City
Friday, 02 December 2011 20:14
Jim
A University of Pennsylvania study found that the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society program to "green" nearly 4,500 vacant lots in Philadelphia resulted in a significant reduction in gun assaults across all four sections of Philadelphia and significant reductions in vandalism in one section of the city. In addition, the program has enhanced the health of residents, created jobs and increased surrounding property values.
The PHS program began in Philadelphia in 1999 and involves clearing trash, grading the land, planting grass and trees, and installing fences around each lot to prevent illegal dumping. The Penn study was led by Charles C. Branas, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology at the Perelman School of Medicine and compared ten years of data between vacant lots and improved vacant lots. "The large number of vacant lots we studied and the design of our analysis make this study some of the strongest evidence to date that greening vacant urban land is a promising approach to improving health and safety" Branas commented. The cleaner environment eliminates hiding places for firearms and signals that the city has regained control over those areas, discouraging crime.
Click here to read the full PlanPhilly article
Documentary This Space Avaialble
Monday, 31 October 2011 18:13
Jim
This trailer is amazing and provides a lot of useful information about the billboard blight war. This documentary "This Space Available" is premiering at the New York City documentary film festival. The producer Marc Gobe is a leading authority of visual blight and the impact on our public spaces. Please share the link with your friends and neighbors.
http://thisspaceavailablefilm.com/stills-trailers/trailer/
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