Virginia Beach council set to weigh in on LED signs

VIRGINIA BEACH

City Manager Jim Spore's memos to the City Council are usually written in the traditional tone of the detached civil servant.

So heads turned earlier this month when he unloaded on proposed guidelines for regulating electronic signs, commonly called LEDs.

Spore, who wants them banned outright, wrote: "Is the chaotic, cluttered roadside lined with electronic advertisements all screaming for public attention what we want to achieve? Do we reasonably need to know where the CVS is located or do we need to bombarded with the fact that Coke is on sale that day or Pringles are 2 for $1.89?"

But the decision is not his. It's the City Council's, and today members will be briefed on proposed rules for the proliferating and unregulated signs.

In a city with a legacy of aggressive sign enforcement, from the ban on billboards to resort-area sign regulations of the 1990s, LEDs are an emotional topic.

Some council members fear allowing them would return Virginia Beach to its gaudy past.

"We've done so much and come so far I'd hate to see us backslide," Councilwoman Barbara Henley said.

Others, such as Councilman Glenn Davis, praised the signs and questioned a ban given that the city and some schools have their own LED signs.

As for Spore's influence?

"His comments got my attention," Mayor Will Sessoms said.

As technology has improved, the cost of LED - light-emitting diode - signs has come down, making them attractive to more businesses, schools and churches. Depending on complexity, they cost from $10,000 to $100,000 but can save money in other ways.

"They last so long and save so much in electricity, and that helps defray the cost," said Herb Wallace, sales manager at Artlite, a Chesapeake sign company.

About 100 LEDs have gone up across Virginia Beach, planners estimate, and requests for more are pouring in. In South Hampton Roads, only Norfolk bans them, although there have been several exceptions, including the large sign at Nauticus.

The Beach debate erupted in August when Wave Church on North Great Neck Road got City Council approval for a large LED sign. Neighbors, citing aesthetics and safety concerns, were outraged.

"It's cheapened the neighborhood because what you have is not a tasteful church sign," said resident Keith Canty, who argued against the sign.

After that, the city stopped approving LEDs in order to come up with rules. About 20 sign applications have been put on hold since September, frustrating applicants and sign business owners.

The leading proposal the City Council will hear today would restrict LED signs to single-color text on a black background. Pictures and videos would be prohibited.

"You couldn't have an oil can with flapping wings," said David Redmond, a planning commission member who helped draft the proposal.

The rules also would mandate the time between changing messages to at least one minute. Many signs change every few seconds.

"What we tried to do was strike the proper balance between the needs of businesses to get information out and the public need to preserve aesthetics and public safety on some very busy roadways," he said.

On a recent day, the $85,000 LED sign in front of the Thalia Lynn Baptist Church on Virginia Beach Boulevard, one of the city's biggest and most elaborate, flashed "What's Love Got to Do With It?" in green letters over a background of pink and red hearts. A few seconds later, a bird with a pink heart in its beak flapped its wings as puffy clouds whizzed by.

On the other end of the spectrum is the LED sign requested by Nimmo United Methodist Church. The sign would display two rows of text 5-1/2 inches tall or one row 12 inches tall, said Gregory Reinhart, who heads the church's administrative board. The message would change once a day, he said, to advertise things such as potlucks and fundraisers.

"We are looking to grow and expand our church," he said. "We are looking to get our message out that we are here."

Nimmo United, built in 1791, is facing a separate hurdle because it's in a historic district. LED signs would be banned in the city's 14 historic districts under the current proposal.

Sign company owners and businesses will be closely watching how the City Council signals its intentions.

"It's a shame if they pass a restrictive ordinance," Wallace said. "It's such a great medium. I don't think you can stop it."

Aaron Applegate, (757) 222-5122, aaron.applegate@pilotonline.com