Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Winnipeg orders downtown digital billboard turned off

Our neighbors to the north have not been immune from the onslaught of digital billboards, and now one of Canada's largest cities has ordered a large digital sign be turned off.

photo from CBC news
The sign, in downtown Winnipeg, was erected illegally and in spite of the fact that permits for it had been denied.  At three stories high, it shown light across neighboring buildings.  Residents in one building complained to city officials, who again denied the sign a permit and ordered that it come down.

Gordon McDiarmid, who lives nearby, called the illumination from LED bulbs on the sign "highly intrusive" and "disturbing."  He said it is akin to having an outdoor movie theatre "right outside our window 24 hours a day."

1 comment:

  1. One of my wishes for 2011 is that this action by our northern neighbor will inspire public- minded lawmakers in the United States to stop embracing LED signage and recognize the negative impact of this technology on community character and aesthetics, driver safety, energy use and the quality of life of constituents.

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