The City of Winston-Salem passes its new sign ordinance. The new rules apply to (just about) everybody:
One of the last issues had to do with electronic billboards.
The city owns a few of them – at the Joel Coliseum and the Benton Convention Center, for example.
Business representatives wanted the ordinance to allow signs to change messages at least every 8 seconds. Neighborhood groups wanted a longer delay between messages.
In the end, the council came up with two rules for electronic signs.
Big electronic billboards at places such as the coliseum and movie theaters will be allowed to change messages every 8 seconds. All other electronic signs will be allowed to change every 2 minutes….
Rob Simon, the owner and president of Windsor Jewelers on Stratford Road, said he was upset that he invested “six figures” on a sign that he won’t be able to use for messages every 8 seconds, as he had been permitted to do.
“I’m disappointed. That’s anti-business,” he told Mayor Allen Joines after the meeting.
He later told a reporter that, “if the city believes it’s safe for the coliseum and convention center, then it should be safe enough for businesses that pay taxes.”
