Under Attack from Billboard Companies

Growing up and being educated in Virginia, outdoor advertising was almost non-existent in most areas. Only now do I understand how much this attributed to the beauty of its natural landscape. After moving to Atlanta, one of the first things I noticed while driving in was the endless number of billboards dotting the highways. Having never seen them in this density before, I was saddened at how much impact they had while traveling through Tennessee and Georgia.

Now, while working as a planner in Cobb County, just NE of Atlanta, it feels like we are under attack. The City of Marietta recently lost a lawsuit with Lamar Advertising, in which Lamar's lawyers specifically attacked the entire sign ordinance on the wording of one provision. The City followed by passing a moratorium on all sign permits, however Lamar will be able to put up the billboard from the lawsuit: a brand new LED billboard that will now distract some of the nuttiest drivers I've ever seen. This is the news article covering the resolution:

http://www.mdjonline.com/content/index/showcontentitem/area/1/section/21...

To make matters worse, it appears the state has been lobbied heavily by sign companies. Most local jurisdictions have passed or are passing new sign ordinance provisions limiting or prohibiting billboards completely. The response by the state is HB 1318, which is documented in this article:

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/03/05/billboards_030...

Most of my research indicates this is happening elsewhere in Metro Atlanta, but more importantly this is a confirmed nationwide effort on the efforts of the sign companies and their lawyer staff. Does anyone else have similar experience?

I apologize for the lengthy post, but this has me extremely upset with the situation. Being in a public staff position, I feel a bit limited with how vocal I can be. I hope some of you may be able to provide advice or at least make us feel like we're not alone.

Thanks.