FOOD FOR THOUGHT - Now you may have some understanding of the City Councils Rush to pass the Digital Pilot Program.

Here are MAYBE some of the reasons for the rush by our City Council to ram through the Digital Pilot Program. These were just some of the line items taken from the TXDOT regulations concerning billboards.

(3) The department acknowledges that the primary mechanism for effective control of outdoor advertising is the elimination of non-conforming signs over time. It is the intent of the rules as proposed to prohibit any consideration for the conversion of a non-conforming sign to an electronic display. Paragraph (2) of new §21.163(d), is revised to provide that "a legally conforming sign may be modified to an electronic sign if a new permit for the electronic sign is obtained from both the municipality and the department."

(From the new Texas rules governing digitals. Comments section page 24, lines 5 -13. If I read this right is bars the conversion of nonconforming signs to digitals.)

(Funny how they are banned outside of Cities – guess not that many drivers caught in traffic jams.)

The proposed rules allow electronic billboards only within cities and in the ETJ and only if the city allows them and has extended its sign ordinance to the ETJ area. Electronic signs are prohibited in areas outside of a city or a city's ETJ, so a city could not "inherit" an off-premise electronic billboard.

(So that brings up another key issue, if the State is allowed to ban all billboards outside any City’s territorial jurisdiction then why can’t San Antonio City Council use the exact same language to ban them inside the city?)

(9) is erected, repaired, or maintained in violation of §21.161 of this title (relating to Destruction of Trees/Violation of Control of Access); (10) has been made more visible by the permit holder clearing vegetation from the highway right of way in violation of §21.161 of this title;

(see the story in this section on Massacre on Mulberry. Violation of this State Law and thus making that digital illegal?)

(2) Notwithstanding §21.160 of this subchapter, an electronic sign may not be relocated so that any part of the relocated sign would be within 1,500 feet of another off-premise electronic sign on the same side of a regulated highway. (d) Upgrading an electronic sign. (1) Lighting shall not be added to or used to illuminate nonconforming signs. (2) A legally conforming sign may be modified to an electronic sign if a new permit for the electronic sign is obtained from both the municipality and the department. (3) Lighting shall not be added to or used to illuminate a sign if prohibited by the municipality's sign or zoning ordinance. (e) Eligible electronic signs. (1) Electronic signs may be located on either side of the highway; however, each sign must only be visible from one direction of travel.