Revelstoke residents may see poster or billboard advertising popping up in or on city facilities, like bus shelters, the Revelstoke Community Centre, Revelstoke City Hall or other publicly-owned structures in town.
Revelstoke city council has approved a new policy that will allow advertisers to affix their advertisements to city buildings and bus shelters.
The policy was originally conceived by the city’s economic development department as a way to raise funds for more bus shelters. The original plan was to sell ads on the bus shelters themselves, but city structures were then added to a new city advertising policy.
The new policy sets 5-year terms for the advertising contracts. In response to questions from council, Alan Mason, Director of Community Economic Development, said the term was developed based on past experience with other signage in Revelstoke.
Proposed advertising will first be sent to the City of Revelstoke Enhancement Committee for review and comment, before final approval by the economic development department.
Advertising rates are not spelled out in the policy and will be determined by city staff.
One councillor expressed concerns with details of the policy when it was unveiled at the Feb. 14 council meeting. Coun. Phil Welock worried about costs, such as vandalism repair, installation and general maintenance. “What is our budget to maintain the number of signs we have?” he asked.
City public works manager Darren Komonoski said the city sign maintenance budget was $60,000 annually. “That’s not inclusive for installing,” Komonoski said. “It is fairly tight for us to keep up with our signs within our budget as it is.”
Mason told council the cost of maintenance and installation would be factored into the advertising fee. “The intent is for it not to cost the city any money,” Mason said.
Welock said he felt the policy needed “tweaking.”
However, the policy was approved by council unanimously.