PorkChopSandwiches
10-04-2012, 08:02 PM
City of Burbank tries to regulate mobile billboards offering massages and topless maid services
http://i.imgur.com/w094a.jpg
The complaints have been coming into the city of Burbank in recent weeks -- vans parked for days on end, advertising 1-hour massages and topless maid services.
The vans wouldn’t normally garner much attention in big-city Los Angeles, but Burbank is grappling with ways to regulate these mobile billboards that they say are detrimental to their city.
“It doesn’t project the image of the city that we think we have,” said Joy Forbes, Burbank’s assistant city manager. “We have a small-town feel. These types of advertising vehicles don’t reflect the image of Burbank that most people have.”
Forbes said that since neighboring Los Angeles recently enacted city rules that barred mobile advertising there, Burbank has seen an influx of the vans in their city. Burbank is writing rules they hope will allow them to effectively regulate mobile billboards.
The City Council could take up the issue before the year's out.
One of the more egregious examples is of a pink van with a black sign with pink letters reading, "TOPLESS MAIDS - $99" -- the phone number -- 818-666-HUGE.
To try to combat the problem, the city has been using a state vehicle code that bars vehicles from parking on streets for more than 72 hours.
But by the time parking enforcement officers go back to the locations after the time has expired, the vans are gone, Forbes said.
“We’ve long have had codes that have limited businesses or trucks,” Forbes said. “We want to see if there’s a possibility of regulating these vehicles."
Forbes said city officials are being cautious -- trying to strike a balance. They want to impose rules that don't impinge on First Amendment rights.
On Wednesday morning, the topless maid services van was issued a 72-hour warning note when it was seen by a city ombudsman parked on West Riverside Drive and West Olive Avenue.
Burbank city officials don’t even know if the vans are legitimate businesses.
The voicemail box for the topless maid service was full on Thursday.
In March, the city of Los Angeles approved an ordinance that allows the city to regulate the parking of mobile billboard advertising displays, either standing alone or attached to motor vehicles, on public streets.
L.A. officials put the ordinance into effect after they saw a surge in the number of vehicles being used as mobile billboards parked on city streets for days.
“Burbank is a very conservative city,” said Los Angeles Councilman Dennis Zine, who drafted the motion banning mobile billboards there. “I can understand why they’re upset with it.
“L.A. would be more than happy to assist Burbank in adopting an ordinance. We’ve been very aggressive.”
http://i.imgur.com/w094a.jpg
The complaints have been coming into the city of Burbank in recent weeks -- vans parked for days on end, advertising 1-hour massages and topless maid services.
The vans wouldn’t normally garner much attention in big-city Los Angeles, but Burbank is grappling with ways to regulate these mobile billboards that they say are detrimental to their city.
“It doesn’t project the image of the city that we think we have,” said Joy Forbes, Burbank’s assistant city manager. “We have a small-town feel. These types of advertising vehicles don’t reflect the image of Burbank that most people have.”
Forbes said that since neighboring Los Angeles recently enacted city rules that barred mobile advertising there, Burbank has seen an influx of the vans in their city. Burbank is writing rules they hope will allow them to effectively regulate mobile billboards.
The City Council could take up the issue before the year's out.
One of the more egregious examples is of a pink van with a black sign with pink letters reading, "TOPLESS MAIDS - $99" -- the phone number -- 818-666-HUGE.
To try to combat the problem, the city has been using a state vehicle code that bars vehicles from parking on streets for more than 72 hours.
But by the time parking enforcement officers go back to the locations after the time has expired, the vans are gone, Forbes said.
“We’ve long have had codes that have limited businesses or trucks,” Forbes said. “We want to see if there’s a possibility of regulating these vehicles."
Forbes said city officials are being cautious -- trying to strike a balance. They want to impose rules that don't impinge on First Amendment rights.
On Wednesday morning, the topless maid services van was issued a 72-hour warning note when it was seen by a city ombudsman parked on West Riverside Drive and West Olive Avenue.
Burbank city officials don’t even know if the vans are legitimate businesses.
The voicemail box for the topless maid service was full on Thursday.
In March, the city of Los Angeles approved an ordinance that allows the city to regulate the parking of mobile billboard advertising displays, either standing alone or attached to motor vehicles, on public streets.
L.A. officials put the ordinance into effect after they saw a surge in the number of vehicles being used as mobile billboards parked on city streets for days.
“Burbank is a very conservative city,” said Los Angeles Councilman Dennis Zine, who drafted the motion banning mobile billboards there. “I can understand why they’re upset with it.
“L.A. would be more than happy to assist Burbank in adopting an ordinance. We’ve been very aggressive.”