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Lakeland’s city sign ordinance isn’t new — and neither is the controversy surrounding it, with some seeing it now as an obstacle to accepting bus shelters from advertisers at no cost to the city or to Citrus Connection, the city-county authority that operates the buses.
City officials provided this timeline:
- Late 1980s: the current advertising ordinance was created
- 1989: ads were briefly allowed on bus shelters
- 1990: that permission was repealed
Also read our companion article
City Transportation and Development Review Manager Charles Barmby and Assistant Director of Community Development Teresa Maio say the city is working around the limits of the sign ordinance by retrofitting existing bus stops when feasible and by partnering with businesses and donors.
Could more be done?
“We do a lot with a little,” said Sara Roberts McCarley, a city commissioner who chairs Citrus Connection’s board of directors and is running for mayor. “Routes are more important for our riders.”
City Commissioner Mike Musick, who is running for re-election this year, said, “If there are very active bus stops, we should do whatever it takes to keep people out of the weather.”
Musick said he’s open to revisiting the sign ordinance, saying he expects it will be a topic of discussion among commissioners now.
Musick said he’s also concerned with opening the door to advertising.
“All of Lakeland has benefitted from our city limiting the visual noise that can come from having an overabundance of outdoor advertising,” he said. “No one wants our city to look like a NASCAR vehicle.”
Kim-Marie Noble, who is challenging Musick for his District D, Southeast seat, said, “No one should be left out in the elements. I say strike down the ordinance and protect our citizens.”
There is shelter at 10-11% of Lakeland bus stops now, well below the national average of 20% or more.
“We’re not ignoring it,” Barmby said. “We’re just slow.”
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