Technically...This Is Not Outdoor Advertising

NPA outdoor, now Contest Promotions, once operated hundreds of street level billboards like this all over NYC. It turned out the advertising was illegal and public pressure, in addition to the valiant efforts of a dedicated Sign Enforcement unit in NY, brought down a lions share of the illegal signage. The company did not go without a fight and imposed a ludicrous business model to side step long standing NYC signage laws. More info on this can be found buried in this site, searchable using the post labels, but suffice to say NYC wasn't having it. Large penalties were imposed and eventually the company withdrew from NY almost entirely. 

And yet a few remaining signs still exist. Why?

Outdoor advertising in NY, or 3rd party signage, must obtain the proper permit in order to be legally placed in public space. We do this to mitigate what would surely be an overwhelming glut of signage, turning our streets into a carnival of commercial messages. In many ways, these laws are a compromise between the public and commercial interests. Commerce demands access to our city streets in order to pedal its wares, and has the dollars on hand to be very persuasive. The public, understanding the detrimental effects of commercial messaging on our collective psyche, attempts to resist the pull of money by enacting laws which prohibit the placement and amount of signage that can exist. It is a delicate balance that is constantly being negotiated by both parties. 

This negotiation happens for one reason and one reason only and that is that the public has usurped private property owners right to do whatever they want with thier property, an entirely un-capitalist way to operate given how much we revere private property and its relationship to democracy. We have done this by collectively agreeing that the outer walls of a building, despite being owned by an individual, are not entirely private. These walls, facing into the public, have an effect on all of us and are therefore thier use can be controlled with the public's interest in mind. This is a lot like how our environmental protections prevent you from using your private property to dispose of toxic waste, knowing that this type of private property usage has a negative effect on us all. 

So why is this sign still up despite all the other illegal Contest Promotions signs being taken down? Outdoor advertising and the laws which we have enacted to police its presence, only apply to signage which is on the outside of a buildings property line. Technically this makes sense, prohibiting the public and Sign Enforcement Units in NY from interfering with a landlords right to do what he wants with the inside of his building or other things which have no effect on the public citizen as a whole. This sign, technically falls within the buildings property line and is therefore un policeable despite functioning like any other sign affixed outside of the buildings property line. The result is a tiny loophole which allows unscrupulous outdoor advertising companies and landlords to shirk the law and continue to operate illegal signage in our city. What a sham.

NPA/Contest Promotions on the Brink of Collapse 4 Years After NYSAT

video footage taken early August 2013.

PublicAdCampaign readers will know that we squared off with a company called National Promotions of America, or more recently, Contest Promotions in the past. While we take issue with all forms of advertising in public space for numerous reasons discussed on this blog at length, NPA found itself a target for a large scale action due to their bold illegal advertising business model in NYC. After 4 years of legal gymnastics costing the citizens of NYC what I can only imagine to be millions of dollars in legal fees and precious DOB sign enforcement unit time and effort, it looks like karma is finally rearing its head and dishing out what is due.

A little bird that keeps me informed of important updates on NPA's trials and tribulations sent me an email recently to inform me that things were headed south...and fast. While the text below is not a quote, it does reflect the general sentiment of the troubles NPA finds itself in after acting against public interest. While I cant post the breakdown of monetary troubles NPA finds itself in, I can tell you their troubles are in the millions and the company will likely go under due to their reckless behavior and lack of respect for NYC and its residents.

John, we have a few problems that we desperately need to discuss. The NYC Department of Buildings is coming down on us hard with new violations that are classified as aggravated 1 and carry a $25,000.00 fine instead of the usual $10,000.00 if there is a previous violation that has not been corrected. Sadly they are able to attach this new violation to 61 of the 76 BA sites that we have. In fact they have attached 8 aggravated 1’s to a property that will likely have to go to court with the expectation of $200,000.00 in fines along with the $10,000.00 that already exists. I must tell you that the Landlords are getting more upset by the day and that Mary is advising us to take the signs down because she can’t control things at this point. I am afraid that if we don’t pay close attention to this, things will erupt. 

That said, the ECB and the Administrative Law Judges are becoming exhausted with our antics and seem to be siding with the Department of Buildings. I believe the claimants are undermining my testimony in an attempt to discredit my previous statements in court. We have court appearances through December of 2013 with approximately 4-7 cases every week. Unsurprisingly we have not been able to hear more than 3-4 cases each week, which means this issue will not end until well into 2014 as it stands now. Because the new violations are being written at the new aggravated level, we will go even further into 2014. These fines will add up fast and the additional penalties will make it harder for us to settle with the city. I think we should discuss this new situation immediately. . .

Wildposting Continues Despite DOB Crackdown

A few years ago, we targeted a company call NPA outdoor with the NYSAT project because they were illegally operating hundreds of street level billboards in NYC alongside a massive illegal Flyposting campaign. The result of the NYSAT action was a massive crackdown on NPA by the NYC DOB which resulted in the near eradication of illegal Flyposting in the city as well an indictment of NPA's illegal billboard activities. Through legal gymnastics, NPA went out of business only to reappear as Contest Promotions, the same company operating at the same locations under what they argued were different legal circumstances. Long story short is Contest Promotions claimed they were not in the advertising business at all but rather working directly with mom and pop businesses to run a raffle program which allowed them to call their advertising product and their business operations first party, not third.

Surprisingly Contest Promotions was able to argue their case affectively and now those once illegal billboards are legal first party signage. Sad to see the illegal advertising company dodge responsibility and continue operating, we never expected our civil disobedience project to spur the city into action, but took heart in the fact that it did. It was a moment of staggering excitement when I noticed Flyposting had almost entirely stopped in NY and that the city was cracking down on the illegal business practices of NPA Outdoor.

You can imagine my reaction some two years later as Flyposting has begun full force in the city once more. I cannot say for sure who is behind these illegal activities but given my resources I will make sure to get to the bottom of this problem and bring whoever is responsible to light. Please send us pictures of any illegal Flyposting campaigns you see and if you can catch someone in the act, please take their picture so we can confirm the identity of the company in charge.

Also, if you are interested in the backstory, look back into our archives under NPA Outdoor, NYSAT, or Contest Promotions and you can read more from about this companies sordid past.

Illegal Ads on SoHo Building Prompt a Record Fine

Outdoor advertising giant Colossal media does things olds school, painting instead of hanging their advertising contents on the sides of NYC buildings. While their methods of installation might be different, their approach to using public space reflects the industry wide standard of "we do what we want until you make us do otherwise." treating public space as a pillage-able commodity like any other. 

VIA: The NY Times

Some outdoor advertising companies regard municipal fines for illegal signs as just another cost of doing business. New York City is suggesting they think again. The cost has now reached six figures. More [HERE]

Mustache Man Arrested - Interview on Subway Art Blog

Mustache Man has been arrested for "defacing" subway advertisements reports NBC New York. Having been charged with felony criminal mischief and possession of graffiti materials, he faces some serious consequences for his light hearted approach to ad readjustment. In fact is seems the NYPD has spent over two months cataloging and doing some serious detective work to apprehend Joseph Waldo. I am sorry but NYC subway ads are synonymous with public back talk and the usual urban scrawl. To isolate an individual like this seems over the top, and a clear waste of city resources. The priorities in this city are completely backwards as the NYC DOB sign enforcement unit can't seem to get rid of an illegal outdoor advertiser after two years of legal battles, and yet a 26 year old kid writing the word "mustache" on ads is apprehended and most likely prosecuted within weeks.

VIA Subway Art Blog

"At it’s simplest level, it’s a quick joke meant to give commuters something to smile about while they’re waiting for the subway, coming off from a long day at work, or getting stabbed on the D train. And that’s certainly how it started. But for me it’s evolved into part of this broader movement of subverting advertisements. Especially in New York, where we’re bombarded with ads everywhere we go, it feels more and more like we’re part of a one-sided conversation. We’re getting these ridiculous images and dumb catchphrases shoved down our throats (“Good Afternoont!”), why shouldn’t we be able to talk back? So many ads are so laughably stupid that a cartoonish moustache just seems to fit. On another level, it’s a return to hand-written form in a technology driven age where we type so much that some of us have actually forgotten how to write cursive."

Full Interview Here

Contest Promotions Wins Supreme Court Battle and Permits Are Being Issued

old Contest Promotions Signage attached to garage and showing movie posters.

It really is the wild west out there. Contest Promotions, operating under a bogus business model which purports that their illegal 1st party signage is actually legal 3rd party signage, recently sued the city of New York after being fined and asked to remove their illegal signs. They claimed that "the Department of Buildings' determination that Contest Promotions' sign model fails to qualify as permissible 'accessory use' is arbitrary, capricious and affected by errors of law."

Demanding that the city recognize their signage as 3rd party, or accessory use, they argue that the advertisements which adorn the sides of many buildings in NYC are a vital component of the mom and pop business model. Without such "promotional" material they have determined these mom and pop businesses, many of which are delis, would fall victim to the big box stores and be forced to close. In their arguments, the signage reminds passersby that specific products are available inside the establishment as is the expectation of all 3rd party signage. As evidence of this fact, they submitted a photo of an advertisement on the side of Roberto's Grocery which is for Tropicana orange juice. While Roberto's Grocery most likely sells OJ, the fact of the matter is that the advertisements often placed at these locations are for movies, concerts and music, all of which are not sold at deli's or the other myriad types of business to which these signs are affixed. Basically I am saying this argument is bullshit and tantamount to Contest Promotions lying to the city of NY outright.

It seems that A Supreme Court decision, rendered by Justice Rakower, requires DOB to approve permits for signs applied for in conformance with a “model” put forth by Contest Promotions. This decision is obviously under appeal, but in the meantime expect Contest Promotions to be out in droves, updating their signage and making things as "official" as possible while they have the green light. Obviously this is very upsetting to me as it proves once again that the city, and by extension its citizenry, is often held hostage by the whims of advertising companies hellbent on making huge profits off of the use of our public environment. It shows how difficult it is to fight this industry and a culture of commercialism, not to mention how our tax dollars are used to hold back the oncoming flood. I am truly dumbfounded by the system in this situation, expecting a city to be able to locate an illegal advertisement and or advertising company and simply have them removed. Instead, the city locates clearly illegal ads and in this case an entire company operating illegally, and then must jump through hoops for years in order to fight against the onslaught of lawyers put forth by these ill tempered business'.

Remember that this is the same company that once called themselves National Promotions of America, plastered our city and our construction sheds with illegal signage and generally created mayhem on the streets. When they were caught red handed, they dissolved NPA and re-opened as Contest Promotions on a new business model claiming that they were not advertising at all. For them to seriously claim that they are here to help the city makes me loose faith in reason and wonder if the world isn't spinning backwards. If helping Mom & Pops is so important, why do they pay only 50 dollars to rent the sides of these buildings, most likely paying landlords and not business owners in the end anyways. The whole thing reeks of abuse at the expense of our neighborhoods and collective psyche.

Read the entire legal document [HERE]

San Francisco General Advertising Sign Program Annual Report

San Francisco has made it a priority to reign in the over proliferation of commercial media. While this is no small task, a clear cut agenda seems to help immensely.

"The primary goals of the program are to build and maintain an inventory of all general advertising signs in San Francisco, to correct outstanding sign‐related Planning Code violations, and to remove unlawful signs."

This years General Advertising Sign Program Annual Report suggests that the goals have been met and San Francisco now has a full inventory of all commercial signage and is aware of thier legal status. A step in the right direction to control and a step in the right direction to removal.

We Didn't Win So The Next Takeover Is On Hold

The final 4 winners of the Urban Canvas Design Competition have been selected by public Vote. While we did not win, we were happy to see that a similar design, although in bright colors, was selected by the public. I look forward to the shift in perspective and playful manipulation of the rigid nature of construction safety materials propossed by this design as it will be an exciting addition to our public environment. Sadly this means that funding over at PublicAdCampaign is less than desired and another takeover project is likely to be put on hold until funds can be procured to launch another ambitious act of unauthorized civil disobedience. To view all of the winning designs and read more about the winning entries, visit the Urban Canvas website [Here]

New Contest Promotions Signs Suggest Things to Come

Our good friend Charlie at Urban Prankster sent us this photo.

As many of our readers know, the original business responsible for this sign, NPA, now Contest Promotions, has been the focus of a lot of our attention over the past 2 years. Long story short, they have been operating street level billboards illegally in NYC for some time now. After a little Civil Disobedience and some attention from the DOB, Contest promotions created a bogus business model upon which they could attempt to legalize their illegal signage through a little slight of hand. The legal shenanigans included the addition of a small disclaimer to all of their illegal signage. This disclaimer, by their argument, converts these signs from 3rd party advertising to 1st party business signage. Meaning that those ads are actually representations of products available inside in the same way that a Citibank logo references available financial services or a giant ice cream cone represents the 26 flavors you can't wait to get your hands on. The recent addition of a more carefully worded disclaimer as well as the actual name of the store upon which the illegal billboard is affixed, can only mean one thing, legal proceedings.

It is in my non-professional opinion that a court case must be in the works and Contest Promotions is digging in for a fight. Why else would these signs appear on every single billboard overnight? The stakes are high for everyone involved. If CP wins and is allowed to continue operating on a business model whose sole purpose is to skirt NYC law we are all in a lot of trouble. This kind of decision would open the floodgates to outdoor advertising companies thinking up new and inventive ways to pretend their advertising is not advertising at all and therefore completely ignore all of the checks and balances we have as a city against this industry. If the city wins and is able to uphold its position as caretaker and ultimately decision maker as to how much and where outdoor advertising is allowed, we might see at least a temporary easement on the number of companies who think it is okay to make the city spend tax payer dollars to defend its right to control the proliferation of commercial messages in our city. While this issue is more than dollars and cents to me, when it comes down to it, there is a large national corporation trying to take advantage of our public space by subjecting us to commercial media for personal monetary benefit, and a city spending money it doesn't have to defend against this onslaught of personal gain.

Urban Canvas fo No Longer Empty

Keith Schwietzer over at No Longer Empty offered me this construction shed at 55 Washington Street for the Watch This Space exhibition he was helping organize. This offer came the same day I was called and told I was a finalist for the Urban Canvas Design Competition. Naturally I thought it a good opportunity to provide an actual example of what my design will look like in real life. Please see below and if you would like to vote for my design, go to www.nyc.gov/html/urbancanvas

Please Vote-Urban Canvas Design Competition

I was just selected as a finalist for the Urban Canvas Design Competition. The 4 winners are decided by vote and I need your help! Please cast your vote here. Your vote will help us to continue providing large scale public projects and critical investigations of how to best serve our collective interests in public space.

Untitled"While beneath the scaffold and mesh covering, architecture in New York City loses nuance to the rigid rectangular forms of construction. Through repeated woven patterns and perspective shifts the ordinary rectangle becomes an extraordinary tool with which to contemplate the surfaces of our city."

A little history...

A while back PublicAdCampaign ran a project called NYSAT. Organizing the efforts of nearly a hundred artists, activists, and citizens, we reclaimed nearly 20,000 square feet of illegal outdoor advertising space run by a company called National Promotions of America. They also happened to be the same company illegally Wildposting construction sheds all over New York City. The unauthorized civil disobedience was definitely noticed by the DOB, and although a positive connection was never fully acknowledged, action was taken against this company swiftly after the project. The result was the removal of many of the illegal street level billboards as well as the end of large scale Wildposting in NYC. It seemed in some way we had won.

This left many of the construction sheds around the city empty, a bare blue surface begging for public interaction. Not more than a few months after the Wildposting stopped I received an email from within the DOB telling me about the Urban Canvas Design competition. It seemed that the city had taken steps to insure that the bare blue walls would come alive in the future. In fact, all of the construction safety structures would come alive, insuring that Wildposting would not continue and public art would take its rightful place. For me personally it also proved that direct action projects like NYSAT can have a serious affect on the quality of our shared spaces.

With that said, out of the 8 finalists, 4 will be selected by the public. Each of these individuals will receive $7,500 as an award. While this is not an immense amount of money, to a grassroots project like PublicAdCampaign it is a huge boost to our funding (of which there is none). This award would help us in numerous ways but probably most fitting, it would help us bring a project similar to NYSAT to yet another city. And if NYSAT was in any way responsible, however slightly, for the Design Competitions creation, the awards use for yet another civil disobedience project seems only too fitting.

A little about the design...

While I walked around NY looking at construction shed after construction shed, trying to pull inspiration out of the myriad configurations they took, I noticed again how ubiquitous they are around our city. I racked my brain for colors and pattern, complexity and simplicity, trying to envision my thoughts translated onto these surfaces. Many designs came to mind and over and over again I asked myself if I liked the design, but also how its repetition throughout the city might affect my continued appreciation of it. I thought to myself could I look at that everyday and possibly at many different locations? Many of the designs did not stand up to this criteria and in the end more complex patterns, arrangements of color fell to the side in favor of the simple black and white woven pattern I have been working with for the past few years in my public work. The pattern would transform the rigid structure of the architecture beneath, but allow the viewer to let it go relatively unnoticed if desired.

While I have been known to try to change my imagery often in order to remained un-branded as an artist and therefor escape criticism that I use the streets and advertising venues as advertising for myself, the woven pattern has continued in my work for a reasonable amount of time now. I promise that I will change this soon. Even as I write this I am working on a show for the Vincent Michael gallery which I promise will begin a departure from this simple, albeit affective design element.

DOB announcement PDF.

210 7th Avenue at it Again

We have reported about this location several times in the past after Chelsea Now wrote an article about the absentee landlord and his interest in profiting off his building through un-permitted illegal outdoor advertising. I believe InWindow Outdoor was initially responsible for the illegal ads when the building was receiving heavy copy last year, but they have all but vanished from NYC due to their illegal business model and the dedication of PublicAdCampaign and all the readers that helped us track down their illegal signage. It seems the building owner decided we had all forgotten about his shenanigans but alas he was mistaken. Because there are no permits for this monstrosity on the DOB BIS website, we had to call it in. We were given complaint number 1289364 and await the DOB's response.

Now That The Wildposting Has Stopped, What Will Take Its Place?

It is my belief that public art (or public communication for that matter) and commercial advertising cannot coexist in public space. This is mainly because they need to occupy the same real estate and due to commercial advertising's bloated budgets, public art finds itself pushed to the sidelines as the city is over run with content that promotes private concerns over community values. There are other reasons but for the sake of this post this is the most important concern.

With this in mind, NPA city outdoor made a business out of illegal sniping of construction sheds in New York, fully covering them with commercial advertising until recently. After attention was called to NPA's illegal use of New York's public space, sniping stopped leaving construction sheds a bare blue. Without advertising, these spaces are now free for other content, and other content they will get. The NYC DOB has inaugurated a new arts program to beautify these ubiquitous NYC structures now that advertising has relinquished control. They write...

"We are thrilled to launch the urbancanvas Design Competition, an innovative contest to develop creative artwork for construction fences, sidewalk sheds, supported scaffolds and cocoons in New York City.

Construction sites are signs of this City's growth and prosperity. But it's no secret that the accompanying temporary protective structures often detract from the beauty of New York City's architecture. Sidewalk sheds alone span more than 1 million linear feet and can remain in place for nearly a year. These temporary installations protect pedestrians from construction debris and support construction activity, but they also present opportunities to enhance the urban experience for millions of New Yorkers." [More Here]

The development of the Urban Canvas design competition proves to me that when advertising disappears along with its interest in control and manipulation of public thoughts, art is often called upon to takes its place and keep our public spaces visually interesting. To deny advertising access to public space is to provide opportunities for artistic projects and public communications to take their rightful place in our shared environment.

NPA Leaves NYC For Good, Contest Promotions Still at Large

NPA wildposting removed

After speculating on NPA closing shop in New York and passing on a small portion of their illegal ad business to Contest Promotions, it was only right we get the story from a more credible source. We contacted the DOB, and a friend that will remain anonymous answered a few questions. First we would like to congratulate the DOB on their recent efforts in NYC. Wildposting and Sniping of construction sites has stopped almost everywhere and a large portion of NPA's ads have been whited out, their fate to be determined. We do hope that the DOB will continue to put pressure on Contest Promotions and not allow the meaning of 1st and 3rd party signage be manipulated for profit at the public's expense.

NPA wildposting removed

PublicAdCampaign: I am under the assumption NPA is shutting down in NY and leaving Contest Promotions to operate as many locations as they can pretend are legal. I posted my opinion on my site today and im curious if it is correct. Do you know anything about this, or do you know someone I can speak to who might know more about this?

Anonymous: Your assumption about them shutting down as NPA is correct. They recently applied to withdraw their OAC registration. While CP is a different corporate entity, there apparently is some overlap between the two. As of now, CP signs are still considered advertising, not accessory; and the DOB will not stay enforcement against such signs.

PublicAdCampaign: Lastly I must ask a personal question. Did the NYSAT civil disobedience project have any affect on this outcome, no matter how small or large. We are planning on going to other cities with similar projects and we would love to find some inspiration in these recent events.

Anonymous: Although coincidentally timed at around the same time, our enforcement efforts were unrelated to the NYSAT activities as wildpostings had been on our radar for awhile. After we began to control the large flex signage (as best we could), we moved on to the smaller, street level ads w/ an enforcement sweep in April 2009 that included over a hundred locations in Manhattan.

Honestly, you’d have to ask NPA if your activities had an effect on their operations, but I have to believe the bad press (and general disruption of some of their operations) had some effect.

Looking into NPAs business you can see what kind of "disruptions" this source might be talking about. For one, the head of NPA operations in NY is/was Rick Del Mastro. He is also the president of the New Era Democrats, an independent political association in NY since 1982. It would seem the NED mission statement contrasts too starkly with NPA's blatant abuse of our community for private interests.

"N.E.D. is a “family” of loyal, genuine friends and associates who embrace all types of participants in its activities, regardless of race, creed, national origin, age, sex or sexual preference. Our organization endeavors to attract persons of integrity who place the interests of their communities and of society above considerations of personal gain."

For whatever reasons NPA has closed shop, we are happy to see them go. We do hope that community pressure was able to expedite the process and allow the DOB to be emboldened by our support.

Unsanctioned Gym Billboard Sparks Outrage In West Village

It's great to see people up in arms about commercial signage appropriating public spaces but this one, despite not being properly permitted, is still a first party sign. I would hope that this outrage will continue as we see other illegal signs enter our neighborhoods on illegal walls and rolldown gates toting signage that has nothing to do with the business or building it is adhered to.

VIA Gothamist
We've spent a good chunk of time writing about illegal advertisements, but few have been as large — or caused as much fury — as this billboard in the West Village. Ever since the Equinox Health Club wrapped its Greenwich Avenue building with seemingly illegal ads, preservationists have been up in arms, according to Curbed. [MORE]

Wildposting's Been Operating Longer Than I Thought

A good friend and PublicAdCampaign reader, Elizabeth Carey Smith, sent me this image taken from Ellen Lupton's "Thinking with Type". According to Elizabeth, the caption for the picture reads...

"Lithographic trade card, 1878. The rise of advertising in the nineteenth century stimulated demand for large-scale letters that could command attention in urban space. Here, a man is shown posting a bill in flagrant disregard for the law, while a police officer approaches from around the corner."

It's interesting to know that illegal posting of bills, or Wildposting as we now call it, was illegal in 1878. I'm not so sure this has remained true the entire time since, but I can tell you Wildposting in NYC is completely illegal today. In fact, about 3 hrs ago I saw two construction workers on 17th street between 8th and 9th avenues laboriously removing illegal Wildposting from and area approximately 200' long by 10' tall. They did so by wetting down the illegal ad, waiting till the water soaked through, and then scrapping at them with a putty knife. From what I could tell in the 5 minutes I watched them work, this process would take at least the entire day.

Why were they doing this you ask? Because in our insane system, when you call in this type of illegal advertising to 311, the building owner is the one who receives the $10,000.00 fine. This I have been told is largely because the city is unable to positively identify the company who is sneaking around the city at night illegally posting these advertisements and therefor the building owner must be held responsible for the conditions of his property. In yet another bizarre loophole that keeps our city riddled with unwanted commercial messages, the companies who are being advertised are not responsible for the damage either. Again this is all because for some reason we can't figure out if the companies had full knowledge that the advertising they were paying for would be used in this illegal manner.

Excuse my language, but give me a fucking break. One only knows how many Wildposting companies operated back in 1878, but today I can tell you the one that rules NY with an iron fist, as well as most of the major cities around the United States, including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, and Washington D.C., is NPA City Outdoor. In fact they own the copyright on the term Wildposting, which is odd because as far as I know you can't copyright something illegal. In fact this company openly admits that they offer citywide domination through Wildposting on their website...

"Available in the top 25 markets from coast to coast, nothing lets you dominate a space more quickly, or more efficiently, than our WILDPOSTING^SM Outdoor Advertising Programs. We offer high profile locations - with the greatest of visual impact. Because of this, big name advertisers are now using WILDPOSTING^SM not as a sideshow but as an integral part of their multimedia campaigns.

Firs of all, who said you could "dominate" our public space? As this situation is infuriating to many people living in New York City, PublicAdCampaign has made it a mission to deal with this problem. This has included laboriously cataloging and photographing 189 illegal NPA Wildposting locations around the city and sending this information to the DOB sign enforcement unit, as well as direct action projects to take back those spaces, if not briefly, for public use. The former resulted in no response, despite having a personal relationship with important people in this department, while the later has resulted in a total of 9 arrests of our friends and colleagues.

The result? A total disregard for our public space causing building owners to incur unnecessary fines and require them to pay for countless days of work to remove these illegal commercial messages. On top of this, the tax payer has had to foot the bill for the arrest, processing, detainment, arraignment, and judgment of nine individuals intent on helping the city become aware of this problem. With no one else to blame but NPA City Outdoor, isn't it time the city stop footing the bill for its illegal advertising problem and go after the company we all know is responsible?

More to come as the fight to regain control of our public space continues...

DOB Explains 936 bway-

A few days ago I posted about the recent copy change at 936 Broadway. Initially I took notice of this location when it sported a bright blue Intel advertisement along with some digital screens and a fantastic STOP WORK ORDER.

Obviously that SWO was meant to stop new signs from going up but the recent Home Depot copy change indicates otherwise. When I looked at the DOB website to see if that SWO was still there, I realized that it had been removed. Unsure of what this might mean in regards to the legality of the InWindow's business and the practice of erecting streescapes, I looked in a bit further with the DOB. I found out there have been a total of 26 violations served from as early as March at 936 Broadway and that the removal of the SWO doesn't really make a whole lot of sense. I'm assured a call to 311 will result in another violation and a reinstatement of the SWO, but when will it come down?

InWindow Loves 936 Broadway

InWindow is still operating at 936 Broadway. Back in May we reported on an illegal Intel advertisement being operated at this InWindow location and the partial stop work order which halted advertising until recently. The newest Streetscape for Home Depot has gone up after a the partial stop work order was rescinded by the DOB. I put in a call to some people at the DOB to see if this is a special variance, is due to ongoing legal proceedings, or is just a result of the city putting it's tail between it's legs and allowing advertising to run rampant on our city. I will report back if the DOB does.

San Francisco Has it Easy Man

I was recently made aware of this article through an interesting post by the The Anti-Advertising Agency. It focuses on the illegal storefront ads produced by Companies like InWindow, but also goes into some depth about how the San Francisco Planning Department is combating their illegal outdoor advertising issue. Obviously very optimistic, the SF planning Department has canvased a large portion of the 1,532 outdoor advertisements in the city. In doing so they have been able to make contact with the owners of these billboards and issue the appropriate warning and or fines required. As I have been told, the response from the outdoor advertising companies in San Francisco has been relatively compliant and unusually civil.

If only things were so easy in New York. We are blessed with an outdoor advertising industry of a much grander proportion and therefor are unable to "canvas" the city as San Francisco is in the process of doing. Because we cannot do so, outdoor advertising agencies are able to operate illegally amidst the confusion. Take for example the sign with 103 violations, or the million dollar sign, which by the way has finally been removed. These kinds of atrocities can only happen when the city is overwhelmed by the problem and unable to properly control companies which can hide in plain sight. We cannot look to our DOB to control OAC's, despite them giving an amazingly valiant effort. We must as a public reclaim control ourselves by any and all means necessary.

Two NPA Outdoor Signs Removed

I Just walked by these two NPA street level billboards and they were gone. There are a few reasons this could have happened including, the lease ran out and they didn't want to renew. My personal favorite would be that the recent actions of some concerned citizens caused the DOB to look into NPA outdoor and serve a violation. Either way, if we could remove the illegal Fuel Outdoor ad display that's still there, that wall might have some potential.