The Great Philadelphia
Sidewalk Sale: RFP for
Comprehensive Street Furniture
Right now, City officials are considering bids from three outdoor advertising
companies for a 20 year contract for the installation and maintenance of street
furniture -- bus shelters, benches, trash receptacles, news stands and "information
kiosks". On all these structures, the bidders will be allowed to sell
outdoor advertising. In exchange, the City gets the urban amenities and a
cut of the revenue. Is this a good deal?
Considering the RFP's content, process and potential outcome has raised several
questions for us here at SCRUB. Our intention is to use this page to
explore and explain these issues so that citizens and elected officials can make
informed decisions about the RFP and its impact on the built environment.
Read the RFP.
Issue: The Ad-ification of Our Sidewalks
The RFP calls for 422 transit shelters, 10 automatic public toilets, 90
newsstands, 119 freestanding ad panels / structures at transit headhouse
locations, 240 honor box corrals, 1,809 trash receptacles, and untold number of benches and ad kiosks.
The City is asking respondents to tell them how many benches and ad kiosks we
need. This RFP may introduce as many as 3,000 (maybe more) new advertising
outlets to our built environment.
Issue: Design
Since there have been precious few details emerging from the closed-door
selection process, SCRUB has been asking our counterparts in other cities to
tell us about their street furniture experience. Toronto has just
completed an intense RFP process - one that we're tempted to hold up as a model
for all the public involvement and information sharing that has characterized
the proceedings. Yet, no one is really excited about the outcome there.
Two of the bidders here in Philadelphia - CBS and ClearChannel - were in the
running in Toronto. Here's a submission from ClearChannel.
ClearChannel's Information Kiosk - submitted for Toronto's RFP earlier
this year. Interestingly, ClearChannel refers to their entire street
furniture program as "Adshel". No doubt, the ad comes first.
ClearChannel's design submissions for Toronto can be viewed
here.
And, here's a submission from CBS.
CBS's Information Boards and Pillars - submitted for Toronto's RFP earlier
this year.
CBS's design submissions for Toronto can be viewed
here.
Wall USA is also in the running for the Philadelphia RFP. Here's an
example of one of their ad pillars. Some of their ad pillars rotate every
three minutes.
A Wall USA advertising pillar.
The images used to sell this idea evoke
a cleansed and sanitized urban oasis. But, let's be real.
Philadelphia has already entered into a private contract with CBS Outdoor to
manage the existing inventory of bus shelters. Here's one on the 800
block of Spring Garden Street.
CBS maintains the City's existing inventory of bus shelters. Note
peeling paint and etched plexiglass.
As a city, we have also already experimented with the idea of advertising on
trash cans. These cans are located in the 1800 and 1900 blocks of Vine
Street.
What advertiser would want to associate their brand with something that
looks like this? Would you ever hover over a stinking garbage can to get
your orientation on a city map?
Another feature of the RFP is the introduction of advertising on new
surfaces, such as benches. Here's an example that CBS proudly displays on
their website.
A CBS "bus stop bench".
We know the City can exercise some good design sense when it so chooses.
Simple can be beautiful. What would you like to see more of in your
neighborhood?
Issue: The Legal Implications
The installation any type of outdoor advertising in center city, neighborhood
commercial areas (C-2), near schools, residences and other protected areas is
prohibited by Philadelphia's Zoning Code. This code also applies to
the advertisements included on the proposed street furniture structures.
Here's where it gets tricky.
Los Angeles undertook a similar RFP several years ago, awarded the contract,
and the winning bidder installed the ad-infused street furniture in areas where
outdoor advertising is prohibited under their zoning code. A billboard
operator, Metro Lights (which has holdings here in Philadelphia too), sued the City
of Los Angeles, because of the double standard created by the city's actions - the city
can install outdoor advertising, but he may not. This case is moving
through the federal court system, and the courts are looking favorably on Metro
Light's argument. This has the potential to undermine the city's
entire sign control law. It could potentially happen here too, leaving us
vulnerable to an outdoor advertiser's legal assault.
Read the case.
What do you think?
Feel like expressing your opinion about this? We invite you to post
your thoughts on
Phillyblog.com.
See what other people are saying and add your voice to the conversation.
