| Neil Fraser looks at advertising |
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| Written by Neil Fraser | |
| Monday, 29 September 2008 | |
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The reason behind re-looking at by-laws may be to make them simpler, "but this does not appear to be the case with outdoor advertising".
The SAMOAC "constitutes only a framework and guidelines for outdoor advertising" and is to be adapted by local authorities to serve their own needs. The foreword contains a number of interesting comments, such as: "Outdoor advertising and information transfer fulfils an essential function in modern society. It directs, guides and informs as to locality, product, activity or service and contributes to economic growth in general. However, if outdoor advertising is not controlled properly, it could have a very real impact on tourism resources and the human living environment as was experienced in countries such as the United States of America." It addresses the "visual human environment" as follows: "The visual environment also plays an important role in creating better human living environments for all communities in South Africa. Section 24 of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of South Africa states that ‘... everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or wellbeing ...' "The visual environment is a key to ensuring mental health and psychological wellbeing. It has an immense impact on how we think and act as human beings. Research has shown that the visual environment has a definite influence on human behavioural patterns such as vandalism, attitudes that determine the productivity of office workers or even the crime rate. It also plays an important role in creating healthy communities. A sense of place and identity is created by means of the visual environment that leads to community pride, a sense of security and permanent belonging, human dignity and enthusiastic citizen involvement." Place and identity After all, we must have more square metres advertising malt and liquor than any other city in the country! Much of it is displayed on the massive "wrap around" advertising that disfigures or hides our local architecture - good, bad or indifferent as some of it may be. Some wrap around advertising has draped empty inner city buildings for years, with the owner earning more in advertising income than what could be earned from rentals were the building to be let. One example is the last building on the right-hand side of Bertha Street, Braamfontein as one starts to drive across Nelson Mandela Bridge. Actually, in that location, wrap around advertising on both sides of the street form the "gateway" into Newtown, which is quite disgusting. This, therefore, became a subject raised and debated at the workshops that were the prelude to drawing up the Inner City Charter in 2007. The general feeling was that the inner city had increasingly become cluttered with inappropriate and tacky advertising signs attached to buildings. The debate ultimately culminated in the following three commitments being included in the charter:
Background Thus 15 percent of the rental derived from the advertising had to be "applied to an appropriate urban renewal initiative". As far as I know, that never ever happened. Then, in February 2007, new draft by-laws were prepared; the intent was to amend the previous by-laws of 2000. This intent was published in April 2007. This evidently led to a great deal of input both from within and from outside the council, which led to a second draft of the by-laws being prepared. These were then further amended to take into consideration the Inner City Summit commitments. The new revised by-laws were published in the Provincial Gazette Extraordinary on 13 June 2008, to be effective from 1 July. The by-laws appear to be very extensive, covering everything from signs suspended under verandas or canopies, projecting signs, pylon signs, advertising signs placed flat on buildings or bridges, sky signs, et cetera, through to advertising on blimps. Applications Once the application is made, the applicant must advertise their intent in two local newspapers, and display a notice for 21 days in a conspicuous place visible to the public on a street front of the property on which the proposed sign will be erected. Those fortunate enough to have seen the newspaper notice or the notice in the street, may make an objection to the proposal. Objectors must write to the council, which must consider the objection themselves and provide the applicant 14 days to reply to the objection. The council must then also notify every interested party of its decision within 21 days, including providing written reasons for its decision, if requested. In considering an application, the council must: "have due regard to the compatibility of the proposed advertising sign with the environment and with the amenity of the immediate neighbourhood, urban design and streetscape ..." and to whether the sign will "obscure any feature which in the opinion of the council is a natural feature, architectural feature or visual line of civic, architectural, historical or heritage significance or in the council's opinion, be unsightly or objectionable or detrimentally impact on the architectural design of any building on the property concerned or any adjacent property". The owner of the property, on the other hand, "must ensure that such sign is designed or located so as not to be detrimental to the nature of the streetscape, urban design or detract from the architecture of any building on which or where such sign is to be located, by reason of abnormal size, appearance, intensity of illumination workmanship design or its existence". I couldn't find the charter commitment that "strict regulations prohibiting the full wrapping of buildings on a semi-permanent or permanent basis, in lieu of using the building for its established use" incorporated in the by-laws. The only reference in regard to "wrap around signs" (not called such in the by-laws) seems to be that: "The total area of an advertising sign placed flat or painted on a wall of a building may not exceed 20m² for every 15m² of frontage of the building concerned facing a public street. Nor may it exceed 40m² in extent in an area of partial control and 80m² in an area of minimum control if "on-premises" advertising or 80m² and 200m² respectively if "third party" advertising. Areas of control Urban areas of maximum control are "precincts deemed sensitive to visual control" (for example, natural open spaces, residential areas, architectural and historic sites and heritage and protected areas, et cetera). Urban areas of partial control are "in most cases characterised by a greater degree of integration and complexity of land use, facilities and activities that allow for limited freedom with regard to size, number and position of advertisements" (for example, shopping centres, educational institutions, sports fields, government enclaves, et cetera). Urban areas of minimum control are "centres, areas and nodes of concentrated economic activity where the dominant concern and motivation is to conduct business and to sell products and services. This calls for the display of advertisements and signs in stronger and more obvious form" (for example, commercial districts, industrial areas, entertainment districts, et cetera). The physical areas will have to be determined by the council and I am sure that this will create much argument! Greater sizes than those quoted may be entertained "if it is in the interests of the aesthetic appearance of the building", or - and here the third Charter Commitment seems to be covered - "if it is in the inner city, as indicated in the council's Spatial Development Framework, of the area of jurisdiction of the council where an urban renewal programme on the said building or area concerned as determined by council, is being undertaken and the approval of such sign is subject to an annual prescribed financial contribution to be utilised for an inner city renewal project" ????? I assume this means that the annual contribution of R100 per square metre of advertising display shall be payable to a regeneration project (public or private) from advertising proceeds of any approved sign. I thought we were re-looking at by-laws to make them simpler, but this doesn't appear to be the case with outdoor advertising! Next week we'll try to have a look at what all this means in terms of what exists at the moment in the inner city. Ending with another quote from SAMOAC: "Managing outdoor advertising sufficiently is important in order to prevent the deterioration of the aesthetic environment which forms an important tourism resource, contributes to healthy psychological living environments and increases property values. Uncontrolled outdoor advertising may also have various other negative impacts such as contributing to light and sound pollution, increasing traffic safety problems, creating occupational health risks and displaying advertising messages that may be indecent or prejudicial to public morals. On the other hand, outdoor advertisements and signs have various economic and functional benefits and well-designed advertising structures, such as street furniture, may even enhance streetscapes and other aesthetic resources." Ciao, Neil PS: I forgot to tell you the most important issue from last week's Western Cape travels - the crime in the country towns I mentioned is remarkably low. In fact, in one place we visited, the police station operates only on weekdays and then only between 7am and 6pm! Walking tour: Hope Road, Mountainview Stories of Gandhi and his architect associate, Herman Kallenbach, also relate to this area. The cost is R75 and booking is at Computicket. Meet Dennis Adams and special guest Alkis Doucakis in Hope Road, on the corner of Osborne and Hope roads (Hope Road is just off Louis Botha Avenue) at 2pm. For more information, contact the Parktown and Westcliff Heritage Trust office on 011 482 3349 in the mornings or visit the trust's website. Related stories: |
