MURFREESBORO, TN (WSMV) -
The city of Murfreesboro has pulled the plug on a digital billboard after five long years of battling an advertising company in the courts. The city has an ordinance that prohibits those types of billboards.
Today's rain is the least of the worries for the Lamar Advertising digital billboard next to Starbucks on Old Fort Parkway in Murfreesboro. It was built to weather the storm, but so far its owners have been in a whirlwind over it with the city.
"The city's sign ordinance has to be followed by all businesses," assistant city attorney David Ives said.
About six years ago, Lamar Advertising applied for a sign permit, asking the Board of Zoning Appeals to allow them to take down the old one and replace it with a new one. That was approved, but after final inspection, the company continued to do more work.
"That's when we discovered they had hung up a digital billboard," Ives said.
The permit was revoked in 2007. Lamar appealed, and after five years of battling back and forth in court, the city prevailed. The state Supreme Court refused to hear the case. The city then sought and received an order that allowed them to turn off the lights.
"I believe it was July 20, the city pulled the meter providing power to that sign, effectively turning it off," Ives said.
Lamar Advertising released a statement through its attorney, saying, "Lamar has had a corporate presence in the city of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County for many years. It is our position that state law requires the city of Murfreesboro to issue a permit for a grandfathered sign. That issue is currently before the Chancery Court of Rutherford County."
Murfreesboro currently has an ordinance prohibiting any type of digital sign.
"We really want this to be Murfreesboro, not Times Square or Las Vegas," Ives said.
But what about the digital billboard within city limits on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University? City leaders said it's on state property, therefore, they can't make them take it down.
City attorneys said it's still up for debate as to safety of digital billboards.
"There is a question as to if they are a hazard to traffic," Ives said.
The issue currently before Chancellor Robert Corlew is whether or not the state grandfathering law trumps Murfreesboro's ordinance prohibiting digital signs. If the chancellor rules in the city's favor, it will ask Lamar to take the billboard down.
No court date has been set to hear the case.
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