City: Group wanting to add billboards in Round Rock fails to get enough signatures
Round Rock officials said Thursday that a petition by a coalition of businesses calling for up to 12 new electronic billboards along highways in the city did not meet the requirements needed for the issue to be placed on the ballot.
The group, Keep Round Rock Safe, had said it submitted 4,203 signatures, more than the 3,189 — or 5% of registered voters — needed to place the issue on the ballot. City officials said they received 4,190 signatures, of which only 2,798 were valid. They said 1,268 were invalid because those people lived outside city limits. The rest of the signatures were deemed invalid because they either did not have a date, were duplicated or the signature itself could not be validated.
The coalition did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
More: Round Rock group wants to add 12 electronic billboards on highways. City code prohibits it.
City officials have said they had met with Media Choice, an advertising company that has been pushing for new billboards, since 2022, but have yet to be persuaded to remove the ban on any new billboards. Spokesperson Sara Bustilloz has said the city has not received any comments from businesses or residents wanting more billboards.
“I have shared my disappointment with the techniques used by this PAC to obtain signatures, including unauthorized use of the city’s logo and several misleading statements in their marketing materials,” Mayor Craig Morgan said Thursday. “This has been an exercise in our democratic process, and at this time, the PAC’s failure to secure sufficient valid signatures has shown that adding 12 new electronic billboards to Round Rock’s landscape is not a priority for our residents.”
City code prohibits the installation of any new billboards to "enhance the physical appearance of the community." The city defines billboards as "a large outdoor board for displaying advertisements which promote or advertised commodities or services available at a location other than where the sign is located."
The billboards proposed by the coalition would sell advertising space to third parties and thus would not be allowed under the city code.
The petition was seeking an amendment to the city’s charter to allow billboards that prioritize public safety, public service and advertising to help increase the local economy and to help protect residents' health, safety and welfare. According to the coalition, the billboards would help bring $225 million in revenue to businesses, based on an economic analysis from the Perryman Group, an economic think tank.
City officials have said any new billboards would ruin the city’s "Scenic City" designation given by the Scenic Texas nonprofit. They said the criteria for the designation include on-premises sign regulation and the prohibition of new billboards.
Bustilloz said the purpose of the city's regulation is to "protect and enhance the physical appearance of the community in a lawful manner by providing standards ... and satisfying the community's desire for signs that are attractive."
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Round Rock officials: Billboard group fails to get enough signatures
