CITIZENS FOR A SCENIC WISCONSIN, INC Charles Weeth, Exec. Dir. 122 17th St S

La Crosse, WI 54601-4208

NON-PROFIT

ORGANIZATION

U.S. POSTAGE PAID

MILWAUKEE, WI

PERMIT NO. 104

The Covered Bridge of Jefferson County, a 2009 Scenic Beauty Award recipient.

Dedicated to preserving and enhancing the scenic character of Wisconsin's communities and countryside

LA CROSSE FIGHTS DIGITAL LED BILLBOARDS!!

Voice: 608-784-3212 FAX: 608-782-2822 charley@scenicwisconsin.org www.scenicwisconsin.org

One day in May, the residents of Mil-

son Court nestled by one of the bluffs

in La Crosse looked out their windows

to see the recently converted digital

LED off premises sign (billboard) had

been activated.

Their view of the La Crosse River

marsh and the bluffs of Minnesota in

the distance was now dominated by a

jumbotron that flashed as the almost

500,000 LEDs on each side of the sign

changed colors every 8 seconds.

Like many other residents across Wis-

consin, they were mortified that a huge

billboard can be erected only a few

hundred feet from their homes There

was no notification and no ability to

have any say in something that has

(Continued on page 2)

IMAGINE Newsletter of Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin

Fall 2011 Vol. 11, No. 1

Which WI Governor threatened to

veto a billboard control bill

weakened by amendments he

described as “dictated by the

billboard lobby”?

(Answer on Page 4)

SCENIC POP QUIZ

The newly converted digital LED billboard adjacent to State Highway 16 in the Town of Medary

with a September sunset in the background. This billboard is at about the same level as the homes

on Milson Court in the City of La Crosse just 300 or so feet to the east, so there is no escaping the

bright light that fill their yards and homes 24/7/365. The billboard company turned down the bright-

ness somewhat and claims this is as low as it can go, but it is still a nuisance to the residents.

Executive Director’s Report

One of my favorite things to do as I

travel around our beautiful state is

take the “blue highways” and discover

new people, places and things. Of

course I take lots of pictures too!

Whenever I am going wherever in

Wisconsin, I try to take routes I’ve

never been on before; something that

isn’t hard to do with 112,362 miles of

public roadway within the state of all

types. If I go out one way I always try

to come back a different way so I see

and experience something just a bit

different each way.

It is amazing what one can discover in

our own backyards ….. if we take a

little time and try something other

than the usual well worn paths.

Visit us online at www.scenicwisconsin.org

Imagine Page 2

By Charley Weeth, Executive Director

There’s the sign! The new digital LED sign

faces on the existing steel monopole and base.

A worker is welding the ladder to the mono-

pole. The nearest Milson Court neighbor is

only 300 feet away and was never notified.

(Continued from page 1)

such a dramatic impact on their lives -

as well as their property values.

The Milson Court residents, along

with other concerned citizens in the

community, fought back by demand-

ing passage of a six month morato-

rium on any more conversions of ex-

isting billboards to digital LED bill-

boards, as well as any new billboards

or on premises digital LED signs. The

County Board approved it by a vote of

23-10-2.

When people learned the billboard

company also proposed converting

three existing static billboards to digi-

tal LED billboards with four faces

adjacent to the Great River Road in

the City of La Crosse, they pushed a

Where’s the sign? The static sign faces have

been removed so only the steel monopole and

base remain. WisDOT considers converting an

existing static billboard to a digital LED bill-

board simply as a “change in message” and

only requests notification.

LA CROSSE FIGHTS DIGITAL LED BILLBOARDS!! (Cont’d)

one year moratorium that passed the

Common Council by a vote of 17-1.

The only reason these moratoriums

passed was because the residents

spoke up and in large numbers. As

one Council Member that had rou-

tinely voted for relaxing the sign ordi-

nances over the years said, “I’ve re-

ceived more phone calls and emails

from constituents on the billboards

than on anything else in a long time”.

The County and the City are moving

forward on revising their respective

ordinances, but not without the usual

claims by the sign companies about

the residents being “anti-business”

and “misinformed”; so far the resi-

dents continue to fight to have a say in

how their community looks.

SCENIC BEAUTY AWARD

Scenic Beauty Awards nomina-

tions are due by December 1st. Go

to our Internet site or contact CSW

for a nomination form to help pro-

mote our scenic Wisconsin!

“It seems to me that

the natural world is the greatest

source of excitement; the greatest

source of visual beauty; the

greatest source of intellectual

interest. It is the greatest source

of so much in life that makes life

worth living”.

Sir David Attenborough

This well maintained field stone house is on a

small farmstead by State Highway 66 north of

the Wisconsin River in Portage County. The

colors and textures alone are worthy of preser-

vation, but add in the historical significance

and it is even more of a gem!

“Customary Maintenance” or “Gaming the System”

Make your voice heard! Contact your elected officials in Madison and your community!

Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin EXTRA

If one pays a little attention to how billboards are located, constructed and maintained, it doesn’t take long to re-alize something is often amiss. Bill-boards appear in farm fields and for-ests, or grow larger or taller. Wooden billboards outlast farm fences, railroad ties and utility poles, defying all the laws of physics and chemistry. Regulations for non-conforming signs state that: “The sign must remain sub-stantially the same as it was on the effective date of the state law (03/18/72) and may not be enlarged. Reasonable repair and maintenance of the sign, including a change of mes-sage is not a change which would ter-minate nonconforming rights”. Repairs are permitted up to “50% of the replacement cost of the sign” but because WisDOT does not require a permit or even notification of the pro-posed repairs before they are per-formed, the sign owner unilaterally determines replacement cost. The result? The billboard companies have almost carte blanche to make whatever repairs or improvements they feel are appropriate to non-conforming billboards, including some that were originally issued permits when FDR was President!

The back side of a recently enlarged and improved billboard on land that is unzoned with no visible, permanent commercial or industrial activity. The inset is the WisDOT photo of the backside of the same billboard. This location does not qualify for a billboard and a per-mit should not have been issued. It is this type of “repair” to non-conforming signs that goes on all the time and obviously more than “50% of the replacement cost of the sign”.

Three sets of posts have been used for this billboard (R-L: wood, steel and steel). This bill-board is on land that is zoned commercial, but has no visible, permanent commercial activ-ity and thus should not qualify for a billboard. If a billboard company is eventually caught, they will frequently fight any orders to remove with the result that WisDOT or municipali-ties with their limited resources often “compromise” and allow the billboard to remain until there are highway improvements or “just don’t do it again”. What a joke!

How To Make Repairs & Altera-tions To Your Billboard from a billboard industry publication: Never Do Work While The In-

spector Is On The Clock Paint Over Any Repairs Right

Then and There Never Weld At Night Hide any Digging By Putting

Back Ground Cover and Debris Have The Crew Dress Like Offi-

cial Highway Workmen Never Admit Your Guilt

Yes! I/We would also like to order _____ copies of Wisconsin Barns @ $20.00 per book.

Wisconsin Barns ordered from CSW are signed by the author! 1 book FREE with a $100+ Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin membership!

Please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery. Proceeds earmarked for barn preservation!

JOIN CITIZENS FOR A SCENIC WISCONSIN And help us preserve and protect the scenic icons of rural Wisconsin!

� Check � Credit Card � � Card # ________________________________ Expiration _____/_____

Wisconsin Barns Wisconsin’s iconic barns have come to represent a way of life defined by family, a con-nection to the land, ingenuity, and hard work. Experience the state’s beauty and rich his-tory through these varied and fascinating structures, from the 1840s log barns to grand, arch-roofed dairy barns. Writer Nancy Schumm-Burgess and photographer Ernest J. Schweit set out on a two-year quest to document Wisconsin’s historic barns, presented in 107 photographs compli-mented by fascinating details about some of the state’s most storied structures. Forward by Chuck Law, Ph.D. of the UW Extension Barns Preservation Program.

Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin, Inc. Charley Weeth, Executive Director

122 17th St S La Crosse, WI 54601

Voice: 608-784-3212 FAX: 608-782-2822 charley@scenicwisconsin.org www.scenicwisconsin.org

Dedicated to preserving and enhancing the scenic character of Wisconsin's communities and countryside

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Membership is open to any person or organization that subscribes to the purposes of Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin We are a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and contributions are tax deductible. � New � Renewal

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“There is a serene and settled

majesty to woodland scenery that

enters into the soul and delights

and elevates it, and fills it with

noble inclinations”.

Washington Irving

Feel free to submit your Wisconsin scenic photos or stories!

Citizens for a Scenic Wisconsin Page 3

The City of La Crosse tried to negotiate a set-

tlement with the sign company to remove this

billboard for a new street by this redevelop-

ment, but had to condemn it when they refused

to sell at any price. It was erected in 1999 just

before the Great River Road was designated

and later the billboard company managed to

obtain a “perpetual billboard easement” for

only $1.00 from the landowners. The cost to

the taxpayers to remove it after a 3 day trial:

$250,000 plus legal and administrative costs.

This beautiful barn in Clark County has seen

many changes over the years and is still in use

today. It is wonderfully decorated and main-

tained by an obviously proud owner.

US Hwy 41 an Interstate? Have you wondered why there are

so many new billboards adjacent

to US Hwy 41 from the Mitchell

Interchange in Milwaukee to

Green Bay? If so, here’s the an-

swer: As has been expected for

many years, the Governor has for-

mally proposed this 142 mile

stretch be designated as an Inter-

state highway.

Interstate highways have different

design and other standards, but

the key for billboards is the Bonus

Act of 1958. As a signatory to this

law, Wisconsin must adhere to

stricter outdoor advertising con-

trols or return the “bonus” pay-

ments received over the years.

Currently US Hwy 41 is subject to

the standards of the Highway

Beautification Act (HBA) of 1965

that allow new billboards on land

that is currently zoned commercial

or industrial. There are other crite-

ria but WisDOT generally accepts

just the zoning, even if the land use

is obviously agricultural as pic-

tured below.

The Bonus Act requires that land

adjacent to an Interstate was zoned

or used for permanent commercial

or industrial activity as of September

1, 1959. Given most of the land ad-

jacent to US Hwy 41 was farmland

or natural areas in 1959, it will be

more difficult for locations to meet

the Bonus Act standards after the

Interstate designation; hence the

rush to sign leases, obtain permits

and erect billboards.

If you live in this area and would

like to assist in researching these

issues, please contact CSW. Or you

can assist with a donation!

One of the many vacant newer billboards adjacent to US Hwy 41 between Milwaukee and Green

Bay. Billboard companies are leasing locations and erecting as many billboards as possible before

this highway is designated an Interstate, tightening up the standards for new billboards significantly.

Help fight blight!

CITIZENS FOR A SCENIC WISCONSIN, INC

A 501(c)3 non-profit organization

A Dairy is Considered “Industrial”?

Voice: 608-784-3212 FAX: 608-782-2822 charley@scenicwisconsin.org www.scenicwisconsin.org

A modern double sided 672 sqf (1,344 sqf total) stretched vinyl banner billboard with illu-

mination on a steel monopole adjacent to an Interstate. The permit application listed this

land as limited industrial so apparently Wisconsin dairy farms are considered “industrial”.

Dedicated to preserving and enhancing the scenic character of Wisconsin's

communities and countryside

Imagine Page 4

POP QUIZ ANSWER

In July of 1959, Governor Gaylord

Nelson also threatened to intro-

duce a statewide referendum. The

amendments were withdrawn and

the Legislature agreed to adopt the

standards of the Bonus Act of 1958.

You’re going along an Interstate and

are admiring the neat farms and fields

when a pair of big billboards pop up.

Huh? Billboards are only allowed on

land zoned commercial or industrial

according to the Highway Beautifica-

tion Act (HBA) of 1965, which Wis-

consin finally agreed to in 1972.

And because it is an Interstate, the

land also had to be commercial or in-

dustrial as of September 1, 1959 ac-

cording to the Bonus Act of 1958,

which Wisconsin agreed to in 1961.

So how did these billboards get here?

In a few instances, like I-39/US Hwy

51 the older, smaller billboards we see

were erected before 1972 and before it

was designated as an Interstate.

In other instances the billboards were

erected adjacent to new Interstates af-

ter 1959 but before 1972 according to

the standards of the Bonus Act that

allowed limited numbers of smaller

signs for travel and tourist messages.

But many of these larger, taller steel

billboards were clearly erected well

after both 1959 and 1972; so how did

they obtain permits?

Sadly, WisDOT has often accepted

whatever claims and substantiation on

the permit application regarding the

current zoning as well as the zoning as

of 1959. A combination of factors

over the years, including political

pressure, lack of resources to fully

check all the details and the like have

allowed many billboards in areas that

were specifically prohibited by both

the Bonus Act and the HBA.

CSW is raising these questions as best

we can with the resources available. If

you can help with research, or make a

donation, or both, it will help us fight

billboard blight!

Executive Director

Charley Weeth 122 17th St S La Crosse, WI 54601

Voice 608-784-3212 FAX 608-782-2822 charley@scenicwisconsin.org www.scenicwisconsin.org

President

Vernie Smith, Viroqua

Vice President

Ed Kleckner, Menasha

Secretary

Barb Thomas, Menomonie

Treasurer

Charles Clemence, La Crosse

Directors

Paul Fowler, Oshkosh Lowell Klessig, Amherst Junction Shirley Brabender Mattox, Oshkosh Chuck Mitchell, Wauwatosa Your Name Here, Dairy State

Legislative Advisor

Gary R Goyke, Madison

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