Officials slam proposed ads on Strip pedestrian bridges

By Conor Shine

Tuesday, March 3, 2015 | 5:15 p.m.

The Las Vegas Strip is already saturated with advertisements, so what harm could be done by adding a few more to the pedestrian bridges that span the boulevard?

A lot, according to several Clark County officials who spoke out today against a bill in the Legislature that would allow advertisements on the publicly owned Strip structures.

Senate Bill 199 was introduced on Monday and would allow for advertisements on the pedestrian bridges and their accompanying elevators and escalators, similar to advertisements already on bus stops and monorail stations.

But county officials noted several problems with the proposal.

Public Works Director Denis Cederburg warned that stop lights at street level could blend in with the ads on the bridges, posing a safety hazard for motorists. Drivers distracted by the ads could also slow down traffic flow and create safety problems, he said.

Metro Police Capt. Devin Ballard said his agency is concerned that advertising wraps on the glass barriers on the bridges could obstruct officers' views from street level.

"That, of course, for us would be a huge officer safety and public safety issue to have those blocked," Ballard said. "(Now) you can see anybody sitting, standing (on the bridge).Those panels being covered up would keep us from being able to see that from street level."

A final challenge is that several of the bridge landings stretch onto private property, and the county's deals with the land-owning casinos don't allow for advertisements on those parts of the structures.

Sean Higgins, a lobbyist advocating for the bill, pointed out that the Senate bill would only authorize the advertisements and that the county commission would have final say on what types of signage were allowed.

Higgins added that there are advertisements that stretch over the roadways in several places, including at a monorail station spanning Desert Inn Road and at the entrance to Mandalay Bay.

Higgins said his client was willing to leave the bridges out of any future advertising plans and focus only on the accompanying elevators and escalators if that's what commissioners wanted.

"We've agreed already if the bridges are taboo and there's a safety issue, we'll just walk away from those now," he said.

But Higgins' proposed compromise wasn't enough for the majority of county commissioners who requested that staff not support the bill at the Legislature. The bill has been referred to the senate transportation committee, but a hearing has not been set.

Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani said she didn't approve of public structures being used for private advertisements, even if the bridges weren't included in the plan.

"It creates a bigger problem for us that the money won't resolve," Giunchigliani said. "It's whether or not advertising should be in our public right of way."