Florida Department of Transportation Office of Right of Way Dir John Garner last week said that he will issue AmericanAirlines Arena “a notice of violation” for the LED mesh sign outside the facility that displays ads, according to Andres Viglucci of the MIAMI HERALD. Garner said that because the ads display products and services not sold on site, the sign “violates state and federal regulations.” A Heat attorney said that the team “would likely contest the violation.” The high-tech sign “has become ‘Exhibit AAA’ in a simmering battle over the recent proliferation of billboards, electronic ads and commercial banners in and around downtown Miami.” Like the arena sign, many of them “appear to violate state, federal or Miami-Dade County rules governing outdoor advertising.” Viglucci noted the AmericanAirlines Arena sign “was OK’d by the city of Miami and the county, which owns the facility, although the state’s decision may now trump both.” The Federal Highway Beautification Act of 1965 “allows businesses to put up signs displaying their names and goods and services they sell on site.” Signs advertising goods and services “not provided on site -- billboards -- require a permit from FDOT, which enforces the federal rules under a 1972 compact with the U.S. government.” But Garner said that the AmericanAirlines Arena mesh “exceeds the maximum allowable size of 1,200 square feet, and thus does not qualify for such a permit.” Garner said that it “doesn’t mean the sign is likely to come down,” adding that the “simplest solution … is for the Heat to stop displaying ads for goods and services unavailable at the arena” (MIAMI HERALD, 7/4).
