In hopes of sealing the $477M arena deal with the NBA Kings, Sacramento officials are “rewriting their sign ordinance to allow the team to build six new digital boards alongside freeways without eliminating any old billboards,” according to Tony Bizjak of the SACRAMENTO BEE. The billboard arrangement is “part of the 2,000-plus pages of arena agreements and associated documents negotiated over the past year between the city and the Kings.” The “legal carve-out allows the Kings to offer team sponsors prime advertising space in front of hundreds of thousands of eyes daily on freeways throughout the city.” Kings officials said they “plan to package the billboard space with TV, radio, arena signage, and community promotions for team sponsors.” Kings President Chris Granger said, “We think (billboards) are great for our partners.” Granger added that the team “does not need billboard revenues to help it finance its portion of the arena construction costs.” But he added that the signs “will help the team promote arena events and downtown in general, including festivals and farmers markets in the plaza adjacent to the arena.” Bizjak notes there “currently are six digital billboards along freeways in city limits.” But the Kings “could double that number.” The Kings have “announced no time frame for building signs.” However, the digital-signboard provisions “have been among the most controversial aspects of the downtown arena deal” (SACRAMENTO BEE, 5/15).
