LTC 57-2002
. - ..,i.. .._~.... ,I"
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
Office of the City Manager
Letter to Commission No. 5 f -~~ ~
m
To:
From:
Mayor David Dermer and Members of the City Commission
Jorge M. Gonzalez d __r'
City Manager ~r 7J
Advertising on Pay Te hones
Date: March 6, 2002
Subject:
On October 17, 2001 the City Commission directed the Administration to develop criteria for
advertising on pay telephones and to have such criteria reviewed by the Design Review Board and
the Historic Preservation Board. In terms of addressing the criteria for advertising on pay
telephones, the Administration has put together the following language for a proposed amendment
to the sign age section of the City Code:
Advertising on Pay Telephones:
General Advertising on pay telephones shall only be permitted within commercial or industrial zoning
districts and shall be limited to non-illuminated advertising located within the confines of the phone
enclosure; no advertising shall be permitted on the exterior surfaces of the enclosure or structural
supports. Illuminated signs shall be prohibited, General advertising signs on pay phones shall not
be permitted in single family and multi-family residential districts, or properties designated
Recreation and Open Space,
Such criteria must next be referred to and reviewed by the Planning Board as a formal Amendment
to the Land Development Regulations of the City Code. The Administration continues to have
concerns with the advertising concept proposed by First American Telecommunications, as it has
the strong potential to negatively impact the low scale, high quality, architectural character of the
City's world renowned local historic districts and historic architecture.
In light of the fact that pay telephone revenues are declining, the proposal to install advertisements
is tantamount to the creation of mini-billboards, merely to offset the economic losses this industry
is experiencing. The administration is very concemed with the proliferation of general advertising
throughout the City, both from an urban design and enforcement standpoint.
Furthermore, the City is in the process of appealing the recent court rulings on the current City of
Miami Beach pay telephone regulations. It is suggested that no formal amendment to the
regulations be adopted by the City until such time as the appeal process is concluded. At a previous
public hearing, the Planning Board also recommended that any decision or policy on the subject of
advertising on pay telephones be deferred until all litigation associated with pay telephones has
been resolved.
The Planning Department distributed booklets prepared by First American Telecommunications to
the Design Review and Historic Preservation Boards; such booklets contained diagrams and
drawings illustrating the proposed advertising concept for pay telephones. These booklets, as well
as the proposed criteria developed by the Administration, were presented to the Historic
Preservation Board on January 8,2002 and to the Design Review Board on January 15, 2002.
..... ~-~>,,"
Page: 2
Date: March 6, 2002
LTC - Advertising on Pay Telephones
The Historic Preservation Board expressed concems with the design and size of the telephone kiosk
proposed by First American. Specifically, the Board recommended that the size of the kiosk be
designed in a manner that addresses the unique urban fabric of Miami Beach and further suggested
that the size of the structure, as well as any illumination, be limited. The Historic Preservation Board
also expressed concern relative to the proliferation of advertising kiosks. However, the Historic
Preservation Board did not reject the concept of locating the advertising on the outside of the
enclosure.
The Design Review Board expressed similar concems relative to the overall scale and design of the
proposed kiosks, again recommending that the structures be designed in a manner that addresses
the unique urban fabric of Miami Beach, and that the size of the structures be reduced and made
less overwhelming. The DRB also had concerns with the type and size of advertising proposed for
the kiosks; specifically there was a concern with ads that incorporate too much text. It was
suggested that the ads be more of a graphic nature with a significant limitation on the amount of
text. Similar to the Historic Preservation Board, the Design Review Board did not reject the concept
of locating the advertising on the outside of the enclosure. Finally, the Board recommended that
any such advertising be limited to commercial zoning districts only and not permitted in residential
areas.
JMG:&c:.&RM
F:\PLAN\$ALLlCM_RESPlPAYPHONE-ADS.LTC.DOC
c: Christina Cuervo, Assistant City Manager
Bob Parcher, City Clerk
Murry Dubbin, City Attorney
Gary Held, Assistant City Attorney
Jorge G. Gomez, Planning Director
Thomas R. Mooney, Design and Preservation Manager