City Plans for Advertising

For quite some time now, Pittsburgh City has been considering the possibility of selling advertising space in its parks, on various vending machines, vehicles, trash receptacles, and a whole lot more. And, while it has been something that has been considered for quite a while, it may actually happen within the next few months. The mayor, Luke Ravensthal, and his office believe that if they offer this type of advertising, they will be able to earn a whole lot of revenue for the city, while still complying with the set zoning requirements. The assistant finance director, Cathy Qureshi, even says that this money that could exist and the city would happy to be able to receive it.

For a few years, the city was considering a specific idea, working with Active Network Incorporation. In fact, the city has been thinking about this since the start of the recession, back in 2007. And, the councilman, Bill Peduto, set up a committee that would be discussing the issue to figure out if it was the right move or not. As of right now, the city is making adjustments s needed before sending out the bills. Most likely, this legislation will be shown to council members sometime before June, most likely during the month of May.

Officials are hoping to be able to start the program at the beginning of the summer. With the new program, the city would have the possibility to earn $500,000 in revenue from advertising alone. It is unsure how much money could be earned from this on a long-term basis. Peduto says that this form of advertising has the potential to help the city earn up to $2 million each year. Peduto also admits that he is more in favor of certain types of advertising, which would include logos on sanitation workers and advertisements on some vehicles. He says that he is, however, opposed to some of the types of advertising. He believes that the advertisements should be limited and should never be too gaudy or all over the place.

Qureshi says that there are a number of possibilities that can take place, which may include advertisements being added at parks or before the movies that are often shown at the parks during the summer as a free source of entertainment for communities. Advertisements may also be placed in elevators, restrooms, and on different vending machines. Of course, certain advertisements could not be displayed. Any advertisement that has to do with politics, religion, tobacco, violence, or pornography will not be used around the city. It is important for the city to keep the content clean, especially since these are advertisements that children and young adults will see on a daily basis.

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