Saying it wishes to protect the Interstate 575 scenic corridor, the Woodstock City Council has imposed a 90-day moratorium on new applications for billboards to give itself time to update the city sign ordinance.
Council members emerged from executive session toward the end of their Sept. 26 meeting, voted to add the billboard issue to the agenda, and then, without comment, voted to approve an emergency ordinance enacting the moratorium.
“An emergency exists as to the lack of concise controls over the regulation of billboard signs,” the ordinance says.
It acknowledges the First Amendment and private property rights of people seeking to erect billboards and outdoor signs, but says the city seeks to balance those rights “with the scenic beauty, natural resources, livability and economic potential of the City of Woodstock and this vital (I-575) corridor.”
The moratorium runs through Dec. 23. During this time, the ordinance directs staff “to review the City’s Billboard Sign Standards and propose appropriate revisions.”
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