Middletown Ohio


Find us on
 Google+ and Facebook


 

Home | Yearly News Archive | Advertisers | Blog | Contact Us
Thursday, March 28, 2024
FORUM CITY SCHOOLS COMMUNITY
  New Posts New Posts RSS Feed - Sign, Sign, Anywhere an (Atrium Hospital) Sign???
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Events   Register Register  Login Login

Sign, Sign, Anywhere an (Atrium Hospital) Sign???

 Post Reply Post Reply
Author
Analytical View Drop Down
MUSA Citizen
MUSA Citizen


Joined: Nov 19 2015
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 562
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Analytical Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Sign, Sign, Anywhere an (Atrium Hospital) Sign???
    Posted: Aug 01 2018 at 2:20pm
It's not clear if Middletown will comply with ODOT's
17-month-old order to remove a highway sign


The Ohio Department of Transportation has issued a removal order against the city of Middletown and Premier Health/Atrium Medical Center to remove the electronic sign near the interchange of Interstate 75 and Ohio 122. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF Photo: NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

5 hours ago
By 

MIDDLETOWN — 

It’s been more than 17 months since the Ohio Department of Transportation issued an order to the city of Middletown to remove the electronic message sign near the Interstate 75/Ohio 123 interchange.

And it’s not clear if the city will comply with the order issued on Feb. 16, 2017.

The electronic sign, that also bears Middletown’s logo, has been in operation since August 2016 and is located on property off Commerce Drive now owned by Atrium Medical Center. Previously, the property was the location of the former Score and Cronin Motors auto dealerships and other companies until the hospital bought it for nearly $2.6 million on Aug. 23, 2016, according to Warren County property records.

Atrium Medical Center said it is deferring any response or comments to the city, said Chelsey Levingston, Atrium Medical Center spokeswoman.

“The city of Middletown and Premier/Atrium Medical Center are working together with ODOT to alleviate any concerns regarding the digital sign near I-75,” said Shelby Quinlivan, city spokeswoman. City officials did not respond to a list of questions concerning the issue that were submitted by the Journal-News.

Middletown to participate in I-75 electronic billboard project

In December 2015, Middletown City Council approved an emergency ordinance for a development agreement with Commerce Center LLC, the property owner at the time, and Atrium Medical Center. The city contributed $75,000 for the project. At that time, Atrium Medical Center was in the process of purchasing the property and planned to demolish the old buildings on the site.

The original proposal was for Premier Health, the parent organization of Atrium Medical Center, to upgrade an old highway billboard for Cronin Motors to a refurbished high-definition electronic format for use by the hospital, which is located about a quarter-mile east of I-75, according to city officials at the time. Premier would pay about $400,000 to refurbish the sign for the hospital, or other Atrium health care advertising, and the city would be entitled to use about 5 percent — about one hour a day — to promote various city events.

However, any signage near an interstate comes under state regulations and required a state permit from ODOT. Two people in the sign business complained to ODOT in 2016 about the sign.

Nathan Fling, ODOT’s advertising device control supervisor, said there are interstate spacing rules and signs are permitted for “on-premises” businesses, or where the business is actually located. He said while Atrium owns the property where the sign is located, their operations are not located on that property.

Fling said ODOT and the city had exchanged correspondence in 2016 and 2017. However, there has not been a face-to-face meeting as requested by City Manager Doug Adkins in his response on March 9 to the removal order issued Feb. 16, 2017, by ODOT Director Jerry Wray. The city did not receive the removal order until Feb. 24, 2017.

“Removal notices are issued by ODOT for illegal signs, according to statute,” said Matt Bruning, ODOT press secretary. “Some situations are resolved right away while others take more time to resolve. We believe that all parties involved in this situation want to find a solution and we’re continuing to work in good faith toward that goal.”

Bruning said the last time the city corresponded with ODOT on the matter was in early summer. He said if a resolution cannot be reached among the parties, ODOT would involve the Ohio Attorney General’s Office to address the matter, and possible court action.

Middletown posting digital messages for the world

According to city records, ODOT notified the city in a Nov. 29, 2016, letter that the illegal sign was being maintained without a valid ODOT permit and is a violation of the Ohio Revised Code. It also was not eligible for such a permit, according to the Ohio Administrative Code.

The notice also said advertising devices adjacent to interstate highways were not permitted 500 feet of an interchange and that it must be located inside the municipal boundaries as they existed on Sept. 21, 1959. The city of Middletown did not annex that land until the 1990s. Before the annexation, it was under Warren County and Franklin Twp. control.

The notice gave the city 30 days of receipt of the letter, which was on Dec. 2, 2016, to voluntarily remove the sign. If not, removal order would be issued and fines of $100 a day would be imposed. Fling said fines are capped at $5,000.

Joe Vogel, a sign owner, was one of the people who complained to ODOT about the sign in Middletown in 2016. He told the Journal-News he noticed the sign last Saturday as he was traveling on I-75. He said he was concerned about the $75,000 of taxpayer money going toward an illegal billboard.

“If it were anyone else, they would be in front of the AGs (Attorney General’s) office to resolve the issue,” Vogel said.

Back to Top
VietVet View Drop Down
MUSA Council
MUSA Council
Avatar

Joined: May 15 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 7008
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Aug 02 2018 at 8:01am
I understand that Mr. Vogel is upset about this as it cuts into his sign business and Atrium and the city are not following the rules as written. He is losing revenue here as Atrium and the city are not using his signage boards to advertise and circumventing the laws in doing so. They are clearly out of compliance with the current rules according to this article.

Conversely, I don't see where these signs are hurting anything with regard to infringing on interstate highway travel at all. I also don't think they represent anymore of a distraction to travelers than the regular standard billboards along the highway. The signs are on Atrium's' property albeit not directly on their operating portion. Is that really important that it should be? The standard billboard advertising is not on the business property either but rather on property either owned by the billboard company or rented from private property owners by the billboard company.

The law here seems to me to be more of a misguided nuisance than anything else and, based on the information in this article, should be changed to reflect the current situation regarding this new style of advertising versus the standard billboard method. The issue for Mr. Vogel and ODOT may be that digital advertising has an advantage over the old style and they're using the current law to make digital go away.

If you go further south there is Traders World and the Solid Rock Church and their signs by the highway. Should Mr. Vogel or ODOT have an issue with them? Don't we have other digital messaging signs as one drives south to Cincy as well? Not sure.

It is time to look beyond the conventional means to advertise now and have the laws reflect new ideas. The current law seems to me to be on the "nitpicky" side of things making the situation much more complicated than it should be. JMO
I'm so proud of my hometown and what it has become. Recall 'em all. Let's start over.
Back to Top
Mike_Presta View Drop Down
MUSA Council
MUSA Council
Avatar

Joined: Apr 20 2008
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 3483
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Mike_Presta Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Aug 02 2018 at 1:44pm
You're overlooking the hypocrisy involved here, Vet.

The folks at City Hall are abhorrent of nasty billboard advertising and outlawed such signs within our fair city a few years back!!!  (Only then-existing signs were grandfathered in and allowed to remain.)

Of course the City used the first billboards north and south of our city limits on I-75 to advertise Weatherwax Golf Course (before its sale), and now this so they obviously believe in their effectiveness.  They just don't want anyone else to use them in our "business friendly" town. 
“Mulligan said he ... doesn’t believe they necessarily make the return on investment necessary to keep funding them.” …The Middletown Journal, January 30, 2012
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply
  Share Topic   

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down



This page was generated in 0.070 seconds.
Copyright ©2024 MiddletownUSA.com    Privacy Statement  |   Terms of Use  |   Site by Xponex Media  |   Advertising Information