One corner of downtown Vancouver could get a whole lot brighter if a signage proposal by the building’s owner is approved.
Bonnis Properties, owners of the building at Robson and Granville that is home to Winners and Best Buy, has applied to the city to replace the two existing video screens on the corner with larger ones.
If approved, the two smaller screens mounted outside the third floor of the building would be removed and replaced by two, new larger screens mounted between the second and third floors. The new screens will measure 9.2 m x 6.1 m each, about double the size of the old ones.
The new signs will be equipped to automatically adjust brightness levels during daylight hours, and will primarily run advertising content, although 10 per cent of the air time will be allocated to showcase video art and community and emergency announcements from the City of Vancouver.
A community open house will be held from 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 28, 2017 at 872 Granville Street, with the applicant team and city staff available to answer questions.
Electronic signage proposals can be surprisingly controversial in Vancouver, even downtown. In 2012, residents in the TV Towers buildings at Robson and Cambie rallied over light pollution from a large electronic sign installed at BC Place.
The 1,500 square feet sign was installed as part of renovations to BC Place and was not subject to Vancouver’s sign bylaws as the stadium is owned and operated by PavCo, a crown corporation of the provincial government.
After neighbours deluged the city with complaints, a compromise was reached to turn the sign off completely overnight, and dim it during early evening hours.
