The Central Planning Authority has granted planning permission to DMS Organisation to erect three large digital signs at the Grand Harbour roundabout, despite the National Roads Authority and the Planning Department raising concerns that the signs could distract drivers.
In a written objection to the application, which was heard and granted on Wednesday, 31 August, the National Roads Authority stated it also did not wish to see a precedence for digital advertising being set on any roundabout.
“Not only will it be a distraction to motorists, but it also could lead to commercial ventures in the future, something that the NRA does not endorse,” the objection read.
The Planning Department stated that the position of the signs could pose a safety hazard for motorists joining the roundabout as the signs would be positioned to face three intersections of the roundabout.
The department also said in its analysis of the planning application that according to the draft CPA Sign Guidelines, billboards or other off site signage and digital boards will not be permitted.
DMS has been granted permission to erect three concrete signs, 18 feet wide and 8 feet high at its highest point, within each one of which 6 feet, 8 inch by 5 feet video screens would be placed and an illuminated DMS logo would be placed beside the video screen, according to the planning application.
The Central Planning Authority has generally not permitted signs greater than 32 square feet. The signs at the roundabout at Grand Harbour, including the concrete wall on which the digital screens are situated, would be 144 square feet.
Krista Pell, vice president of DMS Organisation, said the digital signs would be static and would serve as “community service boards”. She said they would not be used for commercial advertising.
“For example, Hazard Management would be using them, and community groups who want to get their public messages out. They’ll basically be for any public service need that is required in the Cayman Islands,” she said.
She said the signs could also be used by the National Road Authority to inform drivers of road closures or flooding or other traffic matters.
“The signs will have static images, they won’t move, it’s not something flashing,” she added. Ms Pell said the digital signs would be an opportunity to replace non-permanent signage that get erected on roundabout.
Last year, the Central Planning Authority refused an application from Robert Baraud, owner of High Impact Digital Billboards, to erect a trailer-mounted digital display sign in the Tiki Beach car park on West Bay Road. The grounds the authority gave for refusing the application was that it would distract drivers on the busy road, especially in the evening when it would be illuminated.
Mr. Baraud questioned why his application for a 9 feet by 5 feet LED screen on a 12 foot long trailer had been turned down and DMS’s application had been given the go ahead. “Why would the CPA give permission for this, but not for mine?” he said.
DMS is currently doing the groundwork to landscape the roundabout, and the signs are likely to be erected within the next two months, Ms Pell said.
According to the National Roads Authority, the contract between DMS and the government for the sponsorship of the roundabout stipulates that it is “allows up to four small/low sponsor signs indicating the sponsoring entity at each leg of the roundabout”.
Edward Howard, deputy managing director of the National Roads Authority, told the Caymanian Compass on Friday, “We at NRA think that well maintained landscaping should be first priority providing it does not interfere with vehicle safety and/or impede traffic flow. We allow small indiscrete signage, as seen at the other roundabouts, that showcase the name of the corporate sponsor, e.g. Butterfield, CNB, Century21, etc.
“What we don’t want to see is sponsors now using the roundabouts to sell advertisement space via the use of electronic signs or billboards. A roundabout is a traffic intersection first and foremost,” he said.
He said since the roundabout is part of the public road network, it is neither a private nor Crown land parcel and, as such, the decision on any contract between the government and a private entity to landscape and maintain a roundabout falls ultimately to Cabinet and the ministry that oversees roads, the Ministry of District Administration, Works, Lands and Agriculture.
A local resident at the By The Sea condo complex on South Sound Road also objected to the signage planning application, on safety grounds. “We believe that placing signs of this kind on any roundabout presents very serious safety concerns. Drivers entering the roundabout will read these signs instead of concentrating on the other traffic on the roundabout,” the objector said.
Describing the roundabout as a “traffic black-spot because of the speed of traffic and the slip road off Shamrock Road onto South Sound Road”, the objector said there have been many accidents caused by drivers exiting the roundabout for South Sound Road and colliding with drivers using the slip road inappropriately.
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The only thing they need to put on there is roundabout instructions. Lets start with YOU GIVE WAY TO THE RIGHT!
This is ridiculous – these signs are going to distract people who are sending BBMs and updating their Facebook status, these people have enough to do, what with driving as well!
You are spot on…but your comment lacks impact. Give way to the right you stupid idiot! Just because you can pull out in front of a car doing 30-40 mph on a roundabout already doesn’t mean you should. If a car slams into your broadside when you merge on to a roundabout it likely means you didn’t yield.
And now for something completely different….The Police Department could pay for all their new cars within a few weeks or perhaps by Christmas if they gave tickets to offenders on roundabouts and merge lanes! Do these drivers get their licenses from a cereal box or take a real test?
Before I forget….NO to the signs on the roundabout….Plants, shrubs and a few green iguanas to run out in front of you will be fine thanks.
I am not sure instructions on how to use a roundabout would help because
DMS is one of the few good corporate citizens out there who for example seem to care about the development of Caymanians but I have to disagree with this proposal for the improvement of a roundabout. I agree with the NRA on this. Apart from being a potential distraction it must block views across the roundabout so you are likely to get far less visual warning if the traffic is backed up just around the corner or, as I experienced not too long ago, one of our wonderful visitors to the Island inadvertently goes right instead of left around the roundabout. These roundabouts should not be billboard parks, they are supposed to be efficient traffic management tools. Lets keep them that way.
What I mean’t to say is that instructions on how to use a roundabout might cause a pile up as people try read the rules of the road….something they didn’t even read for their driving test and somehow still managed to pass. Perhaps those little purple cards that people swipe at Hurley’s got then enough bonus points for a license.
I aman ex-pat who chooses tio live here. One of the most attractive parts of this island, as I make my way to work, is the site of the lovely round abouts. Including the new additions to the Island Heritage round aout, the tropical paradise here thrills me.
That said, I am heartbroken that the very busy Grand Harbour site will become a commercial ugly abomination that reminds me why I chose to LEAVE USA !!!!!
PLEASE JUST MAKE IT PRETTY, NOT AN ADVERTISEMENT.
Wayne, thanks for your constructive feedback. We have carefully addressed the concerns you raised as I hope you would agree when you see the final project.
The DMS roundabout is purely a community service initiative that will provide a tremendous service to our community organizations. I think we will all be proud of the completed project and our community will find it invaluable. Like you, we seek to solve problems in our community, not create them and would ask all to have confidence in the integrity of DMS and the Planning process to reserve judgment until the project can finally be visualized.
We share your passion for making Cayman a better place and look forward to working with you on various initiatives that enhance our community for all.