 | | | Design proposal by AdArt provided | | | | | | The Town Council recently selected a new electronic sign to replace the old community message board on Moraga Road across from the Commons Park. Hopeful that the new high-tech board could be in use this summer, council members were disappointed to hear that they should expect it for the summer of 2015. Design review and electrical work are likely to add months to the process.
The message board the council chose, proposed by Ad Art, will be the same size as the current one - but any similarities end there. Town staff must manually change the letters, one by one, on each side of the old sign; messages will be sent to the new sign electronically, within seconds, and will change at time intervals determined by staff.
"If there is an emergency, your police department will be able to immediately display information for residents," said the Ad Art representative. "The sign can hold more messages than you will ever need, and you will define the time each message will be displayed."
The next step is for staff to bring the proposed sign to the Design Review Board for approval. The board will have to determine if the electronic display complies with the town's new sign ordinance.
But first, that new sign ordinance must be approved.
If the message board is found compliant, staff will create a usage policy and the Town Council will approve the purchase. It will take two or three months for PG&E to provide the town with the necessary electric resources.
The sign is priced at approximately $60,000. The source of funding is a non-restricted Comcast grant the town has not spent yet.
The cost to community groups to display a message for a week is currently $60. Moraga Valley Kiwanis member Barry Behr told the council he was hoping the cost would remain the same.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA