Rolling signs banned near residences

Mobile billboards will have to stay away from residential neighborhoods under a new ordinance adopted by the Las Vegas City Council on Wednesday.

The new law bars parking a mobile billboard within 500 feet of apartments, condominiums and single-family homes. It is scheduled to take effect Sunday.

It's targeted at the rolling signs advertising the delights of Sin City that are frequently seen cruising Las Vegas Boulevard from Fremont Street to the south Strip.

It does not apply to taxis or to vehicles belonging to a business, as long as the sign on the vehicle advertises only that business.

Mayor Pro Tem Gary Reese proposed the ordinance after hearing complaints of an escort service billboard driving around a residential neighborhood.

City officials also have voiced concern about mobile signs being parked in parking lots, making them effectively unlicensed stationary billboards. That problem, though, is addressed in existing ordinances.

The trucks also shouldn't be parked in residential areas when not in use, Reese said.

The ordinance has the support of one mobile billboard company, Big Traffic Mobile Boards. Owner Marla Letizia said the industry needs more regulation so that it doesn't negatively affect non-commercial areas.

Her company was the only one to respond to the city's request for comment on the ordinance.