In St. Paul, city officials are being asked to make a flashy, 5,000-square-foot trade-off, one that would be written in large digital letters across the capital city’s sky and visible to thousands of interstate drivers daily.

A billboard company is asking the city for permission to install a “dynamic display” — a digital billboard 14 feet tall by 48 feet wide — overlooking the westbound lanes of Interstate 94 at Minnesota 280.

In exchange, St. Paul — which has taken pains to regulate billboards and eliminate them wherever possible — would make sizable progress in that regard when OutFront Media removes as many as 30 static billboards of varying sizes elsewhere in the city. Switching out multiple standard billboards in exchange for a single digital display is allowed under a process spelled out by the city’s sign code.

The removal of billboards that had avoided city regulation through grandfathering rights would be a major coup for anti-billboard advocates. But Vegas-style advertising greeting westbound drivers along I-94? The prospect has pit billboard detractor against billboard detractor.

OutFront Media’s billboard proposal won the unanimous approval of the St. Paul Planning Commission on Dec. 20 but now faces an appeal from Chelmsford Street resident Keith Hovland, who worked closely with Scenic St. Paul. An appeal hearing before the city council has yet to be scheduled but could take place by the end of the month.

“We’re spending huge amounts of taxpayer money and law enforcement efforts to reduce texting while driving, but yet we’re encouraging distracted driving by putting a dynamic billboard at this intersection,” said Hovland, who lives roughly a mile from the site. “To me, it’s mainly a safety concern. It’s a dangerous intersection already, and to add one more distraction on the intersection, I just don’t think is prudent.”

In his appeal, Hovland pointed to a growing body of research that indicates seniors and particularly young drivers are the most likely to be distracted by variable message signs, and even experienced drivers may be susceptible as road conditions deteriorate due to weather, traffic or road design.

Kathryn Murray, executive director of the St. Anthony Park Community Council, said her organization submitted a letter of support for Hovland’s appeal. “We’re looking at it as a safety and an equity issue,” Murray said. “They’re proposing … rotating it so it’s no longer pointing at the homeowners most likely to complain, and turning it toward rental units. That seems like an issue that should be considered when looking to approve it.

“I think there’s significant research out there that shows it’s not good for the environment and not good for traffic safety,” Murray added. “We’re opposed to it.”

A media representative from OutFront Media’s New York offices said Thursday she would seek an official comment.

In their 19-page application to the city, company officials noted that the nearest residential apartment building is nearly 1,100 feet from the sign and protected from its illumination by a warehouse that sits in between. They also pointed out they are in keeping with state law, which allows digital signs to change their face as quickly as every six seconds.

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Mural workshop, events at Victoria Theater Arts Center in St. Paul’s Frogtown this weekend and next The new billboard would replace an existing one, which is also brightly lit. On Dec. 20, the Planning Commission granted OutFront Media’s application for a variance to alter the billboard angle, a decision that was supported by city staff. Planning Commission Chair Betsy Reveal said she was sympathetic to community concerns about the existing conditions at the busy intersection but saw no evidence the billboard would have a serious safety impact.

“The variance will not created a hazard,” reads the application. “The digital dynamic sign is replacing an existing illuminated sign face.”