Southeast : OUTFIELD ADVERTISING

Questions over who should be allowed to rent advertising at baseball diamonds in Downey could spell an end to the traditional fund-raiser at two city high schools.

Although the poster-size ads muster about $6,000 annually for sports programs at Warren and Downey high schools, school board members are considering banning them to satisfy residents and solve a dilemma over what constitutes legitimate advertising.

The debate began last fall when one resident wanted to rent enough billboards at $400 apiece to list all the biblical Ten Commandments. Discussions soon focused on whether local merchants were being honest on existing boards, said Downey schools Supt. Edward Sussman.

The dialogue widened further, he said, when neighbors around Warren High School voiced concern that the billboards, visible from busy Paramount Boulevard, were an eyesore.

“We’re not sure what to do,” Sussman said, adding that he expects the school board to decide on a new advertising policy during the summer. “We just may take them down.”