Billboards Clutter L.A. Landscape

Re “Still Too Many Billboards,” editorial, May 2: As a business owner and resident of the Valley, I’ve often wondered why areas of my city--Los Angeles--are so cluttered in appearance compared to places like Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, Valencia and Westlake. It’s the proliferation of billboards of every size and shape everywhere. I consider them visual pollutants.

This latest proposal to suggest removing some smaller boards around the city in exchange for permits to erect super-gigantic billboards along the freeways will bring visual pollution to new heights. I hope Councilman Hal Bernson and the other City Council members will open their eyes as they drive home and see why L.A. has a cluttered appearance.

Bruce Spiegel

North Hollywood

I can’t understand the difficulty in finding out how many illegal billboards there are in the city. Simply ask the billboard industry for a complete inventory along with certification of their permits and compliance with all existing codes. All of those found to be un-permitted or not in compliance should simply be removed at the industry’s expense and a fine levied equal to the amount of revenue received from each of those noncompliant billboards over its lifetime.

Tom Roberts

Beverly Hills