Two Denver-area billboards lead to years of litigation and legislation
Two electronic billboards at the intersection of I-25 and U.S. 36 have spurred a change to state rules and been the issue of 4 lawful circumstances, the most current of which was filed two weeks in the past.
The litigious saga, which dates back again a number of years, pits the Loveland-centered billboard firm StreetMediaGroup in opposition to the Colorado Office of Transportation. The condition agency has fared far much better than the corporation in their courtroom skirmishes.
The patch of pavement northwest of wherever I-25 satisfies U.S. 36 has a road handle of 7300 Broadway and plays residence to Podium Karting and a Mastercraft boat seller. In 2015, the property’s owner designed two billboards, 1 struggling with I-25 and 1 going through U.S. 36.
The following January, CDOT identified permits would be essential if the billboards were heading to consist of ads for solutions that are not bought at 7300 Broadway. So, a subsidiary of StreetMedia applied. CDOT then denied that application, getting the two billboards would be distractingly close to on-ramps. From that just one decision has flowed a cascade of lawsuits.
StreetMedia initial appealed to an administrative regulation choose in 2019 and 3 many years later on, in September 2022, he advised that CDOT approve the permits.
In 2020, when that circumstance was continue to pending, StreetMedia submitted a federal lawsuit accusing CDOT of violating its 1st Modification legal rights to free speech by denying the billboard permits. The lawsuit alleged that CDOT cherrypicks which billboards to ban dependent on what the symptoms say.
The following year, when the two of these instances were pending, CDOT urged the Colorado Standard Assembly to tweak the state’s billboard legal guidelines to be certain that the content on billboards plays no job in regardless of whether a permit is granted. A CDOT legislative liaison reported the tweaks were being vital due to the StreetMedia situation. The bill was speedily passed and signed into legislation in 2021.
The StreetMedia billboard at 7300 Broadway is witnessed from Interstate 25. (StreetMedia)
Mainly because the legislation was changed, the choose in the federal case, U.S. District Choose Brooke Jackson, decided in December 2021 that CDOT’s permitting course of action was constitutional. StreetMedia has appealed that selection to the 10th Circuit Court docket of Appeals.
20-3 times following Jackson’s ruling, StreetMedia also sued CDOT in Denver District Court docket. It alleged that new rules CDOT wrote soon after the 2021 legislation improve are unenforceably obscure. Very last thirty day period, Choose Bruce Jones sided with CDOT and dismissed the situation.
Twenty-three days just after Jones did so, StreetMedia sued CDOT nonetheless all over again. It is now inquiring Denver District Courtroom Judge Sarah Wallace to decide that CDOT’s permit denials at 7300 Broadway were being unconstitutionally arbitrary and drive CDOT to grant it the permits, as the administrative legislation judge decided that CDOT need to do previous yr.
CDOT spokesman Matt Inzeo declined to comment on the lawsuit and StreetMedia.
StreetMedia’s lawyers are Craig Joyce, Todd Messenger and Amanda Jokerst with Fairfield and Woods in Denver, along with David Payne from Payne and Powell in Fort Collins. As a result of all those lawyers, StreetMedia declined to explore its protracted authorized fight versus CDOT.
In an unrelated scenario, StreetMedia sued the Adams County Fee and that county’s financial progress director in May possibly 2021, alleging county regulations on billboards there are unconstitutional limitations on no cost speech and vague. StreetMedia missing the scenario March 30 when a federal judge found the restrictions are constitutional and not vague.
StreetMedia operates seven billboards in the metro location, all on the northside, and 30 whole along the Entrance Variety, in accordance to its web site. It also performs in Nebraska and Arizona.