Belle Isle Billboards?

**MSUguy** · April-11-12, 10:12 PM

http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2012/04/flashing-and-excessive-homeland-security-wants-to-wreck-the-view-of-belle-isle-with-billboards.php#more

Really?

**Gannon** · April-11-12, 10:46 PM

Oh hell no.

I will personally copy every pertinent page of the Anarchist's Cookbook and distribute them to future pyrotechnists to insure these do not remain if they are built.

OMG...few things make my blood boil like this proposal...

**Gannon** · April-11-12, 10:48 PM

I am aware that this will not read well into the transcript...

**Novine** · April-12-12, 05:56 AM

Reading the Freep article about this, I can't believe that they can actually justify these with a straight face. What an incredible waste of money and a blight on a city that doesn't need any more blight.

**Pam** · April-12-12, 06:15 AM

Wow, tacky. This part might be of interest to Gannon:

The public hearing is April 24th at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center starting at 9:00 am. It's case 83-10, in case you need something to write on your protest sign.

**ferndalien** · April-12-12, 07:52 AM

Why would two identical signs be needed at the same location for emergency communications? Nonsensical.

I'm guessing just a cover story for the new communications beacon for the scissor-lift truck at ItsJeff's bench...

**canuck** · April-12-12, 08:00 AM

This would real funny if it werent saddam sad.

**Jimaz** · April-12-12, 08:03 AM

Freep: Plan for huge electronic billboards at Belle Isle fires up controversy

**stinkytofu** · April-12-12, 08:29 AM

Out of all the dumb ideas that we have to deal with in Detroit, this might remarkably be the worst. This will not only just look ridiculously stupid at Belle Isle, it is a gigantic waste of money. I'm fairly confident my dog is more competent than half the people that run this city.

These are built to inform the public of safety concerns during a natural disaster or terrorist attack? It's not like a million people will even see them. Even if a catastrophe happens, my money is that the people that run this thing are too dumb to even have it functioning properly when they need it.

I do think that possibly having some system in place in Hart Plaza for emergency notification isn't a bad idea due to how many people cram in there for special events. Is this the right idea? I don't know.

**canuck** · April-12-12, 08:32 AM

How about rehabbing the old civil defense alarms on fire stations and municipal bldgs instead. How many people can you reach with a billboard anyways?

A guy walking his dog, a jogger, a couple making out in the bushes?

**Blueidone** · April-12-12, 08:37 AM

If...and it's a big "if"...I accepted the theory of speaking to citizens in an emergency, I don't understand placing these at the entrance to Belle Isle.

Do they think people are going to flock to Belle Isle when an emergency arises?

Isn't there a Coast Guard station there that could handling communication with those on the island if an emergency arises..like flying over with their helicopter...or taking a boat around the island with a bullhorn?

This seems like a really stupid idea. I've had ENOUGH of the constant advertising in my face no matter where I look. And I would think a simple sign, like the ones they use on the freeways to tell everyone about a construction problem, that can sit there with nothing on it until a true emergency arises would suffice.

I hope that a huge protest arises about this and the citizens are able to defeat this proposal.

**stinkytofu** · April-12-12, 08:46 AM

I wouldn't be surprised if they got some type of homeland security grant from the feds mandating they spend it by some date. Some idiot in the office proposes this...they all get excited...and they don't bother to consider alternatives. They just need to appease someone.

**gazhekwe** · April-12-12, 09:14 AM

that's what I think, they have some designated funding that has to be spent. Dumb idea

**poobert** · April-12-12, 09:14 AM

Originally Posted by stinkytofu

I wouldn't be surprised if they got some type of homeland security grant from the feds mandating they spend it by some date. Some idiot in the office proposes this...they all get excited...and they don't bother to consider alternatives. They just need to appease someone.

This is just classic Detroit administration. Mindless, idiotic, wasteful, unjustified, and garish. Who the fuck is Daryl Lundy? Why does the CITY have a Homeland Security Department? That is a function of the federal government.

Then these city assholes wonder why the state has to come in and take over when they've been pulling this kind of garbage forever.

So when there is an emergency I can drive by Belle Isle to see what's up?

Here's a fun insider tidbit - I administer something, somewhere on Belle Isle. There is no evacuation plan for the island. There is no plan whatsoever. It is currently every man for himself. Something goes wrong? Everybody is going to get stampeded and killed trying to get over the MacArthur Bridge. You think they could start with that before their scoreboards?

Can we get some cheap plastic things to go over the streetlight utility boxes? I'd like to see them covered with grafitti and strewn across the street.

Fuck those signs and fuck Daryl Lundy. He needs to invest that money in his own protection because if I ever see him I'll stomp his stupid ass to get his life right.

**DetroitPlanner** · April-12-12, 10:13 AM

Sweet maybe we can get them to put one of these in front of the DIA too, hang one from the Zoo's water tower for good measure!

**Detroitnerd** · April-12-12, 10:28 AM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

Sweet maybe we can get them to put one of these in front of the DIA too, hang one from the Zoo's water tower for good measure!

I doubt anybody here is going to come to those billboards' rescue. But I also want to point out that this is due to a national shift in priorities. Remember 2001? We allowed the federal government to create a huge apparatus for policing the country and fed it billions upon billions of dollars. For every dollar that goes toward "Homeland Security" that's a dollar that doesn't go to health care, education, senior citizens, community centers, transit, etc.

I think it's a little myopic to decry Detroit's [[admittedly idiotic) leadership for trying to ride a gravy train that we've helped build without complaint for more than a decade...

**gazhekwe** · April-12-12, 10:47 AM

Not quite without complaint. Lots of people have been complaining a lot.

Especially since they haven't learned anything from the lessons of the past. I liked that one comedian who wanted to know why they didn't use the emergency broadcast system on 9-11-2001. "We've been practicing it all our lives!"

**Detroitnerd** · April-12-12, 10:56 AM

Originally Posted by gazhekwe

Not quite without complaint. Lots of people have been complaining a lot.

True. But I imagine a lot of the chest-beaters railing against this project have been mostly silent about the DHS, which gets to do ridiculous things like buy 450 million rounds of hollow-point ammo -- with our money.

**downtownguy** · April-12-12, 12:00 PM

"In case of an electrical blackout, radio and television may not work, and sirens may go unheard or ignored by some citizens.

The electronic signs, he said, were just one part of a broad emergency notification system."

I guess they'll have hamsters running in a wheel inside the signs providing backup power.

"Lundy could not estimate the cost of the signs, but said they would be paid for with sponsorship money."

How do you propose a project like this and not have an estimate of the cost?

I'm going to sleep better tonight knowing this guy Lundy is in charge of Detroit's Homeland Security.

**Detroitnerd** · April-12-12, 12:12 PM

Yeah, this does rank right up there with the "streetlight shrouds" in terms of idiocy...

**Gannon** · April-12-12, 12:28 PM

...so the likelihood of some kickback corruption is probably very high.

Let's pay attention to the folks trying to sell this the hardest.

Cheers!

**EASTSIDE CAT 67-83** · April-12-12, 12:29 PM

Leave it to the Government to try and out "Stupid is as stupid Does" their GSA brethren. DHLS must have caught wind of the GSA debacle and wanted to show them up. Honestly I think the one poster who said they must of had some FY funds remaining and some desk jockey came up with this brilliant plan and they all ran around the office back slapping and high five-ing AND A WHOOPING AN A HOLLERING on what a good idea this would be and how it would keep us all safe...sad thing is they actually believe in the Kool Aid they drink

**Gannon** · April-12-12, 12:30 PM

Originally Posted by Pam

Wow, tacky. This part might be of interest to Gannon:

Thanks, Pam. I might be on my way to California then, but if I'm in town...although I'm sure someone will want to ask me about my inflammatory comments at the lead of this thread!

Seems one of the pre-requisites to be hired by Homeland Security and the TSA is a distinct lack of a sense of humor...let alone Common Sense.

I just saw something great on Facebook...Common Sense is so rare, it looks like a SuperPower.

Cheers!

**Gistok** · April-12-12, 12:54 PM

This is stupid... let's see... a huge 38 foot high by 44 feet long sign... that is mostly BILLBOARD!!! Unf***ing believable... what if you miss the alert because your eyes were cast on the Belle Tire sales part of the giant sign???

Is there currently a billboard ordinance in the city of Detroit... because regardless of the reasoning with the Homeland Security portion of the sign [[which only takes up a fraction of the sign) this is an out and out BILLBOARD... or should I say a PAIR of them.

And to put them both in the same spot smacks of stupidity....