The recent editorial by Dave Adsett dated August 10th spoke to the “running of third-party ads in contravention of the townships own bylaws “, in reference to the use of the electronic sign installed by the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce (CWCC). There were several inaccuracies in Daves letter that need some clarification. Many of our business members have under 10 employees and are home based or have no store frontage. When the new sign bylaw came into effect it made mobile sign advertising impractical for many members. The CWCC board created a business plan based on cost recovery of the sign, and the decision was made to erect a permanent sign. The member is advertising their organization or business. Placing an ad on the CWCC sign is in no way third party advertising – it is a member benefit. The electronic sign is owned by the CWCC and the property the sign is on is owned by the CWCC. As such we are governed by the rules of the Electronic Sign Bylaw, but not governed by the policies directing Township facilities. The discussion surrounding third party advertising is an interesting one, with subjective spins placed by directly affected parties. It poses the question about print media being third party advertising . With technology advancing to an affordable level and the identified need for advertising , the electronic sign just makes sense. It meets the needs of many, it is very visible in the community and for the CWCC members – it’s a very economical way to advertise using a resource they own, as a member of the Chamber. Janet Harrop President, CWCC
Janet Harrop
