HS Seoul to Remove Ugly Signboards
By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Cale Gladhard, an English teacher from the United States, still vividly remembers the irritating confusion caused by big, horrible outdoor signboards hanging from shops and buildings when he first arrived here 10 months ago.
``When I first came here, I found outdoor ad signboards were confusing,'' the instructor in Seoul said. ``But what was more confusing was none of the streets had addresses, which made it hard to find specific places.''
Most other foreign nationals also agree with the view that Seoul needs to overhaul signs to make the capital more attractive.
David Lee from Newport, a 28-year-old teacher, said, ``They (street signs) are too cluttered. All of sudden you get 10 different signs all together and it takes a while to figure them out.''
Seoul seeks to promote the city as a world center for design but it is struggling with messy and garish shop signboards and confusing street signs, which were installed without any proper standardized system.
To tackle the problem, the city has introduced guidelines for signboards and street signs as part of its project to upgrade the cityscape.
``The outdoor signboards of stores have long been visual pollution. The building's outdoor wall doesn't simply belong to the owner of the property but also to citizens,'' Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said.
The city's guidelines are simple ― signs should be smaller and more moderate in color and font.
Seoul has been divided into five zones ― including commercial, residential and tourism ― and each has standardized regulations on outdoor advertisement signboards, most importantly with one signboard for one shop. It will remove unauthorized street signs.
But it seems that there is still a long way to go for the plan to take hold.
Technically, there is no related law to properly regulate signboards and the guidelines have no legal binding force. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Public Administration and Security also have no immediate plan to propose a regulatory bill.
Each ward office has a final say on signboards. They can now remove ``illegal'' street signs and signboards as well as permit new installations.
A city official expects that it will take at least three years to remove old signboards and street signs as this is their permit expiration date under previous guidelines. Before that, no one can order the removal of existing signboards and street signs.
``We'll keep encouraging shop owners to voluntarily follow our guidelines,'' a city official said.
The city also has to deal with resistance from signboard producers and shop owners. Kim Yong-mo, director at the Korea Outdoor Advertising Association, denounced the city's plan, claiming that it did not reflect their opinions. ``The smaller number and size of signboards means we will get less income. Before they introduce such huge guidelines, they should've first tackled illegal signboards, which account for half of the signboards,'' he said.
A restaurant owner in Sinchon said he doesn't have any choice but to use an ``eye-catching'' ``illegal'' signboard to attract customers due to fierce competition from other stores. ``It's hard to abide by all the rules. If we have less appeal to customers, we will simply face bankruptcy,'' he said.