The City of Turlock is hoping to make Turlock more welcoming to drivers along Highway 99 with the adoption of a new Community Promotion Project.
The City Council voted on Tuesday to allocate $100,000 out of the tourism fund for the Highway 99 Community Promotion Project. This project aims to fill vacant panels on existing pylon signs visible from Highway 99 with positive community messaging. The project is intended to improve the appearance of these signs, promote community pride and increase Turlock’s visibility to visitors, prospective businesses and developers.
Economic Development Director Anthony Sims said the project will directly support the direction the city council established with the adoption of the Economic Development Strategic Plan in March.
“One of the key areas identified was increasing visibility of Turlock’s opportunity sites, particularly along Highway 99. With approximately 108,000 vehicles per day traveling through this corridor, Highway 99 is one of our greatest marketing assets and provides tremendous exposure to businesses, developers, investors and visitors…
“This effort also complements Monte Vista Crossings, a nationally recognized power retail center, ranked number three in California, number six in the nation. Messaging ‘Shop Turlock’ can build upon the retail strength while benefitting our small businesses, restaurants and downtown businesses, particularly as we enter that important holiday shopping season,” said Sims.
This program is not just about economic development.
“From a communications perspective, these signs are about more than just signs,” said Turlock public information officer Joseph Spangler. “They’re about an opportunity that we have to speak to the thousands and thousands of vehicles who pass by them every day, both into our community and beyond. It’s something that affects residents and visitors alike…Simple messages like ‘Welcome to Turlock,’ ‘Shop Turlock,’ ‘Come Back Soon,’ are simple but they help leave an impression on bypassers to the type of community we would like to be — welcoming and business-friendly…
“And lastly, I’d just like to notate that this is an opportunity that goes beyond traditional communication avenues. It’s not dependent on a signal or a certain device that you have. We’re reaching many, many people. It’s extremely visible. It’s extremely creative, and it could be a positive opportunity if we choose to step into it,” continued Spangler.
City-funded panels would be placed on participating signs under individual memorandums of understanding with respective property owners, allowing the panels to remain without ongoing rental charges to the city. As businesses occupy the associated developments, community panels could be relocated or removed to accommodate business signage, subject to the terms of each agreement.
City staff contacted property owners to explore temporary use of vacant panels on existing pylon signs and several owners expressed support for the concept, including an interest in improving the appearance of empty signs. Proposed agreement terms would establish panel allocation, minimum display periods, replacement and removal conditions, access, maintenance responsibilities and protections for the City’s investment.
At least one sign has sustained damage, and staff expect that property owner to request that the city fund the repair in lieu of rent in exchange for the ability to display city-funded panels on the sign.
California State University, Stanislaus, and other community partners have also expressed interest in purchasing panels. Participating community organizations would separately contract with and/or pay the city-selected vendor directly for their own panels.
Based on preliminary pricing, staff estimated that the appropriation could support approximately three existing pylon signs, with panels on both faces, and approximately 16 city-funded panels in total. The final number of locations and panels will depend on verified pricing, repair needs, and executed property-owner agreements.
