Jarosław Bondar has become the city architect at the beginning of this year.  Fighting against ugly ads was one of the first actions he has announced:  “I would like to begin with sorting the problem and providing some urban governance we are lacking today”, he explained to mass media, “and to protect certain quarters and facilities, mostly historical ones. Doing so will necessitate specific tools, though, such as City Council resolutions. I would suggest a public discussion first.”

The new architect refers to Kraków, where the City Council has passed a resolution that regulates the outlook, size and location of ads in the Old Town.  We have asked representatives of Szczecin advertisement agencies whether such changes are possible and needed in the city and what will be their effect on the condition of the advertisement industry.

“I like the idea since advertisement should follow certain esthetical rules”, says Maciej Leszczyński, co-owner of Free Media advert agency.  “What I like much less is its implementation. Of course, city officials find it easy to say: take it off. But they do not think about consequences of such decisions.  First, businesses want to and need to have ads.  Tough restrictions will also take a toll on advertisement companies, especially small ones, operating on local markets.  And not only on them, since they have been backed by a large group of subcontractors, such as printing houses or climber firms."

He added that comparing Szczecin to Kraków was not quite accurate.  “We already have advertisement restrictions, for example regarding lamp posts on certain downtown streets", he says.  “I really do not know what place in Szczecin can be compared to the Old Market in Kraków, where certain restrictions have been introduced. If the officials mean our “old town”, I do not think the industry will suffer too much, since our clients are not too keen to place their ads there.”

“Certainly, outdoor advertisement needs some sorting out, since the omnipresent chaos, visible also in Szczecin, does not support the positive image of the city”, comments Anna Turkiewicz, owner of Agencja Reklamowa Anny Turkiewicz.  “First, illegal posters placed at roadside should be eliminated.  They are the ugliest, and in such cases, business interests do not matter.  This is even in favor of those complying with regulations.  In this case we should care more for consistent, orderly city image than for our own interests.

Further, Anna Turkiewicz stated that in her opinion, the city authorities would not and could not eliminate all outdoor ads from Szczecin, especially that they have been making money on advertisement fees.  Nature abhors a vacuum, and even if some posters or billboards vanish from the streets, they will be replaced with other forms of advertisement clients will spend on.
 

ŁP