I'm looking for some guidance on relocating commercial billboards. I'm keeping this anonymous because it is a "real" project but I'll probably give enough info that Detective Al will figure out who I am. The regs read... " The payment for direct loss of an advertising sign which is personal property shall be the lesser of: (1) The depreciated reproduction cost of the sign, as determined by the Agency, less the proceeds from its sale; or (2) The estimated cost of moving the sign, but with no allowance for storage. So the two questions are... (a) If the owner does not want to take a direct loss and wants to actually move the sign, is this treated as any other business owned personal property including permits, reinstallation, electrical, transport etc? (b) Are billboards treated as a personal property only move or is this a business eligible for other items such as searching, substitute PP or reestablishment. Additional information: The depreciated reproduction cost is substantially less than the cost to move. Also, no need to address the leasehold interest issues which are thankfully being handled separately. Thanks!
If the Billboard company actually moved the sign, he would get relocation costs. If not, you would pay the lesser of the value-in-place (reproduction less depreciation), less the proceeds from its sale; or the estimated cost of moving the sign, but with no allowance for storage. He would get search costs of up to $2500. No reestablishment expenses. Moving costs might include clearing the site of trees.
I've had the opportunity to provide professional services to determine the depreciated reproduction cost of billboards as well as the cost to move and relocate billboards. My experience using the Uniform Act allowed us to consider the billboards, or outdoor advertising signs, as a small business, eligible for normal relocation benefits with the exception of reestablishment, See 24.2.(a)(24), as long as the billboards were considered personal property and not purchased as real property. Therefore, the sign owners are entitled to the normal moving and related expenses as a business with personal property including: searching, disconnect/dismantle/reconnect/reinstall, permits including; site clearing, building, electrical, sign permit (usually based on square footage of the sign), storage when necessary, substitution, etc. They are just not eligible for reestablishment expenses. My understanding of the reason for disallowing reestablishment is because billboard site is not where the business operates their normal daily business with employees, etc., therefore the "sign business" is not being relocated or reestablished. Now that the new regulations have utility connection from the right-of-way outside of reestablishment, I would think they would also be eligible along with the other Related Nonresidential Eligible Expenses (24.303). If the owner of the billboard chooses to abandon the sign, then they are entitled to the lesser of: the depreciated reproduction cost, less its sale proceeds, or, the estimated cost to move without storage being considered (24.301(f)). In any scenario, the cost to move the sign needs to be determined.
