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Policy - Street Pole Banners - 20231001 100 John West Way Aurora, Ontario L4G 6J1 (905) 727-3123 aurora.ca Town of Aurora Street Pole Banner Program Policy Office of the CAO Contact: Manager of Corporate Communications, Office of the CAO Approval Authority: CAO Effective: October 1, 2023 ______________________________________________________________________________________ Purpose The purpose of the Street Pole Banner Policy (the “Policy”) is to maximize the use of existing street banner infrastructure across the town, and provide creative and aesthetically appealing promotional opportunities for the Town of Aurora (the “Town”), community groups and businesses. The implementation of the Policy will: 1. Support and promote special events, bringing increased attention and awareness to the Town of Aurora, creating an image of an economically vibrant, active, and flourishing town. 2. Assist in the promotion of cultural, recreational, and civic events sponsored by various groups throughout the town, united to improve the quality of life and offerings for Aurora residents, businesses, and visitors. 3. Complement the aesthetic appearance and/or improvement of the town’s business districts and major corridors. 4. Introduce colour and a sense of excitement to various travel routes throughout the town. Scope This Policy applies to permits issued for Street Pole Banners installed on Town assets and infrastructures on roads or highways within the Town’s jurisdiction, as well as on regional roadways where the Town maintains Street Pole Banner assets. Definitions Street Pole Banners means a sign made of cloth, fabric or other lightweight material that are attached to light standards, or specialty banner poles. Town assets and infrastructure includes light standards, or other poles, as permitted. 2 Policy Organizations are authorized to use Town assets and infrastructure on Town roads or highways for the purposes of displaying Street Pole Banners that support community events and programs in Aurora only as outlined in accordance with the requirements set out in this Policy. Street Pole Banners will not be permitted on Town assets and infrastructure reserved for roads or highways with exclusive use by the Town, including John West Way. This Policy provides a fair method to assess and permit organizations to display promotional material on the Town’s assets and infrastructure by requiring organizations to follow an application process for the Town’s consideration and approval. Further, this Policy provides for appropriate risk mitigation through a permitting process. Responsibilities Executive Leadership Delegation of the management of the Town’s Street Pole Banner Program to the Communications Division, including the approval of an annual banner calendar schedule, in accordance with the guidelines, and in consultation with applicable departments. Specific Departments Communications Division 1. Authorizes the use of the Town asset or infrastructure for the purpose of displaying Street Pole Banners, by issuing a permit according to the provisions in this Policy each calendar year (the “Banner Permit”). 2. Approve or refuse applications for a Banner Permit in accordance with the guidelines provided in this Policy. 3. Maintains an application form that is available online and in hard copy format. 4. Creates an annual calendar of approved installations of Street Pole Banners. 5. Manages external communications with Council, residents, and businesses. Community Services 1. Authorizes Access Aurora to receive applications, including the collection of applicable fees in accordance with the provisions provided in this Policy and the Town’s Fees and Charges By-law. Operational Services 1. Manages the installation and removal of Street Pole Banners as per the calendar and as per approved Banner Permits, through the Town’s installation vendor. 3 2. Manages operational issues including, but not limited to banners, hardware, vendor, damage, etc. Council 1. Sets the fees and charges applicable in the Policy on an annual basis through the Town’s Fees and Charges By-law. Sponsoring Organization/Applicant 1. Completes an online application for a Banner Permit (the “Application” or “Banner Permit Application”) 2. Complies with the requirements set out in this Policy. 3. Ensures all Street Pole Banner designs submitted to the Town for consideration are properly licensed in accordance with Canada’s copyright legislation. 4. Responsible for the costs associated with the Banner Permit Application per the Town’s Fees and Charges By-law. 5. Responsible for the costs to design, manufacture, and store the Street Pole Banner, if applicable. 6. Responsible for the cost of installation, maintenance, and removal of the Street Pole Banner in accordance with this Policy and the Town’s Fees and Charges By- law. Fees The Town’s fee schedule relating to this Policy is available on the Town’s website at www.aurora.ca and is updated annually in accordance with the Town’s current Fees & Charges By-law. Monitoring and Compliance The interest and operational efficiency of the policy and procedures will be evaluated on an ongoing basis; and the policy may be updated prior to the review timeline, or at the direction of the CAO or Council as applicable. Review Timeline This policy will be reviewed 2 years after the initial approval date. 4 Procedure for Aurora Street Pole Banner Program Updated April 18, 2023 Steps 1. Application Requirements a. Permit Application: Organizations wishing to have Street Pole Banners installed on Town assets and infrastructure (the “Applicant”) must complete an online Banner Permit Application form (the “Application”), which will be made available on the Town’s website. All Applications must include a design of proposed street banners. General inquiries regarding this Policy should be made to the Town’s Communications office: communications@aurora.ca b. Application fee: A non-refundable application fee is required in accordance with the fee set out in the Town’s Fees and Charge By-law current at the time of the Application. The Application fee will be evaluated annually, is subject to change, and is approved by Council as part of the Fees and Charges By-Law. The application fee will be set at $30 for non- profit organizations, and $50 for for-profit organizations. c. Banner Design: Applications must include a design of the Street Pole Banner provided in accordance with the “Detailed Banner Specifications” found on the online Application. The design of the Street Pole Banner will be approved by the Communications Division as per this Policy, and based on interpretation of this Policy with respect to message content, appropriate use of the program, and target audience. d. The Communications Division will decide to approve or reject the Application and will notify the Applicant as soon as possible with the decision and next steps. e. Deadline: Completed applications and designs must be submitted during the Banner Calendar Booking Period of October 1 through November 15 of each year. Applications may be submitted after November 15, but will only be evaluated as availability and timing permit, subject to the approval as per this Policy. No applications will be permitted to carryover to the next Banner Calendar Scheduling period. A new application is required for each period. f. If the Application is approved, the Applicant will remit the non-refundable Application fee as well as an installation/removal fee of $100 per banner (which covers both installation and removal) to Access Aurora. The Applicant will also receive their Banner Permit. g. Upon issuance of the Banner Permit, the organization who was issued the permit (the “Permit Holder”) will be informed by the Communications Division as to when/where to deliver the Street Pole Banners to the Town’s Operational Services team for installation. The Town will not accept any Street Pole Banners more than 3 working days prior to installation. Storage of the Street Pole Banners is the sole responsibility and expense of the Permit Holder. 5 2. Process Step 1: Applicant submits an online application, with proposed banner designs, for the Town’s consideration during the Banner Calendar Booking Period of October 1 through November 15 of each calendar year. Step 2: The Communications Division reviews Applications to confirm adherence to this Policy and makes the decision to approve or reject the Application. Step 3: Following the Banner Calendar Booking Period, the Communications Division, Community Services and Operational Services will finalize the list of approved banner Applications and confirm the installation schedule. Step 4: Communications will inform successful Applicants that their Application has been approved and will instruct them to remit their Application and installation/removal fees to Access Aurora prior to 21 days of the start date as outlined in the Application. Successful Applicants will also be directed to pick-up their Permit from Access Aurora. Step 5: Permit Holders will be informed by the Communications Division as to when/where to deliver Street Pole Banners to Operational Services for installation. Note that the Town will not accept any Street Pole Banners more than 3 working days prior to installation. Permit holders must bring their signed Permits with them when dropping off their banners. Step 6: Upon removal of the Street Pole Banners, the Communications Division will inform the Applicant as to where/when they can pick up their banners. Eligibility a. Organizations are eligible to apply for a Banner Permit for the purpose of promoting charitable, public, or special community events, or for decorative purposes featuring and supporting a specific area (Downtown, Wellington, etc.) b. The Town reserves the right to honour Town recognized events, which are held annually, by reserving banner space for Town use as necessary, and at the Town’s sole discretion. Should an unforeseeable event arise where the Town requires Street Pole Banner space occupied by the Applicant, the Town will inform the Applicant and make arrangements to remove their Street Pole Banners and in return the Town may make alternative arrangements for the Applicant to resume Street Pole Banner space at a later date. c. Applications are evaluated based on the following priorities: i. First priority: Street Pole Banners produced or sponsored by the Town or its agencies that promote the Town, its events or key areas. 6 ii. Second priority: Street Pole Banners promoting special events or activities held within the Town, open to the public, and organized by a community non-profit organization located within town limits. iii. Third priority: Street Pole Banners promoting special events or activities held within the Town of Aurora, open to the public, organized by non-profit organizations or government agencies located outside of town limits, or for-profit organizations in town limits. d. Preference shall be given to applications that reflect the Town’s tourism/sport tourism-related objectives: i. Promotion of major events where the Town has participation or representation (i.e. local, regional, provincial, national, international sporting competitions or events, etc.). ii. Promotion of arts and culture events held in the Town that draw visitors from outside of the Town. iii. Promotion of other priority events as determined by Council. e. Corporate sponsors may contribute to the purchase and installation/removal of Street Pole Banners on behalf of eligible Applicants. In such cases, the display of company logos may be permitted/incorporated into the design providing the content is incidental to the over-all banner design and the recognition will not exceed 25% of the total area of the Street Pole Banner. f. The Street Pole Banner Policy prohibits installation of any Street Pole Banner solely advertising a specific product or service, excluding a business logo in support of one of the priorities listed in this Policy. g. The Town reserves the right to install Street Pole Banners to fill vacant brackets for consistency of the desired aesthetic of the Street Pole Banner Program. Town use is at the direction of the Chief Administrative Officer as circumstances dictate in accordance with this Policy, and may include, but are not limited to, the Town, Region, Provincial and/or Canada symbols/ crests. h. The period of October 1 through November 15 of each year will be the official Banner Calendar Booking Period. All Applications made within the time period will be date stamped. Applications can be made after the scheduling period, however, they will be processed on a first come first serve basis and may only be granted based on availability and adherence to this Policy. 3. Installation and Removal a. There are four (4) specific routes/streets (and available poles) identified as part of the Policy including: i. Location A: Yonge Street-Historical District (max. 34); block out November to April due to snow plowing. ii. Location B: St. John’s Sideroad (8) 7 iii. Location C1: Wellington Street East (12) (one side only; other side reserved for Town/Region, as available) iv. Location C2: Wellington Street East (Bayview to Leslie) (26) (one side only; other side reserved for Town/Region, as available) b. Street Pole Banner installation and removal will be conducted by the Town’s vendor at a cost to the permit holder. c. The Permit Holder is required to ensure the banners are free of damage or deterioration during the permit period. If the banners are damaged or fall into disrepair, the Permit Holder must notify the Town immediately to have the banners removed. If the Applicant wishes to have new banners installed, they will be required to remit an additional installation/removal fee at $100 per banner. d. The Communications Division will maintain a master Banner Calendar at all times and communicate any alterations to Operational Services and Community Services in a timely manner. 4. General Banner Guidelines a. All banners must adhere to the Detailed Banner Specifications included in the Street Pole Banner Permit Application. b. All Street Pole Banners must be professionally manufactured by a bonded printer to ensure only quality, well-made banners will be displayed on Town assets. c. All designs should be artistic in nature, graphically or symbolically representing the subject/purpose of the community event or initiative. d. All designs will be approved by the Manager of Corporate Communications, who may recommend alterations to ensure compliance with this Policy. All decisions of the Manager of Corporate Communications under this Policy are final. e. Subject to approval by the Town, if Street Pole Banners are requested for poles or other Town assets that do not already have support hardware, then the Town will purchase the hardware and install it, at the sole cost of the Permit Holder. The hardware will then remain the property of the Town with no reimbursement to the Permit Holder. f. Street Pole Banners shall comply with the Regulations and Standards set by the Canadian Advertising Council and shall: i. Be of high moral standard, reputable in character and appearance, free from vulgarity or indecent suggestion of any kind or nature; ii. Be non-political, non-partisan, non-controversial and free from reference to local or national public or political issues; iii. Not display any legend or symbol which may be construed to advertise, promote the sale of, or publicize any merchandise or commodity. iv. Not display anything that resembles a traffic control device, or which attempts to direct the movement of traffic. 8 v. Not contain more than 25% of space used to highlight the sponsor of the Street Pole Banner. vi. Not display inappropriate material including but not limited to offensive language, hate speak, pornographic images, and/or content considered demeaning and derisive. 5. General Provisions and Terms a. Due to the nature and timing constraints of the Street Pole Banner Program, decisions on the appropriateness of material will be governed and decided at the sole discretion of the Town. All decisions regarding Banner Permit Applications are final. b. The Permit Holder shall indemnify, hold harmless and defend the Town, its employees, agents, contractors and elected officials against any loss, costs, damages and expenses incurred by the Town resulting from any claim or action arising from the use of the Town’s Street Pole Banner assets. c. The Street Pole Banner Program is a service offered to meet the objectives of the Town as stated in this Policy and may be cancelled or discontinued by the Town at its sole discretion without notice or compensation. 9 6. Street Pole Banner Locations • Location A: Yonge Street-Historical District (max. 34); block out November to April due to snow plowing. • Location B: St. John’s Sideroad (8) Location C1: Wellington Street East (12) (one side only; other side reserved for Town/Region, as available) • Location C2: Wellington Street East (Bayview to Leslie) (26) (one side only; other side reserved for Town/Region, as available) • Location D: John West Way (10), reserved by the Town.