Davie council conditionally clears two digital billboards to fund Boys & Girls Club teen centers

The Town of Davie council voted to conditionally certify two off-premise digital-sign (billboard) sites along the I‑75 corridor, contingent on a formal agreement that the town will review at a later meeting.

Council members said the conditional approvals aim to secure long-term funding for local Boys & Girls Club teen centers. The presenters said projected billboard revenue would support operations and help sustain the nonprofit’s services for local youth.

At a public hearing on two certification applications, David Quigley, the town’s planning and zoning manager, told the council staff found the applications met technical requirements. "The staff finds that they meet all of the technical requirements," he said, summarizing local and state regulatory expectations and noting the state imposes limits on location, height and illumination for such signs.

Boys & Girls Club representatives described the public-benefit package: they said billboard revenue would underwrite two teen centers the organization is opening in Davie and provide ongoing operational support. The presenters gave revenue estimates and program costs: they projected billboard revenue "between $450,000 to $700,000 annually, with a 20 year projected revenue of about $12,000,000" and said the cost to operate two teen centers is about $600,000 annually. Club staff also described member demographics and program outcomes, and noted the club’s ability to display public-service announcements and emergency messaging on the signs.

Church nearby asks for relocation: A representative of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which operates the Fort Lauderdale Temple near one proposed site, asked council members to consider relocating the sign away from the temple because of concerns about lighting and the visual relationship with the sacred site. "We would like to suggest that it be moved north or south, but not directly adjacent to the temple because we feel it would take away from the beauty of the property," Brian Hague said.

Council conditions: To protect the town’s interests and the stated public benefit, Mayor Judy Paul proposed conditions to be included in a formal agreement. She read the conditions into the record: the agreement term shall be limited to 30 years; auditing language must confirm payments to the Boys and Girls Club Advertising Group LLC; if the relationship with Gold Coast Media is severed then funds earmarked for the Boys and Girls Club will be remitted to the Town of Davie; and if the advertising group is sold the town shall be entitled to a one-time payment of $150,000 per billboard. The council also required advertisement-content restrictions described as a prohibition on advertisers of "moral turpitude," to be defined in the agreement.

The council approved certification of each site separately with those conditions and asked the applicant to return with a contract incorporating the terms. Roll calls on both items were unanimous.

Why it matters: The council framed the certifications as a way to create a revenue stream for local youth programs that are otherwise heavily dependent on private donations. Council members said the conditions protect the town if relationships or ownership change while preserving the Boys & Girls Club’s planned funding stream.

Ending: Staff and the applicant will draft the formal agreement and return it to the council for placement on a future agenda; the council did not adopt the final contract at this meeting.