The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office filed a civil lawsuit against the outdoor advertising company Skytag Inc. last Friday for putting up illegal supergraphics at 17 locations in Hollywood, the Miracle Mile and other parts of Los Angeles.

Supergraphics with Skytag’s Statue of Liberty graphic were placed on several buildings on Wilshire Boulevard in 2009. (photo by Amy Lyons)

The lawsuit does not identify specific damages being sought, but Frank Mateljan, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, said it will likely add up to “millions, if not tens of millions of dollars”. The lawsuit also names Skytag’s president and owner, Michael McNeilly, and the owners of 21 buildings where the supergraphics were allegedly installed.

Mateljan said the civil action is part of City Attorney Carmen Trutanich’s effort to crack down on companies that allow illegal signage. Supergraphics are large advertisements that wrap around one or more facades of multi-story buildings. The supergraphics are illegal, unpermitted and can be dangerous, according to the lawsuit, which also alleges they present a traffic hazard for drivers who pass by the buildings, that they cause visual blight, and that they could trap people within the building during emergencies or hinder access for firefighters. The supergraphics were allegedly in place at various times between 2001 and 2009.

The locations listed in the lawsuit are 10921 Wilshire Blvd., 7080 Hollywood Blvd., 145 S. Fairfax Ave., 10203 Santa Monica Blvd., 5455 Wilshire Blvd., 700 Flower St., and 4929 Wilshire Blvd. Additional addresses include 11600 Wilshire Blvd., 6363 Sunset Blvd., 1256 W. 7th St., 110 E. 9th St., 6430 Sunset Blvd., 6300 Wilshire Blvd., 1800 N. Highland Ave., 8555 Beverly Blvd., 1990 Westwood Blvd., and 4955 Van Nuys Blvd.

Mateljan said Skytag and the other defendants could be liable for fines of up to $5,000-per-day, per location, and the total dollar amount would be determined as proceedings move forward.

McNeilly said Tuesday that he had not yet been served with the lawsuit and was not aware of its specific allegations. Assistant City Attorney Jose Egurbide confirmed Wednesday that the defendants were still in the process of being served and that they should receive the lawsuit over the next few days.

McNeilly claims the supergraphics his company installed were legal. The City of Los Angeles passed a ban on new supergraphics and large billboards in 2002, but the ban was not enforced for years because of ongoing litigation initiated by multiple outdoor advertising companies. In response to what many city officials and residents believed was an unabated proliferation of the signs, the city council passed a moratorium on new supergraphics and digital signs in 2009. Skytag sued in federal court and won, receiving an injunction that was later overturned in 2010 by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. McNeilly claims all of the billboards in question were up during the period when the injunction was in place and were taken down when it was overturned.

McNeilly also claimed that many of the supergraphics were artworks he created featuring the Statue of Liberty, and were not advertisements. He added that they were placed on buildings, with the permission of the owners, to convey a message of freedom.

“When we lost in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, they came down. That’s why this lawsuit doesn’t make sense,” McNeilly said.

Mateljan said he was not certain whether any of the supergraphics in question are still up, but the City Attorney’s Office stands by the claims in the lawsuit that the signs in question were put up illegally, and that will have to be proven in court.

Mateljan added that the City Attorney’s Office will continue to target companies and property owners who allow illegal supergraphics and billboards to be installed. The lawsuit is the eighth filed against outdoor advertising companies since Trutanich took office in 2009, and $6.3 million in penalties have already been won.

“We are taking an aggressive posture and have seen some positive results,” Mateljan said. “The city will be enforcing its billboard laws, and will continue to go after them.”

Dennis Hathaway, president of the Coalition to ban billboard blight, added that he believes the lawsuit against Skytag is justified.

“I am very happy the city attorney has filed the lawsuit as part of his ongoing pursuit of sign scofflaws,” Hathaway said. “Of all the companies, this is the one that thumbed its nose most at the city.”