CITY TO CHARGE BILLBOARD FIRM VIACOM OUTDOOR ACCUSED OF ILLEGALLY ALTERING SIGNS.

Byline: Harrison Sheppard Staff Writer

City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo plans to file misdemeanor charges today against Viacom Outdoor, accusing the company of illegally altering two of its billboards on Ventura Boulevard, officials said Wednesday.

The signs originally were erected with city permits, but large digital readouts were added without city permission and the company has resisted the city's repeated orders to correct the alleged violations, officials said.

``The laws in Los Angeles are very clear with regards to what is required for billboard permits and the time has come to show the billboard companies they're not above the law,'' said an official in Delgadillo's office.

But a Viacom representative said the company does believe it has not violated city laws.

``Viacom Outdoor has frequently asked the city to provide any language from any ordinance the sign violates,'' company spokesman Scott Carper said. ``They have not provided any such language.''

City Attorney's Office officials said the ordinance is very clear that no alterations or electric work is allowed without city permits.

Officials said the company would be charged with four counts of unauthorized alteration of billboards and two counts of ignoring city orders to bring them into compliance. Each misdemeanor count carries a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine and six months in jail, officials said.

The signs have digital readouts that display interest rates and other information about the advertiser. While city regulations allow digital readouts that display time and temperature on a small part of the sign, these go beyond the size and content requirements, according to the City Attorney's Office.

The charges come as the city launches a series of new efforts to crack down on illegal billboards and reduce the proliferation of legal signs.

The City Council recently approved a program to catalog and impose a fee on all billboards throughout the city, and is also seeking a change in state law to let the city dismantle legal billboards.

The efforts are occurring less than a year after billboard companies donated hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and free advertising space to support city candidates, including Delgadillo and Mayor James Hahn, in last year's municipal elections. Sensitive to accusations that they may be too close to billboard companies, officials - especially Delgadillo - have been distancing themselves from the firms by cracking down on the signs.

The two signs are located at Ventura at Haskell Avenue, advertising for Etrade, and Ventura at Petit Avenue, advertising Ditech.

Neighbors have complained for a year that the company illegally modified the signs in conflict with the Ventura Boulevard specific plan. The city has been trying to get Viacom to remove the changes since April 2001. The company appealed the city's order to remove the signs, but lost in June and was served with a new order to comply in December, according to city records.

Neighbors are concerned that allowing modifications to the billboards would open the door to more elaborate signs along the boulevard.