L.A. Comes a Step Closer to Legalizing Murals

The self-proclaimed "Mural Capital of the World" is poised to take another step toward living up to its lofty title on Wednesday as a draft ordinance that would once again legalize original art on private property is set to be issued.

For nearly a decade, the City of Los Angeles has legislated murals as well as commercial signs through a single ordinance, which largely prohibited the painting of murals.

According to Tanner Blackman, who heads the Department of City Planning’s code studies section, the city’s 1986 sign ordinance exempted murals until a lawsuit brought by the outdoor advertising industry in the early 2000s prompted the city to eliminate the distinction between signs and public art.

In the 14 years that preceded the establishment of the city's sign ordinance, murals and signs were regulated separately, allowing public art projects to flourish along the walls of private business in Los Angeles.

On Wednesday, —who co-authored a City Council motion to begin the mural legalization process—will release the first draft of an ordinance that will allow that art to begin appearing again.

The ordinance, which will be unveiled at 9 a.m. at Self Help Graphics and Art in the Boyle Heights Arts District, is influenced by the City of Portland's recently approved mural ordinance, as well as by feedback gathered from artists and community members at meetings that Blackman hosted.

The release of the draft ordinance initiates a 60-day public comment period, during which community members will be able to recommend changes to the document.

A community meeting held last month in Eagle Rock indicates that the public will have plenty to say about the ordinance.

Dave Russell, an artist from the Mobil Mural Lab, told Blackman at November's meeting that the broad guidelines would need to fully vetted by the mural community before they were set in stone.

“I think each bullet point presents a lot of gray area, which really needs to be discussed and have the input of the mural community,” he said.