Floating Billboard Firm Walks The Plank Out Of NYC Waters

NEW YORK — Ballyhoo has been marooned. The company responsible for floating Times Square-style billboards off New York City's shoreline will walk the plank out of the Big Apple, officials said Tuesday.

Ballyhoo Media's billboard boat will temporarily sail back to Florida and never return to any Empire State waterway under a settlement the company reached with the city Monday in Manhattan federal court.

The deal means the end — or at least some relief — is in sight for New Yorkers who would prefer to stroll the waterfront without seeing a wall of light.

"Our legal action has resulted in a big win for New Yorkers," city Acting Corporation Counsel Georgia M. Pestana said in a statement. "... We will vigorously enforce this consent decree through additional legal action should Ballyhoo violate the terms of this settlement."

Ballyhoo's bright LED billboards first appeared in October of last year. The city sued the company in March, calling the waterborne screens an illegal "public nuisance" that endanger drivers and bother public spaces, offices and residents.

The settlement essentially forces Ballyhoo to follow a new state law barring boats from carrying digital billboards and other brightly lit signs in New York waterways, as well as similar prohibitions in city law. The city also dropped its lawsuit as part of the deal.

If the billboards make a comeback, Ballyhoo could be held in contempt of court and forced to fork over any profits from its banned operations in the city, according to the settlement. The company also agreed to pay $100,000 that the city will hold in escrow unless Ballyhoo violates the settlement, court papers show.

The agreement marks a change of direction for Ballyhoo, which defiantly claimed it could still operate in New York even after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the new state law in August.

Ballyhoo CEO Adam Shapiro said the company decided to "stop fighting with the City" even though it had always followed state, local and federal laws. The firm will now focus on business opportunities in other states and may eventually park its boat on the other side of the Hudson, Shapiro said.

"As the settlement states, we retain the right to return to any waterway outside New York, including New Jersey," Shapiro said in a statement. "To that end, we look forward to continue exploring opportunities on the Hudson River and utilizing our platform to bring communities together through engaging advertising campaigns, events and experiences as we've always done."

Ballyhoo might have taken a big financial hit if its vessel did not shove out of the city's waters. The state's anti-billboard law sets penalties of $1,500 for the first violation and $5,000 for each subsequent one.

"Thanks to the federal court order today, floating digital billboards are sunk in New York," said state Sen. Brad Hoylman, a Manhattan Democrat who sponsored the state law.