Billboard near Round Barn will be removed

The Arcadia Historical and Preservation Society announced Wednesday it had reached an agreement with the City of Arcadia, Okla., and land owner Fred Mazaheri to remove a tall billboard just east of the historic Round Barn on Route 66, reported the Edmond Daily Sun.

According to the newspaper:

“We are sure thankful to Mr. Mazaheri for working with us on this,” said Sam Gillaspy, the president of the Arcadia Historical and Preservation Society Board.  “Because of Mr. Mazaheri’s generous donation, we can now go ahead and have the sign removed,” helping to protect the Round Barn for future generations of visitors.

The billboard was erected in October 2010 after the company purchased the sliver of land from a local church. No ordinances prevented billboards in town.

The billboard led to a lot of protests from the historical society, including the dubious notion that it was a “desecration” to the Round Barn.

But the controversy essentially made the billboard radioactive. Every time I drove through town, the billboard space was either empty, or filled with PSAs or City of Arcadia messages. No business wanted to be associated with an advertisement that partially obscured the Round Barn. The fact the billboard was an obvious failure led to its removal as much as anything.

The billboard-removal agreement comes just days before the 20th-anniversary celebration Saturday of the Round Barn’s restoration, which includes a book-signing of “Route 66 Sightings” by co-authors Jerry McClanahan, Jim Ross, and Shellee Graham. The barn dates to 1898.