We Won! Council Votes to Reject Plan for new digital billboards On Wednesday, July 31st, the Oakland City Council in Closed Session, rejected the proposals from Foster Media and Iris Media (co-owned by Oakland Port Commissioner Michael Colbruno) for possibly 8 additional digital billboards along Highway 880. All Council members present voted to reject the billboards with Councilmember Kaplan abstaining. The proposal had been making its way through City departments for many years and was the first time since July of 2012 that the Council has voted to enforce its own billboard ordinance that was passed in 1998. Karen Hester, co-founder of Scenic East Bay notes, "The overwhelming majority of the council has made clear its commitment to stop blighting our City with digital billboards that are a driving distraction and drive down property values. The vote puts the nail in the coffin on additional billboards and makes clear the desire to clean up the City and our image that we have been working so hard to promote."