Q: "Is there an entry for the banners that hang over a few streets downtown?" There always used to be some across Fifth as it meets A Street, across E Street as you come out of the tunnel, across B Street near Third, and a couple other spots. "Do they have an official name? Who determines who places them?"
A: Before the City undergrounded most of its wires, there were many poles which could be used to hang large banners. These were approved by the City and sometimes put up by City staff. Other times civic groups (like Rotary) volunteered to hang them. Now that there are fewer poles, the overhead banners have mostly disappeared. INSTEAD, the railing leading into the Richards bike tunnel from First Street is used. This is visible from cars heading south out of downtown. One needs to get approval from the City -- thru Bob Bowen's office in the Hunt-Boyer Mansion -- and then hang your own banner. Each banner is supposed to be up only for a few days (2 weeks max) for any given event. (Since the Arboretum promotes several spring Plant Sales on the same banner, theirs is up for almost 2 months. Whole Earth Festival has a standing agreement to use that space as soon as the last Arb Sale takes place -- meaning WEF gets from 1-2 weeks of showing.)
Banners that used to appear on a regular basis, reoccurring each year included:
- Tree City USA
- Picnic Day
- Celebrate Davis
- Turkey Trot
- Rotary BBQ
- There was a child abuse banner near the 113 exit and Russell -- poorly worded.
Banners that currently (as of 2017) appear on the bike tunnel railing annually are:
- UCD Arboretum Plant Sales
- Celebrate Davis
- Whole Earth Festival [WEF]
- Tree City USA
[Can someone ask Bob Bowen what events are being featured this year and update this list?]
Comments:
They are from either Rotary or the chamber Daubert
- Oh, yeah... that Rotary BBQ in Central Park is often up there too. There's a question mark after WEF because I listed it without being sure it's up there... it just seems like it should be, so I may be inventing a memory of it there. -jw
Banners were thru either the Rotary or the City Manager's office, but they were actually put up by Davis' tree crew....back when we had one...-TDD