First glitzy interactive kiosks hit Seattle's streets
The first of many 8-foot-tall digital street-level billboards were switched on Tuesday, almost a year after the Seattle City Council approved their use in a divided vote.
The Downtown Seattle Association cut the ribbon on installations at First Avenue and Pike Street near Pike Place Market, and Fourth and Pine just up the road. The rollout has been slower than expected. Boosters hope to see a total of 30 around downtown Seattle within the next 10 to 12 months.
The privately owned and maintained billboards resemble enormous smartphones. Their touch screens promise valuable information to locals and tourists seeking restaurant recommendations, bus schedules, information on upcoming events and emergency announcements.
We want to make it easier for people to find their way downtown and find their way to all the great things happening downtown, said Jon Scholes, president and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association.
When not being used, the billboards rotate between advertisements and the work of local artists.
They are owned by IKE Smart City, which has promised to keep them updated and in working condition for at least the next 20 years. The company's main revenue source is via the ads.
The Downtown Seattle Association was the main proponent and will be the primary beneficiary of their arrival here. Once the first 30 are up and running, the pro-business and tourism group will receive $1.1 million a year from the kiosks and IKE Smart City would keep the rest.
The City Council got involved because the kiosks' installation represents a private use of public space - the first since the council allowed the now-defunct Pronto bike share to come to the city in 2014.
Supporters on the council, primarily former Councilmember Sara Nelson, liked what the billboards offered on their own, as well as what the revenue could provide. Though the dollars will not flow into city coffers, the council stipulated that the Downtown Seattle Association must use the revenue for the benefit of downtown. That could include funding its ambassador program - the green-coated people who clean, water and act as conduits to social services.
Skeptics worried about the aesthetics of flashing digital billboards spotted throughout downtown and questioned how much use they'd see when people already carry smartphones in their pockets. The city's Design Review Commission recommended against allowing them to proceed, a nonbinding but notable position.
Conversations about rolling out the digital wayfinders date back years, before Seattle was selected as a World Cup destination. But the push found new life after Seattle was chosen.
The Downtown Seattle Association had hoped to have 30 up and running by the time the games started. But the rollout was delayed and there will only be the two.
Eventually, the city could have as many as 80 in Ballard, the University District, West Seattle and Sodo.
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