Council pulls plug on stereo store's landmark signage

Stereo World's Bill Belton says he received a letter condemning his signs "out of the blue". Picture / Richard Robinson

For 25 years it's been an Auckland landmark, but "the ugly blue building" has been told to clean up its act.

Stereo World is a Mt Eden icon with its garish blue and red colours and giant signs covering its walls. Some of the signs have been in place since it opened in 1980.

But the Auckland City Council has apparently decided it's time the home video and audio store was given a makeover.

The council has told Stereo World management to pull down the signs. It says it has researched its "historical bibles" and discovered the store has no permits.

Bill Belton, co-owner, said he received a letter out of the blue and removing the signs would destroy the colour and character of the area.

"We've been here longer than the council, its officers and the councillors, but what they seem to want is a sterile city," he said.

Mr Belton said customers and other shop-owners in the area were supportive and that he had never had a complaint about the way the "landmark" looked. Over time it had become part of the business' character, with images of the store used as a logo in advertising and as a company letterhead.

"This is all pretty unreasonable and quite extraordinary," he said.

Warren Adler, council service requests manager, said action had been taken after complaints from the public.

Officers had gone back through the historical bibles of the borough and found bylaws that had been breached, because no permits had been issued.

"It needs to be seen in the context of the current council emphasis on rules surrounding signage. They need a permit," Mr Adler said.

He added that one avenue was to apply for dispensation to the rules.

Stereo World is not the first business to fall foul of the renewed clampdown on signage within Auckland.

Oversized billboards have been targeted as well as sandwich board advertising on Ponsonby Rd.

Lindsey Rea, chairwoman of the Eden/Albert Community Board, said it was a historic building and just because the signs had been there a while did not make the company exempt from the rules.

"It does stick out quite dramatically, which may benefit them commercially but that's not the objective of the signs bylaw."

The board had raised the issue and was waiting for council officers to report back. It was part of a wider look at the Valley Rd business area where "a number of signs do not comply with the laws".