City Sees Dollars Signs For Bridge Ads

By Anna Deem in News on Jan 8, 2011 6:45PM

It's been seven months since Mayor Daley brought up the idea of selling space on Chicago's historic bridge houses for advertisements and now City Hall has taken the matter into their own hands. A Lincolnshire-based company, Fresh Picked Media, has been distributing a brochure on the city's behalf establishing bench prices for what they are calling "iconic locations in the heart of downtown Chicago." The following is a list of several locations and how much they're going for:

"Lake Shore Drive: $140,000 a month to decorate four bridge houses seen by 121,000 pedestrians and vehicles each day. Companies would pay an additional $25,000 for installation and creative expenses, with all work approved by the city.

Wabash: $70,000 a month for two bridge houses with 30,900 in daily traffic.

State Street: $70,000 a month for two bridge houses seen by 46,600 pedestrians and vehicles."

So far several Chicago-based companies like Boeing, Allstate Insurance, and Walgreens have expressed interest, city officials said. "We know there is strong interest because this is a unique and attractive opportunity," said Brian Steele, a spokesman for the city's Department of Transportation, to the Chicago Sun-Times.