Turner, city council approve digital kiosks – 'We want the best for Houston'

Houston residents and visitors will soon see interactive digital kiosks in areas that see an abundance of pedestrian activity. 

On May 5, the Houston City Council voted to approve up to 125 digital kiosks, in a close vote (10-7) after a long debate.This updates Houston's sign code and ends the 40-year ban on new billboards. The kiosks will share information about local sights and attractions and advertisements. They will be installed by a St. Louis-based company, IKE Smart City

The plan had the support of Mayor Sylvester Turner, who noted that the kiosks could provide funding for the city, and the kiosks are working well in other cities. 

"They will provide revenue and help Houstonians and tourists find cultural events, restaurants and other services," Turner wrote in a May 4 Facebook post. "The kiosks are not clutter nor are they billboards. We want the best for Houston." 

It’s Turner’s office that will approve kiosk placement.

Through a 12-year contract, the city will make a minimum of $11 million, although the vendor projects that the city could make up to $5 million from the kiosks.

District council members have been added to the list of people who will be notified about where the kiosks will be placed, although Turner’s office has the final say.

There were objections from the community as the council debated.

“We don’t support digital advertising in public space,” said Heather Houston, who represented Scenic Houston. “We never have. That’s just something we can’t get behind.”

Council members Michael Kubosh, Robert Gallegos, Sallie Alcorn, Amy Peck, Greg Travis, Mike Knox, and David Robinson all voted against the plan. Their concerns included affects on the city’s walkability, and lack of influence over the advertisements that would be displayed on the kiosks, in addition to concern about how they would affect efforts to make the city more beautiful

 Mayor Pro Tem and District E council member Dave Martin calls the kiosks a public service, based on his own experience in a different city.

“I actually used them in San Antonio when I went to a wedding there,” Martin said. “We navigated around the city by using the kiosks. Not the smartphone, but the kiosks,” Martin said. “Cell phones were supposed to be the arch-enemy of mankind 15 years ago. And now, everybody and their brother – including the homeless- have cell phones.”