That LED Barge Has Made Its Last Trip On The Rivers Around Manhattan

October 9, 2019 by Dave Haynes

New York City has reached a settlement with the Florida company that upset many residents by operating a floating LED billboard barge on the East and Hudson Rivers.

Under the terms of an agreement announced Tuesday, Ballyhoo Media must pay a $100,000 fine if its barge is seen again along the waterways. The settlement came after the city sued Ballyhoo in March, asserting that the LED boards were a “public nuisance” and the company was breaking zoning laws.

New York state also went after the company, voting in a law this summer meant to ban the boats. Ballyhoo said the new law only restricted the company to running static images, and no motion.

The state begged to differ, but now that’s a moot point.

Ballyhoo released a statement saying it was in compliance with laws and had a right to be there, but also that it decided to stop fighting the city and state and focus on pursuing opportunities elsewhere.

However, Ballyhoo also suggested it still had the right to be in navigable waters on the New Jersey side of the Hudson. So it could in theory float back and try again, given the NYC media market is likely far more lucrative than South Florida.

Gothamist refers to the barge as a TV boat, and ran news of the barge’s departure with the headline: Judge Orders Billboard Boat To Go The Hell Back To Florida