Similar to the other businesses in the Old Yellowstone District, billboards will be allowed to stay.

There are five billboards in the area near downtown, recently slated for redevelopment, all owned by Lamar Outdoor Advertising.

Lamar general manager David Butterfield asked the Casper City Council in May to consider placing a limit on the number of billboards allowed in the area and increasing his allotment from five to eight signs.

The council will vote a final time on design guidelines for the Old Yellowstone District on Tuesday, and one of the regulations limited construction of new billboards.

Butterfield said that posed a problem for him since the billboards are on leased land, and if the leases are not renewed, he would want to relocate in the same area.

Council member Guy Padgett said he doesn't want to see billboards in this area. The city is "asking the community to make a huge commitment" to the Old Yellowstone District, he said, and he doesn't think billboards are part of the community's vision.

Council member Lynne Whalen said the signs should stay because, "we told the community we wouldn't hurt the businesses in the area, and this is a business."

She said, and the council preliminarily decided, that five billboards can remain in the area, and if any are changed more than 50 percent or moved, it will have to comply with the new design guidelines. The new guidelines call for mostly "monument" signs, which are lower to the ground and can be landscaped.

Council members also preliminarily agreed not to increase the number to eight but keep it limited to the current five. The council will formally vote on the issue in its meeting on Tuesday.

Council members will also vote to form an advisory committee for the Old Yellowstone District, to help direct the progress of the project. If approved, the committee will be comprised of two council members, two Planning and Zoning Commission members and three people from the Old Yellowstone District.

Contact city reporter Christine Robinson at (307) 266-0639 or christine.robinson@trib.com