We have an exciting announcement! Minoh will be tasked with the construction of Toronto’s first floating billboard. Set to be launched this spring, the billboard will be moored along the Toronto Island ferry route just in time for the city’s yearly influx of tourists. We are thrilled by the opportunity to really explore this new frontier in sign based advertising, as the city has just begun to expand the signage by-laws to include ‘aquatic zones’. Which will include the Toronto harbour, lakes and larger ponds, as well as some public pools, no word yet on whether these new bylaws will include moving water systems such as rivers and streams yet.
So how did this come to be? While we are unable to yet reveal the content off the billboard until its launch in early may, we can reveal that is has been commissioned by a new advertising agency that hopes to deal specifically with what we are calling ‘buoyant advertising” which includes any advertising or signage that is anchored and floats on the surface of a body of water, rather than being built directly into the lake-bed.
“We were thrilled to win this bid, this is a massive leap forward for Minoh” says Kyle Gatt, our founder and CEO “this opportunity is a game-changer, not just for us but for sign makers across Ontario”.
Construction on the project is already well underway, and one of the things we had to consider was the safety and environmental impact of the billboard, and its effect on the local wildlife. One of our main concerns was how to warn away not only the flocks of waterfowl, but also the flocks of Torontonians that may attempt to ‘perch’ on the sign, but our design team came up with the perfect solution.“It’s two birds with one stone really, pardon the pun” says Marco Marin, our lead designer, referring to the deterrent system that we developed to address the issue, “every quarter hour the sign will emit a short audio clip, recorded by our own production manager Kieron Daly, who is just starting to learn the bagpipes, the idea is the sound will discourage birds and adventurous teenagers from nesting there.” he says with a chuckle.
We are also in the process of deliberating on what the best materials will be for the job, “the plan right now is to run a few tests, see what materials offer the best float margin, while maintaining structural integrity, not to mention they must withstand the elements unlike any sign we have made before” says Dwayne Burton, our materials expert, “I admit the task is kind of daunting, I mean I don’t even want to think about what will happen if anything goes wrong, I keep picturing the billboard coming loose and ending up on a beach somewhere in Rochester or something. That being said I do believe in us, if anyone can pull it off it’s this team”. Despite the challenges this billboard presents, we at Minoh are confident that we will produce something unlike anything this city has seen before, something that locals and tourists alike can look forward to.
Along the same vein as the giant floating duck of years past, we hope that this billboard will become not only a great opportunity for advertisers to reach their target audience, but also a new landmark for the people of Toronto and tourists alike to visit. Given its size, standing (or rather floating) at 15 ft high and 25ft long, the billboard will be an impressive addition to Toronto’s already vibrant harbourfront. And provide a space not only for advertisers, but hopefully for local artists as well.
Follow along with us over the next few months as we take you through the process of creating this new buoyant billboard; from concept, to design, to production, and finally its launch into Lake Ontario. It will be quite the journey for your local sign shop!