• Brandweek, Monday, March 9, 2009 9:45 AM

Cash-strapped municipalities are suddenly in marketing mode, chumming up with companies ready to pay for the honor of having their ad, name or logo on a high-visibility civic property. Initiatives range from naming rights to massive vinyl ad wraps.

Chicago is selling companies the right to name individual stations stops on its "L" transit line. New York has wrapped an entire subway train, inside and out, with ads. Brooklyn is considering selling ads on city trashcans and on construction scaffolding. Several cities sell ad space on the outsides of school buses. Smaller tourist towns are more subtle. For instance, in Huntington Beach, Calif., which is dubbed "Surf City," lifeguards are given free 4WD Toyotas and in exchange Toyota calls itself the town's official vehicle and uses "Surf City" in its ads.

On the pro side of this trend: Brands get exposure in high-visibility locations that were never available to them before, and cities get a revenue stream. "It's an opportunity for advertisers to reach consumers in new, surprising and delightful ways," says a rep for the Outdoor Advertising Association of America. On the con side: the proliferation of public-space messaging is seen as "unnecessary, visual pollution." So far, the supporters are winning.

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