Twenty-five years ago, Scenic Nevada began a determined fight to reduce the billboard and sign clutter blighting the city of Reno and obstructing its scenic views. In December 2025, the organization’s persistence led to a historic milestone.

On Dec. 14, 2025, the last remaining banked billboard permit in Reno officially expired. Under current city codes, no new billboards — static or digital — can be erected anywhere within the city limits.

A change for the better: The photo at left shows an obtrusive billboard dominating the view. The photo at right shows the same location after the billboard’s removal.

This moment has been 25 years in the making. In 2000, Scenic Nevada authored a ballot initiative to ban billboards in Reno. Voters overwhelmingly approved it, sending a clear message: residents wanted to protect scenic views, neighborhood character, and the visual identity of their city. But despite that public mandate, subsequent actions by the Reno City Council allowed new billboards to continue appearing. When an existing billboard was removed, advertising companies were permitted to relocate it elsewhere in the city — or “bank” the permit for future use.

At the time of the vote, Reno had 278 billboards. That number later grew as the city expanded through annexations. In 2012, the city went further still, approving digital billboards while banked permits quietly multiplied. What voters had sought to end instead became more entrenched in city policy and practice.

As permits accumulated and digital billboards spread, Scenic Nevada escalated its efforts. By the time the organization took the issue to court, 67 banked billboard permits remained — representing a pipeline for future signs long after voters had said no.

After years of litigation, public advocacy, and sustained community pressure, the city ultimately enacted a ban on new billboards, including digital ones. The only exceptions were the existing banked permits — but with a crucial safeguard: each permit was assigned an expiration date if it went unused.

Now, the final permit has expired.

According to city records, 201 legally permitted billboards remain in Reno today. Those signs may stay until their owners choose to remove them — but once they come down, they are gone for good. No new permits can replace them.

This is what long‑term scenic conservation looks like. After 25 years, Reno’s skyline — and its future — looks different because dedicated citizens refused to give up. Neighborhoods are spared new visual intrusions, scenic views are protected from further degradation, and residents can be confident that progress will not be reversed.

Scenic Nevada’s success is a powerful reminder that protecting scenic beauty requires patience, vigilance, and community support — and that, even when the path is long, persistence works.