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The selling of ad space will net an additional $40,000 for the Westchester County 2014 operating budget, according to a press release. Westchester County used its option to extend the adverising space contract one year and dealership PEPE Auto took up all 78 spots for the next 11 months, according to the press release.
Normally the contracts are for a three year term, bringing the total for the space over the contract terms to $120,000, according to the release.
"Most people are not thinking of advertising space when stuck behind a Westchester County Bee Line Bus, but that's exactly what Legislator (Sheila) Marcotte was thinking over a year ago while sitting in traffic," representatives said in the release. "In the past the Bee line buses have proven to be a great source, and steady stream of revenue for Westchester County as advertisers gobble up some of the prime spaces on both the sides as well as, the back of some buses."
The back of the reticulated buses were not being utilized for advertising space due to the smaller size of the space available, according to the release.
Marcotte disagreed with Titon officials who said the space was too small for advertising and argued" that in this tough economy regular customers might jump at the chance to advertise in such a prime spot and would welcome the smaller, and cheaper, spots," according to the release.
"Many of my colleagues and I are all too familiar with the reality of diminishing revenues and lower budget lines such as once heavily relied upon mortgage tax and sales tax." Marcotte said. "As Legislators we have to constantly look for ways to keep taxes low and increase revenue streams, $40,000 may be a drop in the bucket of a $1.7 billion budget - but if we approach our stewardship of county assets and operations more like a business, the aggregate of these savings and revenues quickly add up to a significant figure.”
Marcotte, who represents Eastchester, Tuckahoe and New Rochelle, is the Chairwoman of the Budget and Appropriations Committee.
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