Any day now, motorists driving south on Interstate 15 from Helena will encounter a billboard instructing them to get off the highway.
In Boulder.
The Bounder Transition Advisory Committee (BTAC) Marketing Committee has long imagined a highway sign that would divert traffic to the city. With financial support from Southwest Montana Tourism and the City of Boulder, the billboard is about to become real.
The 14-foot by 48-foot advertisement will rise on a billboard just north of the Jefferson City interchange, visible from the highway’s southbound lanes. It will stay there for at least a year, says Kerri Kumasaka, the Marketing Committee member who has headed the effort.
“I’ve had my eye on this [billboard] for a long time,” Kumasaka said. The sign has recently advertised Boulder Hot Springs, where Kumasaka is general manager. “We’ve had a dream of having a billboard to bring more people off the highway and into Boulder.”
This year, the group received a $2,500 grant from Southwest Montana Tourism to support the billbord. The City of Boulder also allocated funds in its budget. (Kumasaka declined to discuss the total cost of the advertising campaign.)
The billboard was designed by Kari Denison, until recently a Boulder resident and an aide at the Boulder Community Library. It is meant to evoke the city’s history, western legacy, and outdoors activities, with images of the county courthouse, rodeo, and snowshoeing. The text is intentionally straightforward: “Take exit 164 and experience Boulder.”
Kumasaka hopes that the campaign will prompt some travelers to spontaneously explore Boulder on their way to Butte and points south. For others, she said, the sign may build awareness and curiosity over time, leading to visits that bring new revenue to local merchants.
