"Topless Maid" Mobile Ads Prompt City Probe

Pink vansemblazoned with "Topless Maids" andthe phone number 818-666-HUGEare generating complaints fromBurbank residents and businesseswho don'twant the mobile billboards parked near their homes and stores.

It doesnt project the image of the city that we think we have, said Joy Forbes, Burbanks assistant city manager, who has been fielding complaints. We have a small-town feel. These types of advertising vehicles dont reflect the image of Burbank that most people have.

Forbes said that since neighboring Los Angeles recently enacted city rules that barred mobile advertising, Burbank has seen an influx of ad vans, which park for days on end andadvertise 1-hour massages and topless maid services.

The service does not have a permit to operate within the city of Burbank, Forbes said. Burbank city officials dont know if the vans are representing a legitimate business in another city.Calls to the number advertised on the van on Thursday went to voicemail,which was full.

A DMV search of the van's license plate showed that it had once been owned by a gardening service, but was transferred to an individual in July.

NBC4 tracked down the vans and several other mobile advertisements to the parking lot of a Studio City massage and manicure studio, located across the street from a dance studio.

Owner Sami Ammari said he owns several businesses and employs hundreds of people. He said he's helping the economy and can't understand the negative reaction.

"Im not advertising anything, its for transportation purposes in Burbank," Ammari told NBC4 over the phone.

He went on to say that because the ads are printed onto his vehicles, he's not violating the ordinance. However, the bright pink van advertising topless maids does have an attached sign.

Burbank is writing rules they hope will allow officials to effectively regulate mobile billboards, and the City Council could take up the issue before the end of the year. In the meantime, to combat the problem, the city has beenenforcing a city municipal code that bars vehicles from parking on streets for more than 72 hours.

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"Topless Maid" Mobile Ads Prompt City Probe