A Twitter user yesterday posted a picture taken from the inside of a car of a digital sign that read “Fire Frank!” beneath the Big Bad Breakfast and David’s Burgers signs on Markham and Bowman streets. The original tweet has been deleted, but the Twitter user took the sign as confirmation that both David’s Burgers and Big Bad Breakfast were endorsing Steve Landers for the upcoming mayoral race.
Ben Brainard, the majority owner and operator of Big Bad Breakfast, tweeted this in response:
This message is (in no way) representative of or affiliated to Big Bad Breakfast. We don’t even have access to this digital sign. Should anyone wish to discuss I’m absolutely available to you. Ben Brainard ben@bigbadbreakfast.com
It has come to our attention that earlier today a ‘digital message’ displayed an inappropriate comment regarding the Mayoral race. This incident is unexplainable because the property manager assures us that the sign is inoperable. To verify this, a staff member drove by the building and confirmed that the sign is not working. In addition, no sign like this would be approved by the ownership of the building, David’s Burgers, or Big Bad Breakfast. As local business owners, this message does not align with our values because we respect both candidates and the election process.
The statement from David’s Burgers has a slightly different vibe.
We are aware of a digital sign posted at our location on Markham and Bowman. We did not post the ad. We do NOT own this building/property and have ZERO control over the digital sign. Big Bad Breakfast owns the property and controls the sign. We agree that it is highly inappropriate and do not support this. Please help us by making everyone aware.
We could be wrong, but it sounds like David’s has a big bad beef with its new neighbor.
Brainard made a post to Facebook last night that said the image was photoshopped.
After several hours of due diligence, we have confirmed the digital sign outside of our building does not work. The photo that was shared earlier today regarding Mayor Scott was photoshopped and does not (in any way) reflect the opinions of Big Bad Breakfast nor it’s ownership. We delayed making a statement so as not to implicate others without a proper understanding of what exactly had occurred. Any suggestion that Big Bad Breakfast has ownership of the building or any control of the digital sign is categorically false.
It may be the work of Russ Racop, a frequent critic of the mayor. He’s been posting “Fire Frank” memes across his social media with obviously photoshopped “signs” on businesses around town.
