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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/10/1996 W H E A T R I D G E B OAR D O F A D J U S T M E N T MINUTES OF MEETING October 10, 1996 1. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Chairman WALKER at 7:30 P.M. on October 10, 1996, in the Second Floor Police Training Room of the Municipal Building, 7500 West 29th Avenue, Wheat Ridge, Colorado. _ 2. ROLL CALL: MEMBERS PRESENT: Bill Echelmeyer Paul Hovland Bob Howard Susan Junker Linda Mauro Karen Thiessen Robert Walker MEMBERS ABSENT: STAFF PRESENT: Tom Abbott Sean McCartney, Planner Karen Scott, Acting Secretary PUBLIC HEARING The following is the official set. of Board of Adjustment minutes for the Public Hearing of October 10, 1996. A set of these minutes is retained .both in the office of the City Clerk and in the Department of Planning and Development of the City of Wheat Ridge. • WHEAT RIDGE BOARD OF ADJQSTMENT MYcv~ivs$ OF MEETING: October S0, 1996 Page 2 • 2. 3 4. APPROVE THE ORDER OF THE AGENDA Motion was made Board Member ECHELMEYER, seconded by Board Member HOWARD, to approve the order of the agenda as printed. Motion carried 7-0. PUBLIC FORUM (This is the time for anyone to speak on any subject not appearing on the agenda.) No one came forward to speak. PIISLIC BEARING A. Case No. WA-96-16: An application by 3M National Advertising for approval of a 32' billboard height variance to the 32' billboard maximum height allowance for a billboard to be re-located within the B-2 billboard overlay zone district. The property is zoned Light Industrial and is located at 4909 Marshall Street. Sean McCartney presented the staff report. All pertinent documents were entered into record, which Chairman WALKER accepted. Board Member HOWARD asked if the owner of the property is present, and Mr. McCartney replied no, however the representative does have power of attorney. Board Member HOWARD also wanted to know where the notice was posted on the property, and Mr. McCartney said the applicant posted the property so he will have to address that. It was noted this property is directly behind Kiper Auto Body. Board Member ECHELMEYER asked if it's impossible for-the applicant to acquire the area that leads to Marshall Street and Mr. McCartney said it is not out of the question. Staff needs to make sure if an easement is made for them to go through that there_is enough width for the Kiper property to be developed in the future. A 30° easement will be needed to allow for access. Board Member ECHELMEYER commented if there was an easement it would open up the property for much more than just a billboard. Mr. McCartney clarified a concern stating the charter reads structures in the Light Industrial zone district can only be 50 feet high. With a variance, the Board of Adjustment is empowered to grant a 10°s above any maximum total height. Board Member HOWARD asked what are the heights on some billboards i:n the city, and Mr. McCartney replied a guess would be anywhere from 45 to 55 feet. As far as Mr. • WHEAT RIDGE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES OF MEETINGo October 10, 1996 Page 3 McCartney knows there are no billboards along the I-70 and I-76 corridor over 55 feet (relative to the ground they are standing on and not the freeway height). Discussion regarding existing and future easements on the property followed. Board Member ECHELMEYER wanted to know how this 10% of 50 feet apply differently here than it did for the billboard on I-70 west of Kipling that was restricted to 32 feet, and Mr. McCartney answered it could have been been voted on for approval. However, there were different circumstances with that case, especially there were no hardships and it was evenly graded with I-70. It was not verified, but the applicant said he measure 43 feet to grade up on I-76. Board Member THIESSEN questioned there being some doubt as to whether there is an easement to this property, and Mr. McCartney answered he could not find the easement on the property in question because specific records on that are not kept unless it becomes a plat. • The applicant, Wayne Osterloo, representing 3M National Advertising, 4650 Dahlia Street, Denver, CO, was sworn in. Mr. Osterloo is a real estate representative and part of his job is to find new locations for signs and to upgrade their existing inventory. This sign in question is kind of a combination of the two. The sign was built 20 some years ago and is currently blocked by trees. The value of it is diminishing, so they are trying to find another location to generate income for them as well as the property owner. His company is very reputable- and upstanding and believes in putting out quality products and taking care of the environment. Instead of trimming down the trees, they feel their best option would be to relocate the sign. Mr. Osterloo agrees with the nine criteria, however, wanted to clarify the unique circumstances saying the land was there and so were the codes way before the highway was built, so he blames the hardship on CDOT. Mr. Osterloo wanted to distribute a handout with codes showing how they work with other communities on sign height and grade differences along freeways, however motion was made by Board Member HOWARD the handout not be allowed because he felt they have no bearing on the case. Motion died for a lack of second. Mr. Osterloo distributed the handouts labeled Exhibit 'A', and discussed the codes and regulations from other cities. Entered into record were photos labeled • Exhibit 'B' and 'C'. • WHEAT RIDGE BOARD OF ADJ[TSTMENT M.r.xeVxES OF MEETING: October 10, 1996 Pffige 4 Mr. Osterloo did not know a billboard could only be 50' high in an industrial zone and would like to lower the request to 55° if possible. Mr. McCartney pointed out where the DAV is and the sign will be on the overhead. Board Member HOWARD was concerned with the two existing billboards on the DAV property, and Mr. Osterloo said one billboard faces I-70 and the other one is facing Marshall Street. Discussion followed regarding orientation of the signs. Board Member HOVLAND wanted to know how high would the sign have to be in order to be visible when going west on I-76, and Mr. Osterloo said the eastbound lanes are actually higher than the westbound lanes, so he feels the sign should be around 55 feet. Board Member HOVLAND asked the board if there is enough of a concern as far as this being oriented to I-70 that they need to restrict it to one direction of travel only. Board Member THIESSEN feels most billboards can be seen from a lot of different neighboring areas but orientation means the direction that the billboard is facing. Mr. McCartney said this billboard faces east and . west (which is the way I-76 runs), so the motion can state the sign is oriented east and west of I-76, thus meeting the 600 feet requirement. Board Member ECHELMEYER said he will be abstaining from voting on this case because he feels it is an unsafe. Discussion followed and Chairman WALKER felt Board Member ECHELMEYER should vote no and then state the reasons why instead of abstaining. Discussion followed with Board Member THIESSEN motioning to allow Board Member ECHELMEYER to abstain from voting on this case. Motion carried. Motion was made by Board Member HOVLAND, that Case No. WA- 96-16, an application by 3M Advertising, be approved for the following reason: 1. The Board finds that based upon all evidence presented and based upon the Board's conclusions relative to the nine specific questions to justify the variance, the evidence and facts in this case do support the granting of this request. WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. A certified stamped engineer's survey must be submitted with the building permit which calculates windload and . shows the elevational relationships between nearby I-76 and the property. • WHEAT RIDGE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES OF MEETING: October 10, 1996 Page 5 The re-designed billboard must comply with all other development regulations stated in Section 26-412 of the Wheat Ridge Code of Laws. The billboard be oriented perpendicular to Interstate 76. Motion was seconded by Board Member JUNKER. Motion carried 5-1 with Board Member HOWARD voting no, and Board Member ECHELMEYER abstaining. Resolution attached. B. Case No_ WA-96-19: An application by 3M National Advertising for approval of an 18' billboard height variance to the 32' billboard maximum height allowance for an ` existing billboard in the B-2 billboard overlay zone district. The property is zoned Commercial-Two and located at 6285 W. 48th Avenue. Sean McCartney presented the staff report. All pertinent documents were entered into record, which. Chairman WALKER accepted. • Mr. McCartney pointed out the location of the tree on the owner's property on the slides. Board Member ECHELMEYER asked will 3M remove the existing sign west of the building, and Mr. McCartney answered yes, it will be moved to 4909 Marshall Street (the previous case). There will only be one sign on the. east side. Mr. McCartney added if this request is denied there could be placed in the motion that they could rebuild the sign up to 32 feet. The sign is currently non-conforming and that is why it would need a motion. Discussion followed on non- conforming structures. The applicant, Dawn Lumberg, representative for 3M National Advertising, 4650 Dahlia Street, Denver, CO, was sworn in. She wanted to explain what they are attempting to accomplish. The sign will actually be 32 feet above the grade of I-70 and the structure will be changed from a four post to a single post which is a lot safer.. Ms. Lumberg commented on the nine criteria. There was not much vegetation problem when the sign was built in 1973, but as the years have gone by the trees have grown. A lot of these trees were planted by CDOT and are on the right-of-way and that is one of the reasons they want to make the sign • taller. The income from the sign has been lowered for both owners over the years because the visibility has lessened. Therefore, she feels the circumstances are unique. . WSEAT RIDGE SOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES OF MEETINGe ®ctober 10, 1996 Page 6 The character of the locality will not be altered because just 200 feet east on 48th Ave is a sign over 30' high, and also the sign in the VA parking lot is well over 32 feet high. Photos were entered into record, labeled Exhibit 'A'. Along with upgrading income, they would like to upgrade the sign to meet current codes. Ms. Lumberg said changing the sign to one pole-will reduce vandalism as it has in other parts of city. Ms ., Lumberg feels everyone will benefit, including the city, from the upgrading of the sign. Board Member THIESSEN stated again for clarification that the sign is currently 32' and the applicant will add on 18' to make the total height of the billboard 50'. Two photos were entered into record, labeled Exhibit °B°. Board Member HOWARD asked what is-the square footage of_the existing sign, and Ms. Lumberg replied 672 square feet. Board Member HOWARD wanted to know the setbacks on the east property line, and Ms. Lumberg believes 50 feet from 48th Avenue to the edge of sign. Board Member HOWARD asked if • this will be a two faced-sign, and Ms. Lumberg said it has not been discussed at this point, it is only one face now. The owner of the property, Bernice Major, 6285 W. 48th Avenue, was sworn in. Chairman WALKER asked if the tree that is in the way of the sign on her property, and Ms. Major answered she does not actually know because the tree is-right on the edge of the road. Chairman WALKER asked if the tree could be replaced with a smaller tree and Ms. Major said this would not seem a good option because she is a 'tree person° and feels nature should take precedence. Mr. McCarthy interjected if the tree is on city property, the city arborist would have to approve of the removal. Ms. Major added there are trees further east, so there are more problems that just this one tree. Mr. McCartney said to clarify a concern brought up, the on- site sign is known as a free-standing sign. The city regulations read that a sign located within a quarter mile of a freeway can be 50 feet high. Board Member HOWARD wanted to know if someone purchased the • empty Commercial-One property to the east and put up a structure what would the setback be, and Mr. McCartney • WHEAT RIDGE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES OF MEETING: October 10, 1996 Page 7 replied a 50' frontyard and a 5' sideyard. The allowable height would be 50 feet. Board Member ECHELMEYER asked if approved, would the sign be the way it is on the larger blowup, and Ms. Lumberg answered approximately, and explained further the difference between the two pictures. Board Member ECHELMEYER asked if being only one sided would change relationship to the number of permitted billboards, and Mr. McCartney replied no as billboards are counted per structure, not per face. No further questions were asked. -- Motion was made by Board Member HOVLAND that Case No. WA-96- 19, an application by 3M Advertising, be DENIED for the following reasons: 1. The Board finds that based upon all evidence presented and based upon the Board's conclusions relative to the • nine questions relative to justify the variance, the evidence and-facts in this case do not support the granting of this variance. 2. Due to the fact the hardship is self-imposed and no unique circumstances exists upon this site which would warrant approval. Board Member THIESSEN stated she is in favor of the motion because there is no unique circumstances. The obstruction is not that great to grant this large of a variance. Motion seconded .by Board Member MAURO. Motion carried 6-1, with Board Member ECHELMEYER voting no. Resolution attached. Board Member HOWARD asked 3M if there any intention on their part to upgrade this sign, and Mr. Osterloo answered possibly. Discussion followed. 5. CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING 6. OLD BUSINESS • • WHEAT RIDGE SOARD OF ADJIISTMENT MuuviaS OF MEETING: October 10, 1996 Page 8 7o NEW BUSINESS A. Motion was made by Board Member HOWARD, seconded by Board Member THIESSEN, to hold the November-December meeting on December 12, 1996. Motion carried 7-0. 8. ADJOURNMENT Motion for adjournment was made by Board Member HOVLAND. Motion carried._ Meeting adjourned at 10:00 p.m. Mary~L u~ Yiapla, Secretary