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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/17/2008 ',.~J.~ ~ ~ City of pWheatRi9ge ORIGINAL PLANNING COMMISSION Minutes of Meeting January 17, 2008 1. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Acting Chair McMILLIN at 7:05 p.m. in the City Council Chambers of the Municipal Building, 7500 West 29th Avenue, Wheat Ridge, Colorado. 2. ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS Commission Members Present: Anne Brinkman Dick Matthews John McMillin Davis Reinhart Cassie Spaniel Commission Members Absent: Jim Chilvers Jerry Scezney Kim Stewart Staff Members Present: Travis Crane, Planner II Ann Lazzeri, Recording Secretary 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 4. APPROVE THE ORDER OF THE AGENDA It was moved by Commissioner MATTHEWS and seconded by Commissioner SPANIEL to approve the order of the agenda. The motion carried 5-0. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - December 6, 2007 It was moved by Commissioner REINHART and seconded by Commissioner MATTHEWS to approve the minutes of December 6, 2007 as presented. The motion carried 4-0 with Commissioner SPANIEL abstaining and Commissioners CHIL VERS, SCEZNEY and STEWART absent. 6. PUBLIC FORUM (This is the time for any person to speak on any subject not appearing on the agenda.) Planning Conunission Minutes January 17, 2008 There was no one to address the Commission at this time. 7. PUBLIC HEARING A. Case No. ZOA 07-01: An ordinance amending Article VII of Chapter 26 concerning the regulation of billboards. The case was presented by Travis Crane. He entered all pertinent documents into the record and advised the Commission there was jurisdiction to hear the case. He reviewed the staff report and digital presentation. Commissioner MATTHEWS asked if all existing billboards conformed to the proposed setback requirements. Mr. Crane stated that new setback requirements would render approximately 90% ofthe billboards nonconforming. In many cases the impact of a billboard affects adj acent property owners who have a large billboard five feet from their property line. There is no amortization period for nonconforming billboards to become conforming. Chair McMILLIN asked to hear from members of the public. Richard Holme Davis Graham & Stubbs 1550 17th Street, Denver Mr. Holme stated that he represents CBS Outdoor, Lamar Advertising and Mile High Outdoor. After meeting with advertising representatives and city staff, he believed the language in the ordinance was acceptable with a few changes. Mr. Holme requested that the requirement for downcast lighting be removed. He suggested that Dark Skies is an idea whose time has not yet corne and that, to his knowledge, this requirement does not exist anywhere else in Colorado. Upcast lighting fixtures are less obtrusive than downcast lighting fixtures. He requested that the height limitation be raised from 32 feet to 45 feet noting that some billboards are partially blocked by buildings and sound walls along I-70. Regarding the easement issue, he stated that if a company acquires a permanent easement, there is no reason to gain approval from the owner of the remainder of the property. He preferred to see spacing requirements of 500 rather than 600 feet noting that 500 feet is required by CDOT and FHA. He expressed concern about the side setback requirements. Many times, it would be impossible to get the amount of setback required in the ordinance. He also disagreed that electronic variable message signs should be prohibited as they are the new technology in outdoor advertising. State statutes allow these signs as long as the message doesn't change more than every four seconds. Planning Commission Minutes 2 January 17, 2008 Steve Richards Mile High Outdoor Advertising 300 E. Hampden Mr. Richards' company has three billboards in Wheat Ridge and asked about general repair and maintenance requirements. Mr. Crane replied that the ordinance does provide for general upkeep and repair without requiring a building permit or temporary removal permit. In regard to downcast lighting, Mr. Richards stated that this type of lighting is less attractive because the lighting structure has to go out from the top in order for the lights to shine down. Downcast lighting is more difficult and less safe to access for repair, changing lights, etc. In regard to height limitations, he stated that his company has one sign that is affected by a sound wall which makes it difficult to lease. Russ Anderson 6470 48th Avenue Mr. Anderson has a billboard on his property and expressed concern that the lottery would be dictating to a property owner who he must do business with. Mr. Crane explained that the ordinance does not prevent a property owner from negotiating with specific sign companies to choose the company to be placed in the lottery. Dan Scherer 6115 Rogers Court Mr. Shearer did not wish to speak but indicated in was in favor of the ordinance as written. Cheryl Wise 4901 Marshall Ms. Wise stated that she is owner of Copper fields Event Center at 4901 Marshall. She asked that the Commission keep the purpose of billboards in mind which is to promote commerce and industry. She questioned the $500 inspection fee because she believed $250 is acceptable. She considered the $1500 renewable fee to be exorbitant. She favored a smaller setback between billboards and I-70 and a billboard height based on topography. She was in favor of downcast lighting which provides safety and reduces vandalism on a property. She also spoke in favor of electronic signs. Flexibility should be built into spacing requirements. Each circumstance should be analyzed on an individual basis. Mark Giordano United Advertising 498 West Iliff, Denver Mr. Giordano is the owner of United Advertising. He was opposed to the downcast lighting requirement because this type of lighting requires a large Planning Commission Minutes 3 January 17, 2008 structure on top of the billboard and is more dangerous to service. In addition, these structures are aesthetically unpleasing. Setback requirements would make most of the billboards nonconforming and could result in loss of a billboard for a property owner who wished to move a billboard. He was opposed to the 600 foot spacing requirement. He was in favor of the electronic signs. He stated they could be tied into public address systems for announcements such as Amber alerts, tornado warnings, etc. He also stated that studies have shown there are no safety issues associated with these signs. He offered to provide a copy of these studies to city staff. Chair McMILLIN asked if there were other individuals who wished to address the Commission. Hearing no response, he closed the public hearing. In response to some comments made by the public, Mr. Crane explained that greater setbacks would not prevent billboards from being placed elsewhere on a property. He also noted that there are no vacant billboards under the present 35 foot height limit. He stated that he would not be opposed to 500-foot spacing which is the same as CDOT requirements. City Council requested that electronic signs be prohibited in the ordinance. Commissioner BRINKMAN stated that she would prefer to have billboards as close to I-70 as possible. She favored the downcast lighting. Since the 35 foot requirement was probably instituted before the sound barrier walls were constructed, she would be in favor of a 45- foot height limitation. She was opposed to electronic signs. Commissioner McMILLIN suggested differentiating between I-70 setbacks and adj acent property setbacks. Commissioner REINHART agreed with Commissioner McMILLIN's suggestion. He expressed concern that an advertising company might be afraid they would lose their right to a billboard if they had to take a billboard down for some reason. Mr. Crane explained that the ordinance provides for routine maintenance and it would not prohibit a company from removing and replacing a part of the structure for safety reasons. Commissioner REINHART commented that there is a history of only one billboard that could have potentially moved. Mr. Crane stated that the proposed ordinance was written in a manner to protect against future litigation. In response to a question from Commissioner SPANIEL, Mr. Crane stated that all existing billboards have up lighting. Downcast lighting would only be required for new billboards. Planning Conunission Minutes 4 January 17, 2008 Commissioner REINHART stated that he would vote for the ordinance as it is written with staffs recommended conditions. Commissioner MATTHEWS stated that he would have no objection to a 45-foot height limitation or 500-foot separation between signs. In regard to fees, he commented that fees have to be related to the cost of administering the program. Commissioner SPANIEL commented that she would not object to increasing the height limitation or to allowing electronic signs. Commissioner McMILLIN stated that, as a strong proponent of Dark Skies, he agreed with downcast lighting. He suggested that the height ofthe lighting structure should not be counted against the height of the billboard. He suggested exempting setbacks for I-70 frontage. The purpose of setbacks is to insulate adjacent properties. He agreed that electronic signs should be prohibited because, for one reason, they would be too difficult to regulate. He stated that it would be proper to give variances where the base of a sign is on relatively low terrain. He supported a 45-foot height limit because the billboards are fairly insulated from neighborhoods. It was moved by Commissioner MATTHEWS and seconded by Commissioner REINHART to recommend approval of the proposed ordinance amending Article VII of Chapter 26 concerning the regulation of billboards. With the following conditions: 1. Change the maximum height to 45 feet. 2. Change spacing requirements to 500 feet. 3. Add B.1.e. which states "Failure to notifY the Department of intent to temporarily remove a billboard structure." 4. Remove all references to the 10-day window and replace with "application period. " 5. Change the 30-120 day lottery window to a 60-90 day lottery window. 6. Add the following language to F: "With respect to any single location within the B-2 billboard district, only one application will be entered into the drawing. In the event multiple applications for single location are submitted, none will be entered into the drawing unless all but one are withdrawn. " The motion carried 5-0 with Commissioners CHILVERS, SCEZNEY and STEWART absent. 8. OTHER ITEMS Planning Commission Minutes 5 January 17, 2008 . Mr. Crane encouraged Commissioners to attend the audio/web conferences listed in the memo attached to the meeting packet. Training sessions are being planned for the Commission. . Travis Crane announced his resignation from the city as of February 13th to accept a position with the city of Raleigh, North Carolina. Commission members offered congratulations and expressed appreciation for Mr. Crane's service to the city. 9. ADJOURNMENT It was moved by Commissioner REINHART and seconded by Commissioner SPANIEL to adjourn the meeting at 8:53 p.m. The motion carried 5-0. ,// ~.~ ' ~l./ /~ Ann Lazzeri, Recordin S~etary Planning Conunission Minutes 6 January 17, 2008