On October 13, the City Council forwarded a request from Kwik Star to modify the sign regulations in the “CGS” Convenience General Service Zone design standards. In the attached letter, Kwik Star requested two text amendments: one for extension of special use permits and one for sign changes. This report addresses the second part of the request.
The request asks for a modification of the sign standards in Section 29.810(12) to generally allow for:
- To allow one additional wall sign,
- To allow one additional monument sign,
- To allow for additional sign area for incidental signs, and
- To allow to an electronic message sign as part of a monument sign
The requests are described in greater detail below:
1) WALL SIGNS:
The current code states a limit of a wall sign area for each building, including 16 square feet for a sign and up to 70 square feet for a sign facing an arterial street.
The request specifically asks for the number of allowed walls signs on a building to be increased from the current two signs per tenant space to three wall signs. Kwik Star asks for the cumulative total of 86 feet to then be divided by three signs.
The standard for the maximum number of wall signs is intended to control the appearance of building/wall signage to avoid buildings displaying large excessive amounts of signage in residential areas and to avoid the appearance of a large scale commercial area. In the case of fuel canopies, signage on the side of a fuel canopy would be categorized as a wall sign, since a canopy is classified as a structure.
Kwik Star believes the three street frontages are unique and warrant an additional sign. While Staff can support three signs, Staff believes allowing additional signs that could be on the canopies versus the buildings is not desirable.
2) NUMBER OF MONUMENT SIGNS PER LOT:
The request asks for an increase in the number of allowed monument signs per lot from the current one sign per lot to an allowance of two signs per lot for sites with frontage on two or more arterial or major collector streets.
The current standards aims to control the number of monument signs to one sign per site to avoid the appearance of multiple monument signs on a single site with multiple sign faces that could face or appear in or near a residential neighborhood and replicate the appearance of larger scale commercial areas.
This change would apply to other corner sites in the CGS zoning districts located along Stange Road. It would permit three properties to have an additional monument sign, including Casey's, Fareway, and the carwash.
Kwik Star asks that if two monument signs are allowed, that one would be the arterial standard allowance of 12 feet in height and 64 square feet of area. The second monument would be the standard size of 8 feet in height and 32 square feet of area.
3) CUMULATIVE AREA OF INCIDENTAL SIGNS:
Unique to CGS there is a category of incidental signs, which is separate from wall and monument signs. Incidental signs are non-illuminated. The current standards restrict to a total cumulative area of 32 square feet of incidental signage per building for wall signs and eight square feet for ground signs. Kwik Star is requesting that the cumulative area of all incidental ground signs not exceed 30 square feet so as to accommodate adequate numbers of ‘No Parking’ signs and other directional signs.
The restriction on cumulative area of incidental signs is meant to control the number of scattered small signs such as parking and directional signage on a site to avoid the appearance of multiple scattered smaller signs causing a greater commercialized appearance in a residential neighborhood.
Typically, these signs are not accounted for separately and, therefore, staff has no concerns about these types of incidental and directional signage since they are nonilluminated.
4) ELECTRONIC MESSAGE SIGNS (EMC)
Kwik Star is requesting that the standards governing Electronic Message Signs in CGS be modified to allow full LED sign displays.
Currently, “Computerized Digital Scrolling signs” are permitted if the lot on which it is located abuts an arterial street and the digital scrolling sign faces the arterial street. However, this description also conflicts with the sign lighting standards that prohibit internal illumination and requires a dark background. Staff believes the scrolling types of digital signs are meant to be traditional “letter only” style signs that display only letters or numbers that were common in the early 2000s (e.g., “time and temp signs”).
Kwik Star requests to allow for contemporary electronic signs for digital display of wording and images in a modern format. Kwik Star has this type of sign in place at its other locations for comparison.
The request specifically proposes to allow Electronic Message Center (EMC) Signs and for the brightness to be allowed at 8,000 nits during the day and 320 nits at night. Nits are a unit of measurement for light output on electronic message boards. The higher the nits the more intense the light output, especially in concentrated spaces. Higher values are needed in bright ambient conditions and lower value are appropriate in darker conditions.
Digital Lighting elements present a major sensitivity issue in areas that are intended to be residential and can often be incompatible with residential neighborhoods. This request is the most sensitive of the requested changes.
CGS intends for no internally lit signs, but has confusing language compared to modern sign terms. EMCs are allowed in other zoning districts and only controlled by the Sign Code for message display time without lighting or brightness controls. Staff recently highlighted this same issue in regards to the HOPE Church request for signs in residential areas.
Staff has concerns that an entire monument sign could be an EMC. The level of brightness proposed is at the upper end of an allowance that may not be compatible in some settings with residential from staff’s limited experience with the issue.
Option 1 - Initiate changes to CGS zoning standards as requested by Kwik Star. This would allow Kwik Star to apply for a text amendment as requested. Staff would draft amendments addressing the application and proceed to P&Z for review and then Council. This project process would likely occur over the next 2-3 months.
Option 2 - Initiate a limited number of changes requested by Kwik Star to the CGS standards, but not allow the requested change dealing with electronic message signs. Kwik Star would apply for text amendment and the staff then would draft changes and remove any reference to scrolling signs.
Option 3 - Take No Action. This option would elect to keep the existing standards as they are and not proceed with any action to amend the CGS sign standards.
Option 4 - Take No Action on the Kwik Star request, but direct staff to address the electronic message sign standards and eliminate the scrolling sign allowance in CGS, regardless of the requests by Kwik Star.
The CGS zone and associated design standards were developed to create compatibility within or very near residential areas in a neighborhood setting. The standards prioritized compatibility over identification.
Staff believes that some of the requests for changes to the Sign standards in CGS can be found to be reasonable, while others may not be consistent with the original intent of the standards.
Staff note that of the three issues being raised by Kwik Starr, Issues 1 (Additional Wall and Ground Signage) and Issue 2 (Incidental Signs) could likely meet the intent of CGS and the applicant's interest. Issue 3 (Electronic Messaging Center Signs) may not ultimately be compatible with the intent of CGS and additional study would be required if the issue is initiated.
If the entire request from Kwik Star is initiated as a text amendment, staff would require 2-3 months to address the changes and fit it into current workloads.
Council could also split the request and address the EMC issue separately from the more traditional sign size and type issues. This would allow the traditional sign changes to proceed in a shorter timeframe. The EMC issue would take additional time for study and likely be tied to the residential referral that already exists.