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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 5.3 Amend Sign Ordinance Auto Dealerships (2) CITY OF DUBLIN AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: April 27, 1992 SUBJECT: Written Communication: PA 92-018 Barber Sign Co. , Inc. - Sign Ordinance Amendment Initiation Relating to Auto Dealerships REPORT PREPARED BY: Carol R. Cirelli, Associate Planner EXHIBITS ATTACHED: Attachment 1 : Letter from Robert Rogers dated received March 23, 1992 RECOMMENDATION: 1) Hear Staff presentation. 2 ) Take testimony from Applicant. 3) Question Staff and the Applicant. .� 4 ) Deliberate and provide input. 5) Consider the Applicant ' s request to amend the Sign Ordinance relating to Auto Dealerships and provide Staff direction. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: The cost of processing a Zoning Ordinance Amendment that is initiated by the City Council cannot be charged to the Applicant. The City would incur the cost of the estimated 70-90 Staff hours needed to process the Zoning Ordinance Amendment. This project would impact some of the medium priority goals and objectives adopted by the City Council for 1992 . DESCRIPTION: The Applicant, Robert Rogers of Barber Sign Company, Inc . , representing Bruce Qvale, owner of Valley Dodge, Nissan and Volkswagen, is requesting the City Council to initiate an amendment to the Sign Ordinance to allow more signage for auto dealerships than what is currently allowed under the existing Sign Ordinance for all businesses, including auto dealerships . Currently, the Sign Ordinance applies to all businesses in the City of Dublin and does not include special provisions for auto dealerships . In general, the Applicant is requesting that a sign program be established for all auto dealerships in Dublin to allow additional signage for each automobile product line or make ( i .e. , Ford, Toyota, Mercedes, Honda, etc. ) , regardless of the existing Sign Ordinance provisions regulating the number of freestanding signs allowed, sign dimensions, maximum aggregate allowable sign area and sign location. CITY CLERK FILE U d --------- -------------------------------------------------- ITEM NO. ---- COPIES TO: Applicant/Owner Ar Senior Planner Project Planner Agenda File Application File As indicated in Attachment 1, the Applicant is proposing some limitations to the maximum number of signs that would be allowed for each product line (2 signs per product line, either freestanding or wall/projecting signs) , the maximum height of freestanding signs ( 35 feet) , and the maximum sign area allowed for each product line (200 square feet) . According to the Applicant ' s request, if an auto dealership carries 4 product lines, such as Crown Chevrolet located on Dublin Boulevard, the auto dealership could be allowed to have 8 freestanding signs, or 4 freestanding signs and 4 wall signs, or some other combination of signs . The Applicant is also requesting that auto dealerships with nonconforming signs be allowed to retain and maintain the nonconforming signs, but not. be allowed to expand these signs until the business changes or the signs are replaced. The Ordinance requires all nonconforming business signs to be brought into conformance with the Sign Ordinance provisions by July of 1992 . Staff has already notified all businesses with nonconforming signs of this requirement. Finally, the Applicant is requesting that auto dealerships be allowed to have directional signage with a maximum sign area of 16 square feet and that these signs should not be counted toward the maximum allowable sign area for a business . The Sign Ordinance allows a maximum sign area of 8 square feet for directional signs and these signs are permitted and not counted in the total permitted aggregate allowable sign area for a business . The Ordinance does not limit the number of directional signs permitted. The Applicant ' s request, which is based on an auto dealership use and the number of product lines, is not consistent with the Sign Ordinance regulations governing wall signs and freestanding signs . Under the existing Sign Ordinance, each freestanding sign or wall sign for an auto dealership is considered a separate sign, regardless of whether they advertise the same product line or not. Signs for a particular auto dealership cannot exceed a maximum aggregate allowable sign area, which is based on the amount of building and/or tenant frontages available for signage. The Ordinance does not necessarily limit the sign area of a freestanding sign, wall sign, or combination of both freestanding and wall sign to a maximum of 200 square feet. Regarding freestanding signs, only one freestanding sign is allowed per parcel unless a parcel is 4 acres or greater in size located adjacent to a freeway or a flood control channel and freeway, in which case a maximum of 2 freestanding signs are allowed, subject to approval of a Conditional Use Permit. Freestanding sign height requirements are based on parcel size and setbacks from property lines . Freestanding signs are allowed a maximum height of 20 feet and freestanding signs located on either a collection of parcels under common ownership or use 4 acres or greater in size, or single use parcels 1 . 5 acres or greater in size may be allowed a maximum height of 35 feet, subject to approval of a Conditional Use Permit. -2- Staff does not agree with the sign provisions proposed by the Applicant, in particular, the proposed maximum number of signs for each product line. This provision may result in excessive signage on-site. A site or building can become "cluttered" with too many freestanding and/or wall signs resulting in an unattractive building or site. The Sign Ordinance currently promotes uniformity of all business signs in Dublin, which, according to the Sign Ordinance, "protects business sites from loss of prominence resulting from use of excessive signs on surrounding sites . " Allowing additional signage for only auto dealerships may result in some inequities . However, there may be some merit to amending the Sign Ordinance to allow special signage provisions for auto dealerships . Staff recognizes the unique nature of auto dealerships in that unlike other retail businesses that need only one identification sign, auto dealerships need to identify all makes of automobiles for conveniently attracting and informing the public . Auto dealerships typically attract consumers on a regional level and are dependent upon major roadway and/or freeway access, including visibility from these routes . In addition, auto dealerships usually occupy larger sites for displaying vehicles outdoors . Due to the nature of auto dealerships, the City Council may determine that auto dealerships require more signage than other retail uses in Dublin. The City Attorney reviewed the Staff Report and had no comments . If the City Council initiates the Sign Ordinance Amendment Study relative to auto dealership signage Staff will : 1) assess whether the existing Sign Ordinance already allows sufficient auto dealership signage for identifying all product lines, 2) request input/comments from other auto dealerships in Dublin that would be affected by the proposed Sign Ordinance Amendment, 3) survey and visit other cities that implement certain auto dealership sign programs to determine program effectiveness and whether program implementation results in excessive and unattractive signage, and 4) consider variations of the Applicant ' s request. Staff recommends that the City Council consider the Applicant ' s request to amend the Sign Ordinance relating to auto dealerships and to provide Staff direction. If the Sign Ordinance Amendment Study is initiated, Staff requests the City Council to indicate the priority of the Study in relationship to the other Zoning Ordinance Amendment Studies the City Council has recently authorized ( i .e. , outdoor storage, banners, C-N-District) . -3- % 7 C COMPANY INC. 600 Pennsylvania St. P.O. Box 1446 • Vallejo, CA.94590 • (707) 642-2233 FAX (707) 642-6206 March 20, 1992 Mayor Snyder City Council Members City of Dublin P.O. Box 2340 Dublin, CA 94568 Attn: Kay Keck Re: Sign Ordinance Amendments Our transmittal dated 3/10/92 Enclosed is the required fee of $100.00 to proceed. This project was initiated by the owner of Valley Dodge, Nissan & Volkswagen, Mr. Bruce Qvale. We believe his business configuration personifies situations for numerous dealerships throughout the community. We trust you will consider these ammendments as beneficial to all auto dealerships and related business services in Dublin and the surrounding area. R ega W, i R o k r s obert g cc: David Choy Bruce Qvale RECEIVED MAR 2 31992 DUBLIN PLANNING Aftafto I Pg. 3 Landscaping is encouraged in the customer and employee off-street parking areas and along the perimeter of the building in order to make the site more attractive. SIGNING STANDARDS In accordance with the sign ordinance ' s allowance for a "sign program" the following standards shall serve as the signing regulations for the Auto Dealerships . These standards take into account the physical location in relationship to major roadways, its regional drawing power and necessity for identification to customers coming from outside the City and the fact that more than one make of car may be offered by a single dealership. Maximum number of signs : Two signs which may be free standing or attached, per product line. Separate identification of makes of automobiles shall not be prohibited nor considered separate signs for purposes of determin- ing the maximum number of signs allowed. Maximum height of free standing signs : Thirty-five ( 35) feet. Maximum sign area: 200 square feet of total sign area. (does not include directional signs ) The maximum allowable sign area of 200 sq. feet may be exceeded if a dealer has an existing sign program that equals or exceeds 200 sq. ft. and the dealer acquires a franchise to sell a new make of motor vehicle. In such cases , additional sign- ing to identify the new ma ke( s ) of motor vehicle( s) will be allowed. The additional signing allowed shall not exceed the aver- age size of signs alreadv on the site identifying makes of motor vehicles . Should no such signs exist, the sign area shall not exceed 20 square feet. All such signing shall be integrated with the existing sign programs to the extent practicable and consistent with dealer franchise policies . Because it is the nature of the automobile industry to announce introduction of new models and seasonal sales through temporary signing, banners and pennants will be allowed. R E C E I V EGi-conforming signs : Existing signs not conforming to the provisions of the Special Design district MAR 2 31992 shall be allowed to, continue and be DUBLIN PLANNING Qa-o is Pg. 4 maintained but not expanded until use is changed or the sign is replaced. Directional Signs : Signs designed to give direction to locations where specific services are offered are allowed and shall not be counted toward the total allowed sign area. Maximum size for each directional sign shall be 16 square feet. The content of directional signs shall be limited to directions and not include advertising messages. RECEIVED MAR 2 31992 DUBLIN PLANNING