|
Staff Report:
Issue
The Zoning Administrator cited the New Baltimore Volunteer
Fire Company for having a portable “Bulletin Board” type
sign on its property in September 2007, asking that it be
removed. The sign violated numerous provisions of the Zoning
Ordinance: 1) no sign permit had been issued, 2) the sign
exceeded the size allowed; 3) the sign included content that
is not allowed (goes beyond identification), and 4) the sign
is located at least partially within the VDOT
right-of-way. The citation created significant concern
with the New Baltimore Company as well as other Fire
Companies, because they rely on such signs to announce
activities they sponsor as well as utilizing them for public
service announcements (i.e., the recent “burn ban lifted”).
In recognition of the importance of the signage to the Fire
Companies, former Supervisor Downey asked staff to work on a
text amendment that would allow such “bulletin board” type
signs at Fire Stations.
Background
The Zoning Ordinance currently establishes a general
standard of a maximum of 32 square feet of signage for
non-residential uses located in the rural and residential
zoning districts, with multiple signs allowed so long as the
total square footage does not exceed the 32 square feet. The
rules further limit the signage to displaying only the name
and use. Three specific uses are given additional
flexibility:
1. Farms may have a total of 50 square feet of signage, provided no
single sign exceeds the 32 square foot limit, and farm signs
may include content advertising the products of the farm.
2. Churches may have one sign for each frontage, with a maximum of
50 square feet in total signage and a maximum of 32 square
feet for any individual signs, and may display additional
information (i.e., activities) on a “bulletin board” type
sign.
3. A Farm Supply Establishment located on a major arterial may have
up to 150 square feet of signage with approval of a special
permit where it can be demonstrated the signage is needed
for safety reasons.
Fire stations located in rural and residential zoning
districts have no special requirements and are therefore
subject to the general limit of 32 square feet, which can be
allocated amongst multiple signs.
Fire Stations located in Commercial and Industrial zoning
districts have more flexibility under the current
regulations. They are allowed two square feet of signage
for the first 50 feet of building frontage, plus one
additional square foot of signage for each additional foot
of building frontage. Up to 50 square feet of the total
signage allowed may be in a freestanding sign.
The table below summarizes sign information for the rescue
and fire stations in the County. Staff would note that many
of these signs were placed without the required sign permit.
|
Fire Station Name |
Zoning |
Signage (Square Feet) |
|
Message Board |
Other Freestanding |
Building |
Total |
Allowed |
|
In Residential/Rural
Districts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Catlett VFC & Rescue |
R-1 |
0 |
0 |
8 |
8 |
32 |
|
Goldvein VFC & Rescue |
V |
0 |
0 |
32 |
32 |
32 |
|
New Baltimore VFC &
Rescue |
R-1 |
43 |
20 |
17 |
80 |
32 |
|
Orlean VFC |
RA/V |
31 |
8 |
0 |
39 |
32 |
|
In Commercial
Districts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Catlett – Station 12 |
C-1 |
27 |
0 |
0 |
27 |
150 |
|
Lois VFC |
C-2/RA* |
27 |
0 |
31 |
58 |
131 |
|
Marshall VFC |
C-1 |
39 |
0 |
35 |
74 |
114 |
|
Marshall Vol. Rescue
Squad |
C-1 |
26 |
0 |
55 |
81 |
120 |
|
Upperville VFC |
CV |
31 |
15 |
0 |
46 |
123 |
* Station located on C-2
zoned portion of lot
Note: All square footages
of signage are estimates
Discussion
The key issues that need to be addressed are:
1) content of signs;
2) amount of signage; and
3) number of freestanding signs.
Change In Content
Identification signs for businesses and institutions located
in the rural and residential districts are currently limited
by the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance to only displaying
“name and use.” Only farms and churches are given explicit
permission to add additional content to signage: church
signs may have “bulletin boards” for announcements, and farm
signs may advertise specific products. This limitation is
problematic, not only for fire stations, but also for other
public or quasi-public uses located in rural and residential
districts (i.e., schools) which also typically have
“bulletin board” type signage to display activities and
announcements. And, in fact, schools have historically
been allowed to have “bulletin boards” as part of their
signage despite the existing language of the ordinance.
Therefore, staff recommends that the existing language be
changed to allow the additional content for not just fire
stations but all public uses, as follows:
3. Identification Signs:
A. Signage, not exceeding
thirty two (32) square feet in area, for the purpose of
showing the name and use of any lawful, non residential use
within these districts for which other signage standards are
not specifically set forth, when such signage is erected or
displayed on the property. In
addition to displaying name and use, signage for public uses
and schools, whether public or private, may also display
information about activities and announcements.
Home occupations are not such uses qualifying under this
subsection. One sign not exceeding two (2) square feet in
area shall be permitted for each single family home. Height
not to exceed ten (10) feet.
No change is necessary for signs in Commercial and Industrial
districts, as those regulations already allow content beyond
identification.
Amount of Signage
The amount of signage allowed would have to be significantly
increased, from the current 32 square feet to at least 80
square feet, in order to accommodate the existing
announcement sign at the New Baltimore Fire Station. Other
stations located in rural and residential districts
currently have between 8 and 39 square feet of signage.
Because stations located in commercial and industrial
districts are allowed more signage, none of the existing
stations located in commercial districts exceed their
current allocation of signage. Signage amounts in the
commercial districts range from an estimated 27 to 81 square
feet.
Staff has some concerns that increasing the amount of
signage allowed for fire stations to 80 square feet may be
excessive for rural and residential areas and is
inconsistent with the signage allowed for other public and
quasi-public uses, which are restricted to 32 to 50 feet.
Both schools and churches have demonstrated over the years
that a “bulletin board” type sign can be accommodated within
the existing 32 to 50 square foot limit. For example, the
new Auburn Middle School was permitted two 16 square foot
signs, each of which incorporated a “bulletin board” for
announcements. If the Planning Commission and/or Board of
Supervisors has concerns about increasing the amount of
signage to 80 square feet, staff has prepared an alternative
amendment which would limit fire stations to 32 square feet
but would legalize existing situations, making them
non-conforming and requiring them to be replaced with
conforming signs at new fire stations and within five years
at existing fire stations. This approach would allow fire
companies to continue to utilize their existing signs for as
along as five years (or other period established by the
Board in the ordinance) while making sure that new signs are
more consistent with the residential neighborhoods around
them. Staff has presented both approaches for the Board’s
consideration, with the language for each shown below:
Alternative 1: Increase signage to 80 square feet
C. Notwithstanding the limitations
set forth in 3A, above, any Fire Station shall be permitted
a total of 80 square feet of signage.
Alternative 2: Keep signage at 32 square feet but
temporarily allow excess signage
C. Notwithstanding the limitations
set forth in 3A, above, any Fire Station with existing
signage exceeding the 32 square foot limit as of January 1,
2008, whether or not legally permitted by the County, shall
be allowed the additional signage until January 1, 2013
except that all signage shall be brought into conformance at
such time as any new sign for a fire station is permitted by
the County for such fire station.
Number of Freestanding Signs
A third issue identified from Staff’s survey of the existing
signs at Stations relates to the number of freestanding
signs. Staff’s survey of the existing signage at Fire and
Rescue Stations identified three Stations which had both a
freestanding identification sign and a freestanding
“bulletin board” sign (New Baltimore, Upperville, and Orlean),
with a fourth Station utilizing a sign intermittently
(Marshall Rescue). While multiple freestanding signs are
allowed in the rural and residential districts, all uses in
commercial districts are permitted only a single
freestanding sign. Therefore, the third issue for the
Planning Commission and Board’s consideration is whether or
not multiple freestanding signs should be allowed for
Stations. While multiple signs would already be possible in
the Rural and Residential districts, these signs would
necessarily be smaller because of the absolute limit on
square footage that now exists. If the absolute limit is
increased, the appropriateness of multiple signs on Rural
and Residential parcels may also be an issue the Planning
Commission and Board would like to address.
Staff has not included any proposed language to address this
issue. If the Planning Commission or Board of Supervisors
wish to increase the number of signs allowed for fire
stations in Commercial Districts, changes must be made to a
different section of the Zoning Ordinance. Therefore, the
item would need to be deferred so that this additional
change could be properly advertised.
Process
This text amendment was initiated by the Board of
Supervisors on December 13, 2007. The Planning Commission
held a public hearing on the issue on January 31, 2008, and
recommended that neither signage option be implemented, but
rather that the signage issue be addressed as part of the
broader signage text amendment initiated by the Board of
Supervisors last month. Zoning Staff met with
representatives from the various Volunteer Fire Companies at
their monthly meeting in February to share the proposed
amendments. Fire Companies clearly prefer an alternative
which would allow them to keep existing signage and which
would not require any extra approval process for the
additional signage. |