5.1 PCSR 05-23-2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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NARRATIVE* After working with staff since January'17 on a proposed wall sign (electronic message board) for Granite Shores, per staff's direction, we submitted a CUP application for a digital wall sign on April 17, 2017. Upon submitting the CUP, staff returned the application to us, indicating that per City Code, wall signs were not permitted above the "stringcourse" in the Downtown Zoning District (DD) and provided the option to submit an ordinance amendment to accommodate our request. Current code is below: Elk River City Code Sec. 30 -873. - DD downtown district. (a) Temporary signs as permitted in section 30 -851 et seq. (b) Permanent signs. Signs should be designed to fit with the character, proportions and scale of the individual building and should complement, rather than compete with, the character of downtown. (1) One wall sign shall be allowed on each primary facade and on one secondary facade. One square foot of wall sign per one linear foot of unit width shall be allowed, and shall not project out more than eight inches. a. Wall signs shall not extend above the roofline of an adjoining building or be higher than the bottom of the stringcourse. Further, the Elk River City Code defines stringcourse as: Stringcourse means an area /band that is located at the second floor line separating the lower facade from the upper facade. It shall be created with a reveal and /or change in the brick pattern (i.e. a soldier course). The image provided to depict stringcourse in the City's Code appears to be an older, one - tenant, 2- story, "historic looking building ", identifying the stringcourse as the area between the 1St and 2nd floor of a structure. Upon observance of the current downtown buildings, we noticed that there were numerous 2- story buildings which already had an existing wall sign above the stringcourse as currently defined in Elk River City Code. Granite Shores, is the only newer 2+ story building that doesn't *Please note, while this OA is proposed for the entire downtown district, we also want to ensure our proposed wall - sign for Granite Shores fits within the current code; should staff become aware of another portion of the code which prohibits the sign as proposed, we ask staff work with us to update the code for relevance throughout this process.