Board of Adjustment

MINUTES BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MAY 28, 2013 - 4:30 P.M. CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS PRESENT: Members Casey, Friedrich, Sawyer and Winter, Alternate Member Brown, Planning Director Rian Harkins, Chief Building Inspector Don Simon and Secretary Deb Pruss ABSENT: Chairman Bang Due to the absence of Chairman Bang, Planning Director Harkins read a statement that this meeting was preceded by publicized notice in the Fremont Tribune and the agenda displayed in the lobby of the Municipal Building and posted online at www.fremontne.gov; and distributed to the Board of Adjustment, Mayor and City Council on May 22, 2013 and is open to the public. Harkins also stated a copy of the agenda was kept continually current and available to the public at the office of the City Planner, 400 East Military. A copy of the open meeting law is posted continually for public inspection located near the entrance door by the agendas. Roll Call showed five members present. Meeting is hereby declared to be duly convened and in open session. It was moved by Friedrich, seconded by Casey to dispense with the reading of the Minutes of the February 25, 2013 Regular Meeting and approve as distributed. Roll Call Vote showed all members present voting aye – 5 ayes. Motion Carried. Planning Director Harkins stated the general public is invited to address the Board of Adjustment regarding any item on this agenda at this time or wait until discussion of their request is taking place. No public comments were received.  Consider request of Fremont High School to remove existing pole sign and erect electronic message board at the corner of 16th and Lincoln on the southwest corner of Fremont High School (1750 North Lincoln Avenue). R1 – Single Family Residential District. Article 10, Section 1007. Planning Director Harkins stated this is a request from the high school to actually take down the existing pole sign and put up a pole sign with an electronic message board where the existing pole sign currently is. The area is zoned R1 as are the adjacent properties except to the far west, being on the other side of Clarmar which is R2. In terms of land use, it is all designated as neighborhood conservation in the Comprehensive Plan. This actual location the tract is on is designated as public/institutional. As written in the staff report, the current sign regulations in the Zoning Ordinance do not allow pole signs or electronic message boards in this zoning district. The existing pole sign, however, is grandfathered under the current zoning code. The school is contending that the sign is necessary because they are the only class A high school without such a sign. This, however, would be considered a matter of convenience under state statutes not of hardship. However, in order to rezone the property in order to be in a zoning district that allows such a sign, they would have to go more than a block in any one direction and the closest location would be along 16th & Bell so we would have to extend for example GC – General Commercial Zoning over to this area for two or three blocks or the sign regulations would have to be amended to allow for signs on public property within residential zoning districts. The latter could be, however, construed as being arbitrary and capricious and a single purpose type of legislation. Because of these regulatory issues, staff is contending there is the potential for a hardship to be present and has recommended approval with the conditions that you see on the staff report. Conditions are as follows: (1) that the sign is turned off between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., (2) aside from the lighting within Page 1 of 3 the sign, there is no laminating of the sign. In other words, there will be no lights on the ground pointing up to the sign. (3) that all lighting from the sign shall not project across the street onto adjacent properties. In other words, no light spillage. (4) the sign shall only be used to convey information relating to school events. In other words, no off-site advertising. Those are staff’s recommendations. Chandler Molle of 2014 East 5th Street, Fremont, NE was present representing Fremont High School. He stated that he has been working on this project with Heidi Moran and they feel that not only is it because Fremont High School is the only Class A school that doesn’t have a sign, they feel they could get more information out to the public about what’s going on and get the public more involved with their school. With the sign that they have up now, they have to take kids out of school to go out and change that and they can only get about two messages up there. If they cannot take kids out of school to get more up there, they feel that would be more efficient for the community to know what is going on in their high school as well and get them more involved. As stated by Mr. Harkins, the sign would be shut off from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. and they would have the light not be able to shine across the street onto anybody else’s property. Member Friedrich asked if the light would be regulated off a timer. Chuck Story, representing Fremont High School, stated it would be on a timer and there is electricity on the sign already but it will shut down from what he understands. There is one other school that he has seen that had this same problem recently that just got it changed. That was Lincoln Northeast and it’s in a residential area and they just got an electronic sign. They had to have some kind of variance because for years they just had a sign very similar to Fremont High School’s although they changed theirs out a little bit more often than we have. Member Winter asked about the summertime months such as June and July. With no school, would it be shut off then or would there be events in the summer. Mr. Molle stated there are camps and summer activities that would be advertised. Member Sawyer stated he had one comment. He has exception to the staff report where it states that the sign is so old as it was actually the class of 1968, his class, that put the sign up. Sawyer stated the other problem is that he probably has those letters to change the sign if he needs them! Joking aside, Mr. Sawyer stated he thinks the school needs a new sign. Moved by Sawyer seconded by Brown to approve the request for the new sign. Member Winter asked if it was subject to the conditions listed. Mr. Story stated the sign even has a dimming mechanism. That’s what makes this so much easier to do now than ever before because of the technology. Member Sawyer stated in his motion he feels that going to the dimming would be o.k. from 9:00 a.m. to the morning because he is sure it will dim it down to where it doesn’t shine. Member Winter stated he didn’t like that because they have neighbors over there. There is not a reason it needs to be on he doesn’t think. Sawyer stated the dimming part would make it that you would hardly see it and it would be hardly backlit at all. What you can do with this electronic stuff is amazing. Sawyer stated you could probably go different stages of dimming. Mr. Harkins asked Member Sawyer if he was officially offering that as an amendment to the motion. Sawyer stated he would like that as part of his motion. Member Brown stated he was agreeable to the dimming. Sawyer stated it was not just on or off but they could really do quite a bit. Mr. Story stated they will do whatever the neighborhood wants and they will get feedback and do whatever they have to. If it is shut down, that is not a problem and they will shut it down. Member Friedrich asked how you regulate what is dim enough. Sawyer stated when the neighbors complain then it is not dim enough. Winter stated he didn’t think it needs to be on from 9-6. Who is going to look at it at 2:00 in the morning? Member Sawyer stated he has a billboard that is lit 24 hours a day when the rest of them shut it off but it’s out in the country. Sawyer just stated it was his opinion and with technology you can do so much. Sawyer stated if they wanted to change what he was saying that was o.k. with him. Page 2 of 3 Harkins stated since it was an amendment to the motion, that can be voted on separately as far as the amendment and then back to the motion itself. Harkins stated in terms of allowing the sign to be operated by a dim switch instead of turning on and off is the amendment. Harkins stated if you vote aye you are voting in favor of the amendment of being able to dim the sign instead of just turning it on and off. Roll Call Vote showed 2 ayes, 3 nays (Winter, Friedrich and Casey). Motion failed. The sign will shut off at 9:00 p.m. Harkins stated we are now back to the original motion to approve the variance request. Roll Call Vote showed all members present voting aye – 5 ayes. Motion Carried. Meeting adjourned at 4:42 p.m. Page 3 of 3