Board of Adjustment

MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT February 22, 2023 The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Chairman Rodney Slaughter. Board Members present were Frederick Schaber, Dwayne Newman, and Sharon Wright. Board member Marie Fontaine St. Pierre was via zoom. Also present were Senior Planner Jeremy Rothwell, Crystal Wheeler, and Attorney D. Barrett Edwards. Chairman Rodney Slaughter led the Pledge of Allegiance. RECOGNITION OF VISITORS Visitors present in person were Roger Holt, Ed Idell, and Nick Marvel. ADDITIONS/DELETIONS TO PUBLISHED AGENDA Board member Newman made a motion to approve the published agenda. Motion seconded by Board member Wright and carried unanimously. MINUTES Board Member Newman made the motion to approve the minutes of January 25, 2023, as presented. Motion was seconded by Board Member Schaber, IV., and carried unanimously. PUBLIC HEARING A. Smyrna School District, #22-123, 123 Rabbit Chase Lane, 1-17-02801-12-9900-00001 A public hearing on the application was held on February 22, 2023. Participating in the meeting were Board Members Rodney Slaughter, Dwayne Newnam, Frederick Schaber, Marie Fontaine St. Pierre, and Sharon Wright. Jeremy Rothwell also participated on behalf of the Town, as did attorney Barrett Edwards. Roger Holt represented the Applicant at the hearing. After being duly sworn, Mr. Rothwell read into the record the dates and locations of the public hearing notices. Notice was posted at Town Hall, on the Property, and mailed to the property owner and abutting property owners on February 7, 2022. The notice was published in the Delaware State News on February 5, 2023. The special exception data sheet prepared by town staff (“Staff Report”) was entered into the record as Exhibit A. As indicated in the Staff Report and the testimony provided by Mr. Rothwell at the hearing, Sunnyside Elementary School currently has a monument sign with changeable lettering that they are proposing to convert into an EVMS using the same brick monument base. Installing an EVMS was not anticipated to have any impact on pedestrian or vehicular traffic or parking at the site. The sign was not anticipated to have any economic or aesthetic impact on surrounding properties. Board of Adjustment Page 2 of 3 February 22, 2023 Roger Holt was sworn in and testified on behalf of the Applicant. He testified that installing the EVMS would create efficiencies associated changing the sign. It would also allow for more flexibility in the types of messages and fonts that could be displayed. Mr. Holt testified that the EVMS would not have any negative impact on the neighborhood and a sign already exists on the Property. The EVMS would be a low light sign, and the closest residential parcel was 300 feet away. Mr. Holt also testified that the EVMS would improve communication in the area. The Property is zoned Residential R-2A and is proposed to be rezoned to Institutional & Recreational (I & R), which zoning permits electronic variable messaging signs as a special exception. The Board may approve a special exception if it finds under section 9.2 of the Zoning Code that “the particular use will be in harmony with the purpose and intent of the ordinance, will not significantly impair the appropriate use of adjoining or nearby property, and will serve the convenience and welfare of the community.” Section 9.2 also requires the Board to consider, among other things, the following: (1) The volume of existing traffic and the volume of traffic that will be generated by the proposed use; (2) The adequacy or inadequacy of available parking and the possible need for and availability of additional off-street parking; (3) The potential for objectionable or nuisance-causing activities, including but not limited to air pollution (smoke, ash, dust, fumes, vapors or gases), vibration, noise, heat, glare, light, noxious odors, or radio or television interference; (4) The economic and aesthetic effect upon adjoining or nearby properties; (5) The suitability of the proposed use in keeping with the harmony of adjoining or nearby properties; and (6) The amount of pedestrian traffic generated, including the potential for congregation of individuals at or near the property involved. After the public hearing had been closed and the Board Members had an opportunity to discuss the matter, Board Member Newnam made a motion to approve special exception application 22-123, and Board Member Schaber seconded the motion. Based on the application, comments from town staff, the testimony presented at the public hearing, and the exhibits incorporated into the record, and for additional reasons specifically outlined herein, the Smyrna Board of Adjustment, by a vote of 5 to 0, voted to approve special exception application 22-123 to allow the installation of an EVMS on the Property. The Board Members approved the Application because it would not have a negative impact on the neighborhood and would serve the convenience and welfare of the community. This approval is contingent and effective upon the rezoning of the Property to Institutional and Recreational (I & R). The applicant Roger Holt representing the Smyrna School District proposed replacing a monument sign with an electronic messaging sign. Mr. Holt discussed that this should not affect or have any impact on the community and will be more efficient to make changes electronically and not physically. This will also make it more convenient to use messaging more and keep the community updated with current information going on at Sunnyside Elementary School. Board of Adjustment Page 3 of 3 February 22, 2023 Board Member Newman made a motion to approve the special exception application #22-123 to replace an existing 32 square feet monument sign with a proposed electronic messaging sign. The motion was seconded by Board Member Schaber, IV, and carried unanimously. The full review and discussion can be viewed starting at 0:02:15 on the posted recording. OTHER BUSINESS There was none. ADJOURNMENT Board Member Fontaine St. Pierre made the motion to adjourn. Motion was seconded by Board Member Newman. The meeting was adjourned at 6:16 p.m. by unanimous vote. clw