The City of Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals granted variance relief allowing internally illuminated wall signage at two commercial properties on or near High Street.
The board approved variances for City Neon at 479 Van Bourse Road and for a business at 469 High Street operated by Parker Walsh, after planning staff reported no objections and standard variance conditions were attached.
Representatives described the proposals as brand‑consistent channel‑letter signs using LED technology rather than neon. Glenn Dodson, chair of the church that owns the building associated with one application, said the proposed sign would be turned off at midnight and argued it would improve wayfinding for a child care center on the same block. “The lighting we’re proposing will… be turned off at midnight,” Dodson told the board.
Parker Walsh, the applicant for 469 High Street, said the business’s operating hours would be roughly 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and that lighting would be controlled by a timer, “we use a lighting control panel that would turn it on from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.,” he said.
Planning staff noted both signs meet size and design calculations for their respective commercial districts; the variance requests addressed only internal illumination, which is not permitted by right in the applicable zones. The board attached the city’s standard condition that any changes to the submitted sign design or location must be reviewed and brought back into compliance or returned to the board.
Both applicants were told they would receive written notice of the decision from planning within approximately 7 to 10 business days and that the board’s determination may be appealed to the Circuit Court of Monongalia County within 30 days. The board reminded applicants that work undertaken during the 30‑day appeal period is at their sole financial risk.