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Committee debates whether pump canopies, ATMs and small illuminated displays belong in lighting or sign rules
Summary
Committee members discussed overlap between lighting and signs for gas‑station canopies, pump and ATM lighting, and small illuminated displays. No final decision was made; members suggested moving some provisions to an internally illuminated‑signs section and flagged Kelvin/nit limits and size as open questions.
The Ordinance Committee spent part of its Aug. 20 meeting debating where to place rules governing small illuminated displays — such as ATM and pump screens, vending machine signs and gas‑station canopy lighting — and whether those items should be handled in the lighting ordinance or the sign ordinance.
Members noted the draft lighting section included a clause limiting the illuminated area of machines and pump displays (committee members referenced a roughly 15‑by‑15‑inch size in discussion) and set limits on color temperature and brightness (Kelvin and nits). Several members said those provisions overlap with the town’s forthcoming internally illuminated sign rules and recommended moving or reconciling the provisions to avoid conflict.
Committee members raised specific implementation concerns: an illuminated ATM or pump is part of a structure and not a freestanding sign, so one member said it may be better to treat these devices as signs in the sign ordinance; another suggested leaving an exclusion in lighting for machines that are fully screened from adjacent streets. Members also asked how to measure brightness (Kelvin color temperature versus nits) and whether canopy lighting for gas stations belonged in lighting or sign rules.
No formal motion was adopted on this topic. The committee directed staff to review other ordinances and prepare recommended placement or cross‑references so the lighting and signs sections align when the committee takes up internally illuminated signs at a later meeting.
Next steps: staff to research analogous language in other towns, examine how other ordinances treat pump/ATM illumination, and report back when the committee addresses internally illuminated signs.
