The Concord Zoning Board of Adjustment unanimously approved two variances allowing Concord Hospital to replace existing freestanding signs at key campus entrances with updated internally illuminated wayfinding signs and to keep a larger sign face than the code otherwise permits.

Concord Hospital representatives told the board the replacements are in-kind, would use existing poles and foundations, and are intended to improve wayfinding for patients and emergency responders. Hospital real-estate director Tim Paris and installer Nick Jarvis of Spectrum Signs described changes that reduce full-panel illumination and limit illumination to push-through letters and arrows while preserving legible nighttime wayfinding.

The hospital sought two waivers: internal illumination in an Institutional (IS) district where internal illumination is restricted, and a freestanding sign face up to 85.75 square feet where the code permits 40 square feet. The hospital said the signs are on existing locations and that the replacements will enhance emergency access and patient safety. Board members repeatedly cited late-night and poor-weather driving scenarios on the approach to Langley Parkway and Pleasant Street as justification for clearer, illuminated wayfinding. “Anything that improves directional assistance in those circumstances is in the best interest of the public,” Board member Nick Waller said.

Board members addressed scale and illumination design: Jarvis said the team revised the plans after an advisory design review board request, removing a full illuminated white background so that only letters and arrows would light, preserving low visual impact while improving legibility. The applicant also confirmed the locations would not change.

After discussion, the board first voted to grant an illumination variance, then granted the freestanding-sign-size variance; both motions were made and seconded on the record and passed unanimously. The approvals preserve the existing sign footprint but allow modernized, internally illuminated graphics for wayfinding and emergency directions.

The board also spent time earlier in the meeting discussing a separate sign application for the state Department of Education at 25 Hall Street; that separate state-owned property matter was tabled to the next meeting for legal review under the state-land-use statute (RSA 674:54).