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Design board approves Nightingale Wealth Solutions second-floor sign after location debate; vote 3-1
Summary
Board members debated whether a second-floor sign would set a precedent for the building before approving Nightingale Wealth Solutions' 36-inch-high panel sign with a condition to shift and center it over the first second-floor window.
The Needham Design Review Board on Aug. 11 approved a second-floor sign for Nightingale Wealth Solutions at 1036 Great Plain Ave., after a lengthy debate about placement and precedent for future signage on the multi-tenant building. The measure passed 3–1, with member Steve Dornbusch voting no.
The board approved the proposed fabricated aluminum pan-face sign with 3-D letters and a vinyl-gradient logo, but it required the applicant to move the sign horizontally so it is centered over the first second-floor window to better align with the building’s architecture and pedestrian entrances. The approval followed concerns that allowing a sign at the originally proposed location would “open Pandora’s box” by encouraging other tenants to request similar upper-level signage.
Design Review Board member Steve Dornbusch objected strongly to the proposed location, saying, “I really do not like the location, the position. I've made this comment before when something to me personally looks like a NASCAR billboard.” He said approving a sign in the proposed location would make it difficult for the board to deny future applicants asking for similar placements on the same building.
Tom, the applicant’s sign vendor from FASTSIGNS, described the sign as a fabricated aluminum pan face with letters half an inch and one-quarter inch thick for different lines of copy and a panel approximately 36 inches tall and 3 inches deep. Ariel, the Nightingale representative, said one motivation for the sign was wayfinding and walk-ins: “We actually get, when we were at our old location, like, we actually got walk ins and people also that would be googling us from just seeing our name.”
Board members explored alternatives, including lowering the panel to align with a soldier course in the brick or centering it above a specific window to balance the building composition. Harold and Felix said centering the sign over the first window on the second floor would better tie the sign to an entry path and architectural elements. Mark Glusing, board chair, proposed the condition to relocate and center the panel horizontally above the first second-floor window; the motion to approve with that condition was moved and seconded and passed with Dornbusch voting no.
During technical review, members suggested minor proportion changes: one member recommended reducing the size of the graphical logo element so the panel could be slightly shorter and letter spacing improved. The applicant said their brand standards were extensive and that reducing the logo size might require additional branding approvals.
Action taken: the board approved the sign with the relocation/centering condition and accepted the proposed construction approach (aluminum pan face with dimensional letters). The board asked the applicant to supply final vendor fabrication drawings and to coordinate any brand-size changes with the board before fabrication.
