HDC sign advisory committee recommends projecting sign for 16 Federal Street with conditions

The HDC sign advisory committee on June 17, 2025, recommended that the full Historic District Commission approve a projecting sign for 16 Federal Street, home to Commonwealth (a resale boutique) and More Wine, provided the applicant remove the extra service descriptors and paint the sign bevel in a contrasting color.

The recommendation follows discussion of the sign's size, framing and the issue of listing multiple businesses or services on a single hanging sign. Committee members said the application is acceptable with conditions designed to keep signage visually anchored to the building and consistent with the guidelines.

Edwin, an applicant representative, told the committee the new projecting sign would replace a former 28-by-30-inch sign and use the same style bracket. "We're just replacing a former sign that was taken out a few years ago and hanging a new sign there," he said.

Committee members voiced three recurring concerns: whether a single projecting sign should list two separate businesses or multiple services; the lack of a visible border/frame; and the proposed color palette. Paul Wolf and Kevin Kuester said they wanted the sign to relate more to the building's architecture; Ben Norman and Kevin raised precedent questions about listing services. "The guidelines say you can't list more than 1 service on a sign," the committee chair noted during discussion of standards for listing services in historic districts.

After discussion, the committee set conditions: the applicant will remove the words "wine, spirits, and more" beneath the business name and will paint the beveled edge (the border) in a contrasting color (recommended black). The committee recorded a split roll-call vote: Paul Wolf — yes; Ben Norman — no; Kevin Kuester — no; Mark — yes. The committee then stated it would "recommend that it is approved by the board at tonight's meeting with the removal of wine, spirits, and more and with the addition of a black border painting the bevel edge black." The recommendation will be placed before the full HDC at its upcoming meeting.

The applicant and the committee agreed on carved letters for the sign; Edwin confirmed the letters would be carved. The committee also noted that the storefront has had unpermitted window signs in the past and asked the applicant to ensure only the approved signs are used going forward.

The HDC sign advisory committee's recommendation does not itself finalize the approval; the full Historic District Commission will consider the advisory committee's recommendation at its next meeting.