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Wildwood committee clears several sign-code changes, limits digital signs to public institutions
Summary
The economic development committee voted to eliminate a $500 sign escrow, moved to change how wall sign sizes are calculated, directed staff to ease architectural review for signs and approved a policy limiting electronic message boards to public taxing entities with strict controls.
The Wildwood Economic Development Committee on Monday approved multiple changes intended to speed approvals and reduce costs for local businesses and to limit new electronic message boards to public institutions.
Actions approved by the committee included eliminating the city—s $500 sign escrow requirement, adopting an approach that would calculate flat wall sign area as a percentage of the facade rather than by linear frontage, and reducing the role of the city—s architectural review process for routine signs. The committee also adopted a policy restricting electronic message boards to a short list of public taxing entities and prescribing technical limits to reduce nighttime intrusion.
On the $500 sign escrow, committee members said the fee was burdensome to new businesses and administratively awkward. The committee voted to eliminate the escrow immediately and directed staff to return previously collected escrow funds to the payors. The motion passed with committee leadership calling the change a '20-year-old relic'2 and a simple improvement for cash-strapped start-ups.
For wall signage, city staff recommended shifting from the current one-square-foot-per-linear-foot rule to a proportional approach tied to building facade area (staff cited 5 percent of facade as a commonly used benchmark). Committee members discussed irregular storefront geometries and asked staff to provide examples, but the committee voted to pursue the percentage-based standard.
On architectural review, planning staff told the committee the existing multi-step review can add weeks to sign projects and that many sign types are content-neutral and mechanical in nature. The committee directed that routine sign approvals be handled administratively by planning staff rather than routed routinely to the architectural review board, while preserving higher-level review for variances and unusual cases.
The committee also debated and approved a draft digital-sign policy that limits electronic message boards to institutions that collect taxes or provide public safety functions: public school districts, fire protection districts, police departments, St. Louis Community College and the City of Wildwood. Requirements adopted during the meeting include static messages (no animation or flashing), a minimum display duration per message (10 seconds), a maximum of digital content covering 60 percent of the sign face, mandatory automatic dimming after dusk, and a requirement to fully shut off by 10 p.m. when the sign is in or adjacent to residential areas. Committee members and staff said the city will require lighting and technical specifications in the ordinances to allow enforceable, automated limits, and staff will route the full ordinance draft to the planning and zoning commission for formal review.
Committee members also asked staff to revise the city—s temporary-banner allowances and to propose stronger coordination with police for enforcement of unauthorized signs in the public right-of-way. Several members said repeat commercial violations of right-of-way signage will now be handled more assertively, including confiscation and potential civil remedies for repeat offenders.
Ending: Staff will draft ordinance language reflecting these policy directions for planning-and-zoning review and return to the council for final action; the sign-escrow elimination takes effect immediately and staff will arrange returns of previously collected escrows.
