Homewood zoning board approves two sign variances for 195 Oxmoor Road with 67-square-foot condition

The Homewood Board of Zoning Adjustment on March 2025 approved two variances allowing larger illuminated wall signs for restaurants at 195 Oxmoor Road, conditioned on alleyway/side signage not exceeding 67 square feet.

The board approved two cases — SVD-25-03-01 (El Barrio, Suite 113) and SVD-25-03-02 (Paramount, Suite 101) — each on votes recorded as five in favor, none opposed. The approvals covered parts A, B and C as listed on the agenda and included a proffer that alley/side signage be limited to the 67-square-foot size shown in the applicants’ presentation.

Why it matters: The variances allow tenant signage larger than what members said the ordinance’s small default measurements would permit, and the decisions affect wayfinding and business visibility along Oxmoor Road in the West Homewood District.

Don Hawes, a sign contractor with Signage Sign Company and the applicant for the El Barrio sign, told the board the restaurant was requesting a wall-mounted sign measuring 48 inches high by 61.25 inches wide—about 20 square feet—after a review with city staff. "So…