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Commission approves variance for large Maverick sign near interstate with conditions
Summary
Sweetwater County planning commissioners approved a variance allowing a 25-foot-tall, 1,272-square-foot Maverick freestanding sign (exceeding the county’s 300-square-foot limit) with conditions tying the variance to other approvals and signature from the property owner.
The Sweetwater County Planning and Zoning Commission approved a signage variance to allow a freestanding Maverick sign that exceeds the county’s square-foot limit, saying a taller, more visible sign could improve driver safety on the nearby high-speed corridor.
County staff summarized the variance request under section 13(f) of the Sweetwater County zoning resolution: the zoning rules set a maximum freestanding sign height of 40 feet and a maximum sign area of 300 square feet. The applicant sought permission for a 25-foot-tall sign with 1,272 square feet of sign area. Staff recommended approval, noting topography and vehicle speeds on the approach make visibility an important safety consideration.
Clint Carver, Maverick’s signage manager, said the company ran legibility studies from the interstate and sized the sign digits to be readable from the off-ramp and approaching travel lanes. Staff said they had received no public or agency objections on the variance and recommended approval with conditions: the property owner must sign the variance permit application, and the variance approval should be contingent on the partial vacation, zone map amendment and final plat approvals for the Maverick Sweetwater Subdivision.
Commission discussion referenced prior variances granted to the Love’s Travel Stop across the street and the commission asked staff to consider whether the sign regulations need review. No members of the public spoke for or against the variance during the hearing.
The commission approved the variance by voice vote, recorded as 4–0. Staff placed usual conditions linking the sign permit to the property-owner signature and the related land-use approvals.
