Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Lighting Variance School topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board grants lighting variances for North Ridgeville City Schools bus and maintenance center
Summary
The Board approved three variances for the North Ridgeville City Schools Transportation and Maintenance Center photometric plan — permitting angled (not full cutoff) fixtures, 30-foot pole heights, and higher average illumination in the bus parking lot — after staff said the applicant could not meet code through administrative review.
The Board of Zoning and Building Appeals unanimously approved three variances requested by North Ridgeville City Schools for exterior lighting at a new Transportation and Maintenance Center on Ranger Way.
Planning staff explained the school sought relief in three areas: (1) five pole lights intentionally tilted at a 45-degree angle and wall packs that are semi cut-off rather than full cut-off (code requires full cut-off), (2) a luminaire/pole height of 30 feet where the residential district maximum is 16 feet, and (3) an average illumination of 2.8 foot-candles with peak locations up to 20.8 foot-candles in the bus parking lot where the code allows a 2.0 foot-candle average and a 5.0 foot-candle maximum in open parking (section 1285.08 table).
Claire Banks, the applicant’s representative (design architecture), said the taller poles and tilted fixtures were necessary to provide continuous, safe lighting across a large bus parking area without placing poles in traffic lanes used by buses (the district sought to avoid freestanding poles in the middle of the lot to reduce damage and maintenance). Banks also said several of the taller poles match existing 30-foot poles on the adjacent campus and that shields would be added to tilted fixtures to minimize off-site light spill toward Ranger Way.
Board members discussed light spill and the campus context. Several members, including Chair Linda Masterson and board member Grotman, noted the site is a civic campus bordered by other municipal uses and that the lighting impacts would be contained within the fenced perimeter. Council liaison Winkle and a resident speaker said the existing bus garage has poor lighting and supported the new design for safety and security. Administration noted the code changes since the original campus lighting was installed, so earlier poles may not have required variances at the time.
The board voted separately on each variance; roll call votes were unanimous in favor for variance 1 (angled/semicutoff fixtures), variance 2 (30-foot pole height), and variance 3 (illumination levels). The clerk recorded the result as unanimous approval for all three variance items.
