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Board approves larger monument sign for Leonardtown Middle School
Summary
The Board of Appeals granted a variance allowing St. Mary's County Board of Education to replace a 27-square-foot sign with a 32-square-foot monument sign at Leonardtown Middle School, finding a practical difficulty created by a rezoning change and concluding the larger sign will aid motorists and visitors.
The St. Mary's County Board of Appeals on April 14 approved a variance to increase the permitted size of a freestanding sign at Leonardtown Middle School, allowing a 32-square-foot monument sign in the Residential Low (RL) district.
Staff recommended the variance in VAAP 10-2140, saying the rezoning of the property from a residential preservation district to RL under the updated comprehensive plan unintentionally limited permitted sign area and created a practical difficulty for the school. The property owner is the St. Mary's County Board of Education; the school is at 24015 Point Lookout Road in Leonardtown.
Larry Hartwick, supervisor of design and construction for St. Mary's County Public Schools, testified that the proposed monument-style sign follows a prototype already used at Evergreen Elementary School and provides space for the school logo, banner, and 911 address. Hartwick said the existing middle school sign is 27 square feet and would be difficult for motorists to read at the posted speeds; the requested 32-square-foot sign represents a five-square-foot increase over the existing sign and aligns visually with signage for the adjacent high school and career and technology center.
Staff concluded the change in zoning, not an action by the Board of Education, generated the practical difficulty and that the proposed sign would not adversely affect adjoining properties. The board found the standards for granting a variance met and approved the request; the motion included adoption of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of section 5 of the staff report as findings of fact. An order will be prepared by staff and signed within 60 days; a 30-day appeal period follows the order’s signature.
The decision applies to VAAP 10-2140 and concerns Section 65.3 of the St. Mary's County comprehensive zoning ordinance as it relates to freestanding sign size in residential districts.
