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Connection Point sign variance tabled, transferred to full BZA after landscaping dispute
Summary
Connection Point asked for an 8.6‑inch sign height variance and requested approval without the landscaping the city sought. The hearing officer transferred the matter to the full Board of Zoning Appeals for de novo review; the next full board hearing date was cited as Feb. 24 if transfer is requested.
Connection Point’s request for a sign‑height variance was not decided at the hearing and has been transferred to the full Board of Zoning Appeals after dispute over landscaping conditions.
Sarah Zimmerman, representing Connection Point, told the hearing the installed sign exceeds the permitted vertical allowance by about 8.6 inches because of a measurement discrepancy between the vendor’s installation and the technical advisory committee submittal. Zimmerman asked the BZA to consider the variance without requiring additional landscaping that the city had requested to screen the sign.
Planning staff recommended approval of the modest height variance but also recommended landscape compliance if approved; staff asked the BZA attorney to weigh in on whether a landscaping condition would be reasonably related to a signage variance. Staff said the petition’s horizontal signage percentage complied with the UDO but the vertical measurement put it slightly out of tolerance.
Connection Point’s counsel and representative said the requested landscaping — seven oak trees — could block their building’s façade and would impose unplanned costs. Counsel Steve Unger said that under the BZA rules and statute, if the petitioner does not agree with recommended conditions it may request the matter be transferred to the full BZA for de novo review.
Hearing officer Najjar (on the record as “Miss Najjar”) said the transfer to the full board can be made either by petitioner request or on the hearing officer’s own motion and that the transfer would result in a de novo review. The transcript records that a transfer request window of seven to ten days was mentioned and that the full BZA would consider the matter on Feb. 24 if timely transferred.
The hearing officer decided to transfer the petition to the full BZA for de novo review. The transfer leaves open whether the full board will impose the landscaping condition; the petitioner was advised to provide cost estimates for the trees if the matter proceeds to the full board.
