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Board clears Florence School District 1 to install halo-lit wall sign at 319 South Irby
Summary
The Design Review Board approved a certificate of appropriateness for an internally illuminated (halo/backlit) wall sign for Florence School District 1 at 319 South Irby, after discussion about protecting the building’s original carved library sign and precedent on the corridor.
The Florence City Design Review Board approved a certificate of appropriateness for an internally illuminated wall sign at the Florence School District 1 building at 319 South Irby Street, in the D-3 Arts and Culture Overlay District and the Central Business District.
City staff said the new design standards require review of internally illuminated letters in the downtown corridor and encourage protecting sculptural or landmark signs that contribute to downtown character. Staff noted the corridor is a major approach into the historic downtown and described earlier board action in May 2024 denying interior-lit letters for a Dollar Tree across West Pine Street; at that time the board preferred up-lighting rather than internally lit signs.
At the meeting, Kyle Jones, deputy superintendent of Florence School District 1, said the sign will help visitors and the school community identify the central office and other district functions in the building and that the district wants a “backlit, very regal, subtle, white LED light.” Debbie Jenkins of Tyson Sign Company described the proposed fixture as a cabinet with an opaque backer and raised letters that will produce a halo (“just the letters would be halo lit”) rather than full face illumination; she said the installer sought to preserve the carved Florence Public Library sign on the building and had chosen a backer color to blend with the brick.
Board members asked about alternatives such as external down-lighting and whether the sign would damage the original carved sign; the applicant said the installation is intended to cover but not damage the original library sign. Mr. Jones and the sign vendor said the sign faces South Irby only. With one member recused from this case, the board moved to approve the application as submitted and the certificate will be issued.
Public comments included a resident who called the building “very beautiful” and asked the city to repair a damaged underground utility box across West Pine, but no formal objection to the sign was recorded.
