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Planning commission approves sign permit for Hotel Le Petit Pali; signs already installed
Summary
The commission approved a post‑installation sign permit for Hotel Le Petit Pali at 30806 Coast Highway. Staff said the hotel installed signage without a permit and staff withheld final building permit until the sign application was filed; the hotel is open with a temporary occupancy status.
The Laguna Beach Planning Commission voted Aug. 20 to approve a sign permit for Hotel Le Petit Pali at 30806 Coast Highway, after staff told the commission the signs had already been installed without prior permit approval.
Planning staff said the hotel — a 39‑guest‑room property that received design‑review approval in May 2024 for its renovation but did not include a sign permit at that time — installed two logo wall signs and a retrofit freestanding monument sign before applying for approval. "The wall sign near the lobby will be approximately 6 square feet with 20‑inch tall letters," staff said, and the other wall sign is about 4 square feet with 17‑inch letters; both are halo‑lit channel letters with green painted aluminum faces. The monument retrofit sign is approximately 7 square feet.
Commissioners questioned why the signs were not processed administratively if they complied with the sign ordinance; staff replied the wall‑letter height exceeded the eight‑inch threshold that requires a formal permit. Staff also said it discovered the installed signage during building permit inspections and has withheld issuance of a building final until the sign permit is processed. Staff added the hotel is currently open and functioning, and the property has had temporary certificates of occupancy that the owner has had to renew.
The applicant’s architect said the team moved quickly to submit the sign permit upon learning the signs had been installed and that the monument sign reused an existing monument structure and has electricity available, so the signs are not solar powered.
After public comment that included a mix of aesthetic critiques and praise for the hotel’s renovation, the commission voted to adopt a resolution approving sign permit 25‑1615 and finding the action exempt from CEQA. Commissioners voted in favor on a roll call: Sadler yes; Whiting yes; Dubin yes; Chair Pro Tem Goldman yes; Chair Kellenberg yes.
Staff will finalize the building permit after the sign permit is executed and related conditions are met.
