Forney council approves EVO Entertainment 100-foot tower sign and site plan for Village at Gateway

The Forney City Council on Tuesday approved a planned-development amendment that permits a 100-foot, architecturally integrated tower sign for EVO Entertainment and approved the project's site plan for Lot 5 of the Village at Gateway addition.

The amendment and site plan affect approximately 9.1478 acres at the Village at Gateway; the sign amendment was limited to EVO's tract only and the planned development (PD) amendment includes elevations that the developer must build as shown, city staff said. Planning staff and the Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval.

City planning staff presented the request and described the amendment as a site-specific change to the PD's sign regulations. Attorney and development representatives told the council the tower is intended to provide visibility for an entertainment anchor set back roughly 750 feet from Highway 80 and that the elevation and materials were designed to tie the tower to the building so it would not be a freestanding pole. Examples cited by the applicant included similar tower signs at regional entertainment centers.

Chris Hipps of Direct Retail Partners introduced the project team; Mitch Roberts, CEO of EVO Entertainment, said the company hoped to move quickly on on-site plan submittal after council approval. Peter Morgan, planning staff, told the council the sign standard change would apply only to the EVO parcel and would not automatically allow similar height signs for other properties in the PD.

The council voted to adopt the ordinance amending the PD sign regulations and later voted to approve the EVO site plan. Both votes passed unanimously by a show of hands.

With council approval, the developer may proceed to submit building plans and site-construction documents required for permitting. City staff said the site plan as approved is consistent with the elevations reviewed with the PD amendment.