ARB continues Cannery master sign program after questions about wayfinding and tenant names on entry markers

The Palo Alto Architectural Review Board on May 15 continued, by a 5-0 vote, the master-sign-program application for 340 Portage Avenue (the Cannery of Palo Alto). The board asked the applicant to return with a refined wayfinding scheme that separates campus-level identification ("Cannery") from tenant-facing signage and to reconsider entries proposed adjacent to future townhome parcels.

Staff presented a master sign program covering nine total signs and seven sign types intended to give the redeveloped site unified, high-quality business identification. Board discussion focused on the three entry/directional markers located at the ends of the site and whether those markers should carry individual tenant names when the marker locations sit next to (or on) a planned separate townhome parcel.

Why the board continued the sign program

Key board concerns were: (1) directional/entry signs proposed on the property edge near the future townhome parcel (labeled in materials as EI 0.1 / EI 0.2) would carry tenant names adjacent to residences and could be awkward or inconsistent with future parcelization; (2) staff identified that two directory signs proposed along Park Boulevard currently exceed the sign-code area allowance (one measures roughly 9.4 square feet vs. the 7-square-foot allowance reported in the packet) and need modification; and (3) the board asked for clarification of how the Cannery brand (the project-level identity) and individual tenant signage would be coordinated, including whether a single prominent campus monument should stand at Park and/or El Camino frontages and whether individual tenant IDs should appear only closer to building entries.

Details from staff and applicant

- Applicant / plan: Staff said the proposed master sign program uses a color palette ("Cannery orange," greys and accents) and sign types (wall-mounted, awning-mounted, directory and freestanding) to establish a common appearance. The program includes two freestanding directory signs, vehicle-direction signs for parking entrances, tenant wall signs and proposed address/parking ID signage. - Code compliance: Staff flagged two directory signs along Park Boulevard as not meeting the municipal sign code area limit; condition was added to reduce sign area or alter content. Staff also noted signs proposed on El Camino Real were on property not owned by the applicant and that the city sign code generally disallows signage located off the applicant’s parcel unless a shopping-center exception applies (not met here). - Wayfinding and parcelization: Board members and staff discussed that the development will be parcelized in the future as townhomes plus the Cannery campus; ARB members asked the applicant to avoid tenant identification on entry markers positioned adjacent to future homes and instead consider campus-level direction ("Cannery" or an interpretive marker) plus separate tenant IDs nearer to the building entrances. - Short-term bike parking: staff supplied a map showing some short-term parking racks near the building; the board requested clarity about where additional short-term racks could be placed because the applicant’s signage is partly intended to assist visitors arriving by bicycle.

Board directions and requested revisions

- Rework the entry/wayfinding scheme so that markers at the edge of the site (adjacent to future townhomes) do not prominently display tenant names; consider campus-level monument signage that simply directs visitors to "The Cannery of Palo Alto" rather than listing tenants. - Revisit the two Park Boulevard directory signs that exceed the code area limit (reduce area or add tenant names per sign-code allowances) and provide corrected sign-area calculations. - Staff and applicant to investigate whether campus wayfinding on El Camino Real is feasible within the municipal code and property-ownership constraints (staff noted easement and off-site signage issues that require resolution or an exception). - Provide a clearer explanation of how the Cannery brand identity, tenant identification, and building-mounted tenant signs would coexist (for example: prominent campus monument + tenant signs above each tenant entry or on awnings closer to doors).

Formal action

The ARB voted 5-0 to continue the master sign program application to a date uncertain and asked the applicant to return with the requested refinements and corrected sign-area calculations. Vote: Board Member Adcock — yes; Board Member Balte — yes; Board Member Hirsch — yes; Vice Chair Chen — yes; Chair Rosenberg — yes. (Motion mover/second not specified in the record.)

What applicants can change before returning

The applicant was asked to provide: corrected sign-area measurements; revised graphics showing EI/entry markers that carry the campus identity ("Cannery") rather than tenant names where markers sit adjacent to future townhomes; a proposal that shows tenant identification mounted over tenant awnings/entries rather than on end-of-block markers next to residences; and an analysis from planning staff about whether any El Camino-facing wayfinding could be permitted given property-ownership and sign-code constraints.