Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Signs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Sign advisory committee approves 22 Federal master sign plan after applicant agrees to remove one projecting sign
Summary
The Sign Advisory Committee approved a master sign plan for 22 Federal Street on condition the applicant remove a lower-level projecting sign (sign C) and pursue any design for that location later; the Broad Street projecting sign will move forward for HDC review.
The Sign Advisory Committee voted Jan. 6 to approve a master sign plan for 22 Federal Street with a modification removing one projecting sign the panel said lacked proof of prior approval.
"We don't think that they were approved," Chair Chris Young said of two projecting signs on the building, explaining committee members had asked staff to check town records. Committee member Ben Norman told the board he would be comfortable approving the plan if the second projecting sign had an earlier Historic District Commission approval; without that documentation, the committee declined to approve two projecting signs for the same business. "If the two projecting signs do not have an approval, then I think we need to — we can't have both of them," Norman said.
Applicant Jonas joined the meeting remotely and told the committee he would conform to whatever the board required. "Whatever color you want, where you want me to hang it, I'm all on board with this," he said, offering to remove the projecting sign at the lower-level cafe if the committee approved the Broad Street projecting sign.
Ben Norman moved to approve the master sign plan "with sign C removed from the scheme for the time being, but with the caveat that we would entertain a different format sign in that location in the future," and the motion was seconded and carried unanimously.
The chair emphasized the committee's action applies to the master plan only; any physical sign on Broad Street must be reviewed in an upcoming Historic District Commission (HDC) agenda and the applicant will need to file the individual sign permit for final design approval. Jonas said he expected to return with a modified design when appropriate.
Next steps: staff will search archival files for records of prior approvals, and the Broad Street projecting sign will be placed on the HDC agenda for design review and final permit action.
