Levi Wilner, owner of Extreme Graphics, told the Alamosa City Council on Jan. 7 that recent changes to the city's sign-and-lighting code have reduced nighttime visibility for commercial signs and created wayfinding and safety concerns.

"It does not work for commercial signage," Wilner said of the 3,000 Kelvin color-temperature limit, and later added, "500 lumens is roughly equivalent to a single household light bulb." He told the council that internally illuminated signs are often engineered at 6,000 to 7,000 Kelvin to preserve contrast, legibility and color accuracy and cited the SpringHill Suites package as an example of how the rule affects major downtown investments.

City staff and members of the council responded that the concerns were worth exploring. Rachel, a city staff member, said, "we agree about the lumens being too restrictive," and said staff will connect Wilner with developers and corporate design teams where applicable. Staff asked the developer of the downtown project to contact corporate Marriott about lighting packages used in other dark-sky communities and said a full review of the regulations will occur at a March 4 work session.

Wilner also raised enforcement and visual-clutter issues, noting older, inactive signs that remain lit while active businesses are held to new standards. Staff acknowledged the enforcement challenge and indicated the upcoming review is intended to address language clarity and practical application.

The council did not take formal action directing immediate rule changes during the meeting; staff committed to follow up with Wilner and to place the sign-and-lighting regulations on the upcoming work-session agenda for clarification and potential revision.

Next steps: staff will meet with Wilner and the developer, and the council will review the sign-and-lighting regulations at the March 4 work session.