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Design review board approves Magnolia Gardens monument sign with relocation to community entrance
Summary
The La Plata Design Review Board approved a monument sign for Magnolia Gardens (DRB #00022025) on March 12, 2024, requiring the sign be moved to the community entrance between Buildings 3 and 4 and set back from Washington Avenue to preserve sightlines.
La Plata’s Design Review Board voted March 12 to approve a proposed monument sign for the Magnolia Gardens community, subject to a requirement that the sign be repositioned to the community entrance between Buildings 3 and 4 and set back from Washington Avenue.
The board considered DRB #00022025, a single-sided community monument sign with stone veneer and two piers proposed for 6014 Washington Avenue. Staff described the sign’s dimensions on the record — "The sign itself is 88 by 64," with other measurements discussed — and recommended moving the sign away from the corner to avoid obscuring views as development advances along Heritage Green Parkway.
William Parker, the maintenance supervisor at Magnolia Gardens, identified himself as the applicant representative. The online engineer (identified in the record as Exton) told the board the engineering team was "okay with moving that to a proposed location... by the entrance between the two buildings along Washington Ave." Exton also noted an existing magnolia tree in the traffic circle that could interfere with a sign placed there.
After discussion about whether the correct placement was between Buildings 1 and 2 or between Buildings 3 and 4, the board corrected the plan to specify Buildings 3 and 4. The chair moved to approve the sign "as presented with the note or the exception to move the location of the sign to the area between Buildings 3 And 4 back at the community entrance," and the motion was seconded and carried.
The board’s action allows the project to move forward with the condition that the sign plans be revised to show the approved location and appropriate setback from the roadway. No permitting timeline or final sign permit conditions were specified in the meeting record; the board did not read a detailed permit timeline into the public record during the session.
Board members emphasized sightline and safety concerns on Washington Avenue as the primary reason for the relocation requirement. The next procedural step is for the applicant to submit revised plans reflecting the board’s direction so staff can verify compliance with the relocation and setback before final sign permit issuance.
