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Council pauses sign-variance request after debate over advertising vs. delivery signage
Summary
A Bulverde business sought a variance for a vehicle-mounted sign and a fence sign near a park; council raised precedent and park-impact concerns and asked the applicant to return with smaller, delivery-focused wayfinding signs, postponing a decision to the council's second February meeting.
Council held a public hearing on a sign-variance application for a property north of the city park in the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction. Planning staff explained the city can regulate off-premise signs in the ETJ but cannot treat a property as on-premise signage unless it is the business's primary location under Texas law. Staff said the variance request covered a vehicle-mounted sign and a fence-mounted sign and noted the planning and zoning commission had recommended approving only the vehicle-mounted sign.
The applicant, who identified himself at the meeting as Alex, said the signs were installed to help deliveries and customers find the warehouse and showroom after a special-use permit delayed construction of a consolidated shop during the pandemic. Alex said the signs were pragmatic and that the truck used for advertising had local history and was mobile so it could be moved for flood events.
Several council members voiced concerns that allowing advertising on the park fence or effectively creating roadside billboards would set a precedent that could lead to more commercial intrusion on the trail and diminish the park experience. Council members and staff discussed statutory definitions: under the Texas Local Government Code for off-premise signage the sign must be located at the primary business location to be treated as on-premise; mere ownership of property at the site does not by itself qualify a site as primary.
Council suggested a compromise: reduce advertising content and bring back wayfinding or delivery signs that list the business name and street address (no phone number or sales language) or consider a smaller ground-mounted sign at the property entrance to direct deliveries. The council voted to postpone final action and instructed the applicant to return with alternative sign designs; the postponement was scheduled for the council's second regular meeting in February so staff and the applicant could prepare options.
