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Sheboygan commission tables Dollar Loan Center pylon sign at 813 Ashland Ave pending legal review
Summary
The planning commission tabled a conditional use request for a 400‑square‑foot off‑premise pylon sign proposed by Dollar Loan Center after debate over easement rights and whether the sign qualifies as on‑ or off‑premise under city code; staff and counsel will review records and ordinance interpretation.
The Sheboygan City Plan Commission voted to table a conditional use permit application from Dollar Loan Center of Wisconsin LLC seeking an off‑premise pylon sign at 813 Ashland Avenue so staff and the city attorney can resolve competing interpretations of the sign code and review recorded easement documents.
Alexis Crawford, chief financial officer for Dollar Loan Center, described the company’s local investments and said the applicant has invested about $280,000 in Sheboygan properties and employs five full‑time staff in the city. Paul Rademacher of Sign Me Up Wisconsin testified the requested pylon sign dimensions fit the off‑premise sign classification and asked the commission to approve the sign. Attorney Brian Randall presented a recorded 1982 easement that, he said, explicitly allowed a sign area and related landscaping and showed that a sign existed on the site into the late 2010s based on street‑view imagery.
The city attorney referenced city code (identified in the discussion as "105‑974(a)") addressing nonconforming on‑premise signs and noted a general rule that removed nonconforming structures may lose legacy status; staff said different code sections apply to on‑premise and off‑premise signs and that records on prior signage and the easement should be examined. Commissioners expressed differing interpretations of the ordinance and of how square footage should be measured for two‑sided signs (combined sides versus per side). To allow staff and counsel to research the record and ordinance language, Commissioner Joe moved to table the item; the motion passed on a voice vote with the chair voting aye.
Next steps: the item was tabled for further discussion with the city attorney; staff intends to review the easement language, the city sign‑code history, and relevant records before returning to the commission.
