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Planning staff proposes loosening wall‑sign placement; commission recommends ordinance change
Summary
City planning staff proposed amending Title 11, Chapter 23 to allow flexibility in the number and placement of wall signs (so long as they do not face residential districts) while maintaining total allowed sign area; the commission voted to recommend the amendment to city council.
The Lakeville Planning Commission recommended that the City Council consider amendments to Title 11, Chapter 23 of the city code to provide businesses more flexibility in wall‑sign placement and allocation.
Dan Licht, the city’s planning consultant, explained the proposal grew from a recent variance request for a medical clinic. "What we're proposing here is to not limit the number of signs," Licht said, adding that the amendment would preserve the same total allowed sign area while letting businesses distribute that area across multiple walls so long as a wall does not face a residential district. Staff framed the change as intended to improve business identification and clarify ordinance language.
Commissioners asked whether the change would allow a business to replace multiple small signs with one very large sign. Licht said the ordinance would still cap total sign area; he used the Midwest ENT example and said under the ordinance the business would have been allowed 150 square feet of sign.
A commissioner moved to recommend approval of the proposed amendment to section 11‑23‑19 of the zoning ordinance; the motion was seconded and was approved by roll call (all ayes). The recommendation will go to the Lakeville City Council for consideration.
