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Residents question safety and precedent as planning board forwards Love's sign-variance request to City Council
Summary
The board unanimously voted to forward a request from Love's Travel Stops to allow a larger overall sign package; residents raised questions about sign size, height and driver safety and staff acknowledged confusion between old and new sign-area rules.
County Chair Judy Goldsby opened a public hearing Dec. 18 on Love's Travel Stops & Country Store's request for a signage-area variance after staff described a 2024 change to the city's zoning code.
Chief Administrative Officer Kurt Markegard and Building Official Jason Gonzales told the board that the new zoning code adopted in 2024 sets a 300-square-foot cap on total sign area for nonresidential sites in the district. Gonzales said the previous frontage-based approach would have allowed much larger signage under a different calculation and that Loves' design team believed earlier website materials indicated compliance with prior rules.
Kevin Keup of Effective Image Inc. attended for the applicant but did not speak during public comment. Resident Gloria Allwin asked, "What do you mean by 300 square feet? How high are you still talking about this sign? What size are you looking for?" Staff responded that the proposal being discussed involved about "700 square feet," and that the pole height had already been established and approved by City Council.
Resident Bill Tiefenthaler said banner-area signs in that location "seem quite large" and raised concerns that large signage could create a distraction for drivers. No traffic-safety study or empirical data on driver distraction was presented during the hearing.
Board members discussed code clarity and updating the city's website to reflect current ordinances; CAO Markegard said staff would work with the city attorney to address inconsistent or outdated code text and to correct website information. Ronald Benner moved and Richard Klose seconded a motion to present the sign-variance package to the City Council; the motion carried 6-0.
The planning board's action forwards the applicant's request to the City Council for consideration of a variance from the 300-square-foot total sign-area limit and any ordinance changes needed to resolve inconsistencies between older guidance and the current zoning code. The council will hold further hearings and may require additional materials, such as engineering or traffic-safety studies, before taking final action.
