Board approves 5-foot directional signs for Speedway truck fueling area, with one dissent

The local planning board on Thursday approved a variance allowing Speedway and Premier Sign Company to raise two directional signs in the rear truck-fueling area to a maximum of 60 inches (5 feet), after a public hearing and debate about visibility, safety and precedent.

Betsy Shackleford, representing Premier Sign Company and TriStar Transport, told the board the existing directional signs at the rear fueling area are “very difficult to see” from an eighteen-wheeler and said truck drivers she spoke with had trouble finding the correct driveway. “It would be much better if they were taller,” Shackleford said, explaining the company seeks a 5-foot sign mounted on taller legs or a single pole so the signs are visible to large trucks entering from the industrial access road (referred to in the record as “DC”).

The board’s discussion focused on two questions: whether taller signs would address a safety problem for large vehicles entering the wrong driveway and whether approving the request would set an undesirable precedent for other properties. The Chair noted the approval should be narrowly tailored: the exception was being considered because of the site’s operational characteristics and sight-line issues and “should not be interpreted as a general standard for directional signage elsewhere in the city,” the Chair said.

Staff and members described the rear fueling area as primarily serving large trucks, not passenger vehicles, and said two small directional signs there had been repeatedly knocked down. Staff also noted the signs were not on the original site plan and that similar requests would still need review by the board or, in some cases, the Board of Zoning Appeals or the planning commission when submitted on the front end.

Board members debated whether to authorize the change as a percentage increase over the allowed height or as a fixed measurement. The applicant and staff agreed on a fixed maximum of 60 inches. A motion to approve the variance for this specific site — limiting the raised directional signs to no more than 60 inches (5 feet) and requiring the sign permit review to confirm proportions and mounting details — passed after a second, with one member recorded as opposed.

The board directed staff to review final sign permit plans to ensure the sign face remains proportionate to the new mounting and to draft motion language that limits the approval to the unique conditions described at this location. The decision takes effect once the permit review is complete and the permit is issued.