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Local Planning Agency approves taller sign for 376 East Broadway to restore visibility
Summary
The agency approved a 3.9-foot deviation allowing a freestanding sign up to 11.9 feet at 376 East Broadway after staff cited roadway grade changes and FDOT right-of-way takings; approval includes a condition to plant additional shrubs at the sign base.
The Local Planning Agency voted to approve a variance that will allow a freestanding sign up to 11.9 feet tall at 376 East Broadway, a deviation from the 8-foot maximum.
Ed Clamp, the applicant and property owner, told the board he and a partner bought the former Oviedo Bowling Center in 2020 and lost the original sign when the Florida Department of Transportation widened East Broadway and relocated the front property line. "We're here to, request a deviation for a sign," Clamp said, explaining that the roadway grade now sits several feet higher than the property and an eight‑foot sign would sit too low to be visible.
Planning staff (Mr. Pukan) recommended approval after reviewing site conditions and LDC criteria. Staff said the request is a 3.9‑foot deviation (48.7%) that would permit the sign to be developed to 11.9 feet and noted special conditions including a 3–5 foot grade variance along East Broadway and an FDOT eminent‑domain taking that reduced the property's frontage. "Staff recommends approval of this deviation development order," Mr. Pukan stated, and proposed one condition: planting additional Florida‑friendly shrubs at the base of the sign to satisfy landscaping requirements while preserving sight lines.
A board member moved to approve the deviation "for 376 East Broadway, the project 250156. Parcel ID number 152131300150," the motion was seconded, and the chair called a voice vote. Favorable remarks about the sign's style were recorded and the motion passed.
The approval is limited to the deviation described at the public meeting and is conditioned on the required landscaping around the sign base. Any future site changes or additional deviations would be subject to separate review under the city's land‑development code.
