Aiken board approves temporary-banner variance for Big Air Aiken tenant

The Aiken Board of Zoning Appeals on May 22 approved a variance permitting three temporary banners for DHMS Enterprises LLC (doing business as Big Air Aiken) at its Richland Avenue West location, with conditions requiring the 'coming soon' banner to be removed 30 days after the business opens and the finalized order to run with the tenant and be recorded at the Aiken County register of deeds.

The board’s decision followed a staff presentation explaining that the parcel is landlocked with limited street frontage and that the existing banners exceed the size and number allowed under the city’s zoning ordinance (staff cited sections 4.4.8B and 4.4.9). Planning staff said the three banners total roughly 344 square feet and that compliance under the ordinance would require removing one banner and reducing the size of the remaining two by roughly 272 square feet unless a variance were granted. Planning staff also told the board the 'coming soon' sign category must be removed within 30 days of substantial completion of the project.

"The coming soon sign would have to come down 30 days after substantial completion of the project," planning staff said. The staff presentation noted the parcel is set back from the roadway and that a permanent freestanding sign is limited by lack of direct street frontage. Staff also provided photographs taken by a zoning official showing the existing conditions.

William Stratford, representing DHMS Enterprises LLC and doing business as Big Air Aiken, told the board the oversized banners were produced in error by the vendor and asked to leave the banners in place only through the tenant’s opening period. "It was a 'boo boo' by the printer," Stratford said, adding the initial production cost about $2,500 and that he planned a permanent sign already permitted and in production. He said all three temporary banners would be removed within 30 days after a planned grand opening (he had penciled July 15 but acknowledged scheduling could shift).

Board members discussed visibility from the road, the parcel’s lack of frontage and how the ordinance treats temporary banners versus permanently affixed signs. One board member offered a motion to approve the variance with conditions specifying that the final order run with the tenant (doing business as DHMS Enterprises LLC), that it be recorded at the Aiken County ROD, and that banners comply with ordinance square-foot limits after the tenant opens. The motion was seconded and the board voted unanimously to approve.

The board noted this property had a prior, separate sign request for a former tenant that had been denied. The variance approval allows the temporary banners to remain under the recorded conditions; staff and the applicant will carry out post-approval compliance steps including recording the final order.