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Commission wrestles with how often digital displays can update; staff suggests 2-hour minimum
Summary
Commissioners asked whether shortening the minimum interval for changing digital and LED sign faces would allow beneficial uses (fuel prices, marquees) while preventing distracting intermittent flashing; staff recommended a roughly 2-hour minimum and narrow exemptions for schools and fuel-price boards.
A central debate at the July 19 workshop concerned how frequently an electronic sign face should be allowed to change. Commissioners noted school marquees and fuel-price boards that update more frequently than a 12-hour limit and asked whether the draft two-hour proposal would affect them.
"How does that fit in with, like, the high school's marquee?" a commissioner asked, prompting staff to explain that school-district property typically supersedes local restrictions. "It's school property," the chair confirmed.
Corey Schmidt, Community Development Director, explained the city's historical approach: earlier bans on flashing LED signs gave way to narrow exceptions. Schmidt warned that liberalizing intervals risks creating a slippery slope: "If it's changing every 2 hours, that change isn't gonna catch passerby's... Once that door is opened, it's gonna be very difficult to close it for everyone." He recommended limiting any relaxed interval to clearly defined, essential uses and to rely on lumen/illumination standards for overall mitigation.
Staff said enforcement feasibility drove the 2-hour recommendation: very short intervals would create an operational monitoring burden because alleged violations would require time-based checks. Commissioners directed staff to refine wording and to identify which sign types (school marquees, fuel-price signs) would be explicitly exempt or treated differently.
