Neighbors and Commissioners Clash Over Amalfi/Richmond American Signs; Several Sign Permits Denied

A heated portion of the Aug. 13 RPC agenda centered on a series of off‑premise sign conditional use permits and waiver requests for Richmond American Homes (Amalfi project). Staff explained the signs were previously approved in 2022 but those approvals had expiration dates; because the permits lapsed, the signs required new CUP/waiver approval.

Michael Pankratz, a representative of the sign contractor, said his crew changed existing sign faces to promote Amalfi and that he was working from existing ground leases and permits. Commissioners and multiple public commenters said signs had been changed on the ground while the conditional use permits had expired. "The signs were existing signs from Thunder Bluff, and they switched them over to Amalfi," Pankratz said; commissioners pressed why faces were changed before reapproval. Residents described dozens of Amalfi banners and flagged signs near Mountain Falls and called the display "overkill," saying it detracts from community gateways and asked that responsible company representatives appear before the board.

After discussion, the commission considered motions: an early motion to deny one sign item (CU25‑8 / WV25‑10) failed, but subsequent motions to deny other related sign applications passed — commissioners cited expired permits, the number and proximity of signs, and the visual impact at community gateways. Staff noted code enforcement already had open cases where signs were out of compliance, and the denial path triggers continued enforcement options or appeal to the BOCC.