Council, planners still talking about proposed sign ordinance
Posted on Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Those who run the city want to have some control over the types, sizes and frequency of signs, but that isn't going to happen right away. There are still some questions to be answered first.
Mayor Frank Anderson visited with the Bella Vista Planning Commission on Friday to address some of the specific sticking points in a proposed sign ordinance.
The planners spent weeks putting together a proposed document before sending it to the city's aldermen late last month for their input.
At the June 30 council meeting, comments from two local business owners resulted in the council's sending the mayor back to the document writers with some concerns.
Primarily, the issues are the use of banners and the sizes and number of allowable political signs.
Paul Buckner, owner of Buckner Computer Service, which sits in The Plaza on the west side of U. S. Highway 71 south of the city, said if the ordinance is passed as is, the rules regarding banners will hurt his business.
The proposed ordinance allows for banners to be attached to buildings, but Buckner told the council that in order for somebody to see a banner where he is located, they would have to be directly in front of it.
He wants to be able to erect the signs on the hillside between the road and his front door, so drivers have the opportunity to see the sign and exit in a timely manner. That, he told the aldermen, is how many of his customers learn about his sales and other special offers.
The ordinance, if passed as is, would allow for a maximum of four signs per year.
Planning Commission Vice Chairman Don Robinson said he doesn't want to restrict business, but he is concerned about what might happen if all of the owners and operators in that mall decide to put banners out at the same time.
"If we allow one to do it, we could end up with a string of (banners ) on the hillside," he said. That, he said, could be distracting to motorists, which is one of the things Planning Commission members had hoped to avoid.
"What if we increased the number allowed from four to six ?"Robinson asked. "We don't want to discourage business."
Commissioner John McBee said," Perhaps we need to step back on this issue and recognize what we do could (ultimately ) cause problems. I don't want to put a roadblock up to a man wanting to run a business."
As for the political signs, Anderson said the issue he sees is with the sizes and number allowed. He told the commission he is inclined to limit the signs to smaller sizes - 5 square feet - in residential areas and larger ones in commercial districts.
As for how many signs a person may erect, the commission and mayor were in agreement that it should be one sign per candidate, with no limit on the number of candidates a person could support.
Anderson will take the planners'comments and suggestions back to the council, and that body will make appropriate changes.
The next Planning Commission meeting is set for 3 p.m. Aug. 11 in the training room beside the Town Center fire station.
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