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11.a. Regulations for Temporary Banners and SignsMEMORANDUM TO: CITY COUNCIL FROM: STEVEN ADAMS, CITY MANAGER $& wL TERESA MCCLISH, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT SUBJECT: CONSIDERATION OF CHANGES TO REGULATIONS REGARDING TEMPORARY BANNERS AND SIGNS DATE: JUNE 14,2011 RECOMMENDA'I'ION: It is recommended the City Council direct staff to prepare an ordinance making the proposed changes to regulations regarding temporary banners and signs for Planning Commission and City Council consideration. IMPACT ON FINANCIAL AND PERSONNEL RESOURCES: No financial impact is projected. BACKGROUND: In July 2009, at the Council's request, staff presented an analysis and the Council discussed regulations regarding temporary banners and signs. Staff was directed to obtain feedback from the Chamber of Commerce. As a result, staff met on multiple occasions with the Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee regarding this issue and they conducted a survey of their membership. At the April 12, 2011 meeting, City Council considered staffs recommendations and directed staff to draft an ordinance for Planning Commission and City Council consideration to implement the proposed changes. The City Council adopted the Ordinance on June 14, 201 1, which included recommended amendments from the ARC and Planning Commission. Temporary banners are now subject to the following regulations: Each business may display temporary banners up to 30 days in any 90 day period. Banners may not exceed twenty-four (24) square-feet. Banners must be professionally printed on vinyl or plastic. Banners must be firmly attached to the building, below the roofline. Banners must be registered with the City prior to installation. Agenda Item 11.a. Page 1 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF CHANGES TO REGULATIONS REGARDING TEMPORARY . BANNERS AND SIGNS FEBRUARY 28,2012 PAGE 2 Notices were mailed to every business regarding the new requirements. 'They are somewhat more lenient than the prior provisions. The goal was to develop regulations that are reasonable and then enforce them in a more consistent manner. Following implementation, staff was contacted by the owners of Christianson Chevrolet and Mullahey Ford regarding issues that have been created for their business due to the provisions now enacted. Their requests are outlined in a follow- up letter, which is attached. In order to be responsive to the needs of local businesses, staff agreed to bring forth recommended adjustments for Council consideration that will help address these issues. The proposed changes have been reviewed with members of the Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee, who were unanimously supportive. Staff is seeking Council direction at this time. If directed to proceed, staff will prepare an ordinance for Planning Commission recommendation prior to returning to the City Council for introduction and adoption. ANALYSIS OF ISSUES: The primary issue unique to the auto dealerships is the number of promotions that are required by their manufacturers. According to the owners, they are required to purchase banners. If they do not participate in the promotions, they can be penalized through the number of vehicles that are provided. They have also raised the issue of the size of business. This issue was brought up early on in the process by representatives of the Chamber of Commerce. Since visual impact is proportional to the size of building or property, there is a concern that a business with a large building and/or property should not be subject to the same number and size of banners. In response to these issues, which staff believes are valid, the following changes are recommended: Allow any single business occupying a property of one acre in size or larger to have two banners instead of one at any given time; and Allow any single business occupying a property of one acre in size or larger to have banners up to 40 square feet in size instead of 24 square feet. The recommendations apply only to businesses where a single business occupies a property of over one acre. It would not apply to businesses in a shopping center that share a property over one acre unless an individual business can be shown to occupy over one acre. Currently, there are six businesses in the City that meet these criteria. Therefore, the changes will have little impact on the overall goals of the ordinance. Agenda Item 11.a. Page 2 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF CHANGES TO REGULATIONS REGARDING TEMPORARY BANNERS AND SIGNS FEBRUARY 28,2012 PAGE 3 Additionally, they have requested to be allowed to display banners for up to 90 days rather than 30 days. While staff's original recommendation was 60 days, the existing 30 days was approved by City Council based upon recommendations of the Planning Commission. Staff does not recommend it be changed because there does not appear to be any unique circumstance that would justify a provision differentiating between size of business with regarding to length of time a banner is displayed. However, the request is outlined with the others in the attachment for City Council consideration. ALTERNATIVES: The following alternatives are provided for City Council consideration: 1. Approve staff's recommendations; or 2. Direct staff to make no changes; 3. Request staff to prepare the recommended modifications to the Ordinance, including a provision providing for a longer period of time for banners to be displayed; 4. Provide staff direction to prepare other changes to the Ordinance; or 5. Provide staff other direction. ADVANTAGES: The changes will help address impacts of the existing regulations on auto dealerships. The overall goal is to help local businesses be successful in order to generate revenue, jobs and an overall positive impact to the business environment. The changes are designed to address what can be viewed as an inequity in the existing regulations, while having little impact in the overall goal of limiting temporary banners throughout the community. DISADVANTAGES: The recommendations will apply different regulations based on the size of the business location, which may create some confusion when one business observes another business subject to different standards. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, staff has determined that any modifications to the Ordinance will be categorically exempt per Section 15308 of the Guidelines (Actions by Regulatory Agencies for Protection of the Environment). PUBLIC NO'rIFICATION AND COMMENTS: The Agenda was posted in front of City Hall on Thursday, February 23, 2012 and on the City's website on Friday, February 24, 201 2. No comments were received. Agenda Item 11.a. Page 3 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF CHANGES TO REGULATIONS REGARDING TEMPORARY BANNERS AND SIGNS FEBRUARY 28,2012 PAGE 4 Attachments: 1, Letter from Christianson Chevrolet and Mullahey Ford Agenda Item 11.a. Page 4 r- - -- - -- -- ATTACHMENT I 1-1 CHRISTIANSON CHEVROLET To: The City of Arroyo Grande Dec. 6, 2011 How can we make it easier to "Do Business" in Arroyo Grande"? The current sign ordinance is too restrictive We auto dealers are required (pressured) by Chevrolet and Ford to purchase and display materials to promote current incentives, seasonal programs, new model introductions and other sales promotions. Time Limits Some of these promotions are monthly, some 60 days, and some, like our Certified Used Car Programs are on-going. Allowing banner display only 33% of the time is too restrictive and hinders sales effectiveness Size Limitations Most of our required banners are larger than currently permitted. (4' x 10' isn't unusual). A 24 sq. foot banner limitation is inadequate for a dealerships of 2-3 acres. Number Limits The one banner limit is also too restrictive. We often have multiple events or programs going on at one time. An example would be a "New Model Introduction" and a "Certified Used Sale" at the same time. Due to the size of our dealerships and the fact that they face many different streets, we may have as many as 4 banners displayed at a time. Registration Its time consuming and expensive for us and the city .... and its needless. A reasonable solution for a larger (multi acre) business in the City. Allow 40 sq. ft. banners. Allow up to a 90 day maximum display of any particular banner. Allow up to 2-3 banners per acre. Rn.? Trnffir. Wnv Pnzt Office R~Y A88 Arrovo Grande. California 93421-3387 Phone (805) 489-551 8 Agenda Item 11.a. Page 5 Some of our promotional banners cover ........... January White Sale Presidents Day Sale March Madness Memorial Day 4th of July Sales Truck Month Year End Clearance Labor Day Sales Certified Used Cars Introduction of new models "The New Mustang" or Camaro etc. Spring Clearance Sale "The 100th Anniversary of Chevrolet" All of our banners are professionally prepared and we strive to have them properly displayed. If they are faded, torn, or sagging we replace them. And they are expensive. We do believe that the imposition of this ordinance will be expensive to both our dealerships and the City. Bob Christianson Christianson Chevrolet Mike Mullahey Mullahey Ford Agenda Item 11.a. Page 6