Billboard Regulations Amendment City of Tacoma Planning and - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Billboard Regulations Amendment City of Tacoma Planning and Development Services City Council Study Session November 17, 2015

Overview  Continuation of process to resolve billboard regulatory issues and litigation - 2011 Code amendment (3 faces comply, amortization) - Standstill Agreement - Community Working Group (March 2015 report)  Planning Commission - Task Force, Recommendation to Council  Staff Alternative - Based on CWG framework, Standstill Agreement, Planning Commission recommendations, and meetings with billboard owners 2

Community Goals  Reduce the number of billboards  Protect sensitive areas  Avoid continuing legal disagreements 3

Standstill Agreement  Dismiss existing lawsuit  City stays enforcement, including amortization  Agree to meet and confer to determine if a permanent solution can be found - Focus on consolidation program to remove specified signs from designated areas in exchange for bulletin-sized static billboards  Clear Channel relinquished “banked” sign permits - To be credited as part of an exchange program  Clear Channel removes 31 billboard faces  Clear Channel performs maintenance on 14 other billboard structures  If fail to reach agreement, either may resume lawsuit 4

Community Working Group Overall Conclusions  An exchange mechanism is needed to accomplish the desired changes: • Reduce the number of billboards through consolidation • Eliminate billboards from problematic areas • Needs to be sufficiently attractive to result in action  The locations in which billboards are allowed can be expanded • Depending on characteristics of billboards  Development standards (size, height, etc.) can also be loosened 5

Community Working Group Recommendations  New Zones (DCC, DMU, WR, UCX, CCX, CIX, PDB) added to old zones (C-2, M-1, M-2, PMI) • No consensus on C-1, T and NCX  Size – Allow 672 sq. ft. in Industrial zones  Height – No recommendation • Mix of 30 ft., raise to 35 ft., or greater than 35ft.  Buffers – Reduce buffers (100-300 feet range)  Dispersal – Reduce dispersal (100-300 feet range)  Design – Eliminate most design and development standards  Illumination – No digital  Landscaping/Maintenance – Retain existing requirements 6

Planning Commission Overall Conclusions  A new exchange mechanism can incentivize desired changes, but amortization should be retained to ensure progress • Exchange program should incentivize a shift to wall-mounted billboards  The locations in which billboards are allowed can be expanded • New areas should be limited to wall-mounted billboards  Development standards (size, height, etc.) can also be loosened • Particularly for wall-mounted billboards in the downtown • Large freestanding billboards are not appropriate anywhere  Council needs to strongly consider outstanding legal questions 7

Planning Commission Recommendations  New Zones (DCC, DMU, WR, UCX, CCX, CIX, *NCX, PDB) added to old zones (C-2, M-1, M-2, PMI) • New zones limited to wall-mounted billboards • Freestanding billboards only allowed in old zones  Exchange Program - New signs allowed though use of “credits” generated by removals • Ratios incentivize conversion to wall-mounted billboards  Size – No change to size allowance (300 sq. ft.)  Wall signs can be larger, with staff review  Height – Modifications to height allowances • Raise to 35 ft. for signs away from sensitive areas • Reduce height limit in PMI from 45 ft. to 30/35 ft. • Wall signs can be taller, with staff review 8

Planning Commission Recommendations (continued)  Buffering – Reduce from 500 ft. to 250 ft. • Additional reductions for wall-mounted signs and within downtown  Dispersion – Reduce from 500 ft. to 300 ft. • Additional reductions for wall-mounted signs and within downtown  Design Standards – Reduces most standards • Prohibit off-set, over-cantilevered, and overhanging buildings • Require efficient lighting and lights be off from 12-5 am  Amortization – Retain with additional grace period • 3 years for billboards in sensitive zones • 5 years for other nonconforming billboards 9

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Potential Alternative  Opportunity for separate agreement to ensure progress  Must meet overall Plan intent and important community priorities - Based on CWG framework, Standstill Agreement, Planning Commission recommendations, and meetings with billboard owners  Principles - Signification reduction - Protection of sensitive areas - Avoid continuing legal disagreements 13

Staff Alternative  Special Compliance Agreement - Commitment to significant removals - Specific timelines for removals - Removals focused on sensitive areas and certain negative characteristics - Sensitive zones - Over-concentration and significantly over-height - Over-cantilevered, over or on roof, etc. - Additional flexibilities: - Alternative to amortization - Allowances for pole-mounted billboards in new zones - Limited allowances for increased size, height, reduced buffers, and design standards 14

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Overall Reductions o 40% overall reduction in nonconforming signs within 5 years o 20% reduction of the maximum cap on number of freestanding billboard faces o Cap total billboard square footage to existing amount 15

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Removals – within 90 days o 100% removal of the following CCO billboards • Junior poster billboards (72 square feet) • All billboards from residential zones (R-2 and R-4) • All billboards from RCX mixed use zone • All billboards from the Conservation overlay zone • All billboards from the C-1 Commercial zone • All billboards from Shoreline zones 16

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Removals – within 1 year o 25% removal from the NCX mixed use zone o 40% removal from the DR downtown zone o 30% removal of city identified high priority removals o 100% removal of rooftop billboards o 50% size reduction of sign at NE corner of Center Street and Union Avenue 17

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Removals – within 3 years o 60% removal from T – Transitional zone o 34% removal from NCX mixed use zone o 40% removal of city identified “high priority removals” o 20% removal in city identified “high concentration areas” 38 th Street (vicinity of Tacoma Ave and G Streets) • Pacific Ave (46 th -56 th St; and 81 st – 98 th Streets) • South Tacoma Way (vicinity of Pine; 50 th -67 th Streets) • 6 th Ave (State to Cedar Streets) • Tyler Street (50 th – 56 th Street) • 56 th Street (vicinity of 56 th and M Streets) • 18

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Removals – within 5 years o 45% removal from the NCX mixed use zone o 60% removal of City-identified “high priority removals” o 33% removal within each City-identified “high concentration area”  Amortization Existing amortization provisions retained, but o amortization would not apply to owners signing and complying with a Special Compliance Agreement • Nonconforming billboards remaining after 5 years will have standard nonconforming rights 19

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Exchange Program o Removal credits deposited in bank o Removal credits can be used to obtain a permit for a new billboard o Specifically incentivizes: • Conversion of freestanding to wall-mounted billboards • Removals from sensitive zones and areas • Removal of “high-priority removals” • Removals from “high-concentration areas” • Removal of other nonconforming billboards 20

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Additional Zones and Size o Open additional zones to new freestanding billboards less than 300 sq. ft. in size • CIX, UCX, CCX, PDB, WR • NCX and DR (reduce and cap) o Allow 672 sq. ft. (bulletin) size billboards in industrial zones o Allow certain existing bulletin signs to add a bulletin size sign on the blank reverse side or as replacement for two poster faces on reverse side • Allowed after 1 year removals competed 21

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Additional Zones and Size (continued) o Allow bulletin size billboards along limited arterial street segments in the C-2, UCX and CCX zones Tacoma Mall Area (38 th St, Steele St, Tacoma Mall Blvd) • 6 th Avenue (Mildred St to Orchard St) • James Center (portions of Mildred St and S 19 th St) • • Tacoma Central (portions of Union Ave) Tacoma Place (portions of S 72 nd St and Hosmer St) • Westgate (portions of Pearl St, Westgate Blvd and N 26 th ) • 22

Staff Alternative Specific Proposal (continued)  Other Modifications Retain existing 45-foot height limit in PMI zone o Allow 40-foot height in all billboard zones if located more than 500 o feet from non-billboard zone or sensitive areas Reduce buffer within mixed-use centers to 150 ft., and 100 ft. for o signs of 30 ft. or less in height Exemption from buffering when billboard is not visible from the o buffered area or other factors provide sufficient protection Allow for limited (up to 5 feet) off-sets for freestanding billboards of o 300 sq. ft. or less Clarify wall mounted design standards o • Sign can not cover windows, door openings or significant features • Limit face to no greater than 50% of wall 23