Agenda

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Item # 9.

Work Session and Regular Meeting

Meeting Date:	03/12/2019
Department:	Public Works

AGENDA CAPTION:

Present, Discuss, and Consider Action on an Ordinance Granting a Meritorious Exception for Lupe Tortilla, Located at 4535 Belt Line Road, from the Code of Ordinances, Chapter 62 Section 62-163. – Area, in Order to Permit a Sign Exceeding the Allowed Letter/Logo Height Requirement.

BACKGROUND:

Lupe Tortilla is a Mexican restaurant with multiple locations centered around the Houston, Austin, and San Antonio areas, and that is expanding into the North Texas market. In 2018, the company purchased the former Romano's Macaroni Grill building located at 4535 Belt Line Road.

The Sign Code, Chapter 62 of the Code of Ordinances, regulates attached signage as follows:

Section 62-163. – Area.
(5) Maximum letter/logo height of attached signs shall not exceed twice the allowable effective area as specified in subsections (1) and (2) of this section. The street curb referenced in Schedule B shall be the street curb closes and/or adjacent to the property where the sign is to be installed. Maximum letter/logo height of attached signs shall be determined by Schedule A or Schedule B as follows:

Schedule A:

Sign Height Above Grade (feet)	Maximum Letter/Logo Height (inches)
0-36	16

Schedule B:

Horizontal Distance of Sign From Street Curb (feet)	Maximum Letter/Logo Height (inches)
100-149	24

b. Not more than 50 percent of the letters in each individual sign height category in Schedules A and B may be 25 percent taller than the specified maximum letter/logo height.

Lupe Tortilla is proposing a sign at 16 feet 3 inches above grade and is setback about 70 feet from Belt Line Road. Based on this, the sign must comply with Schedule A, which would require letter/logo heights of up to 16 inches tall with an allowance that 50% of the letters or logo can be up to 20 inches tall. The sign reads: Lupe Tortilla, Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner, and contains a pepper logo. The letters Lupe Tortilla are proposed at 12 inches tall, the letters Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner are proposed at 9.8 inches tall, and the pepper logo is proposed at 57 inches tall. While the letter heights of 9.8-14 inches meet the Sign Code requirements for attached signage, the pepper logo does not comply exceeding the allowed letter/logo height by 37 inches. This equates to 285% increase in size from what is allowed by the Code.

The applicant is requesting a meritorious exception to install the sign as proposed, with the 57-inch-tall pepper logo, on the south facade.

The Code states that meritorious exceptions should be considered on the basis that the Town's standard requirements, "by reason of exceptional circumstances or surroundings, constitute a practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship." Staff does not believe that such a situation exists here and that a meritorious exception is not warranted. Lupe Tortilla expresses a concern about trees blocking the visibility of the attached sign from Belt Line Road. It was for this reason that Addison amended its sign code to allow for monument signs beneath the tree canopy. Staff believes that a monument sign is a more appropriate solution to any visibility concerns.

RECOMMENDATION:

Administration recommends denial.

Attachments
Ordinance - Meritorious Sign - Lupe Tortilla
Application - Lupe Tortilla