WEED
CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING
AUGUST
1, 2000
The
City Council of the City of Weed held a special meeting on Tuesday, August 1,
2000, at 5:15 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall.
Mayor
Neva Barnett called the meeting to order and led recitation of the Pledge of
Allegiance. Present, in addition to
Mayor Barnett, were Council Members Roy Bergfors, Amelia “Mel” Borcalli, Joel
Obuchon, and Vince Tallerico. Also present
were City Administrator Earl Wilson, City Attorney Allen King, Finance Director
M. Kelly McKinnis, Police Chief Martin Nicholas, Public Works Director Craig
Sharp, and City Clerk Deborah Salvestrin.
PUBLIC
BUSINESS FROM THE FLOOR
Mayor
Barnett invited comments from the audience on specific agenda items or any item
of interest that is within the Council’s jurisdiction noting that no action
could be taken by the Council except to set the matter presented for the next
regular Council meeting.
Michael
Feil, owner and operator of Friendly RV Park, reviewed that he came before the
Council at its last meeting regarding overnight parking of recreational
vehicles on City streets, and it was determined that staff will work on an
ordinance. Mr. Feil asked the Council
when the ordinance can be expected to be complete and what would be done for
enforcement until that time. Staff
responded they would be working on the ordinance and hope to have a
recommendation for Council during the month of August. City Administrator Wilson added that the
enforcement of existing ordinance is on a hold pattern and that nothing will be
done different than in the recent past.
Council Member Obuchon reported being in Sonoma
County recently and seeing many bottles of Crystal Geyser water that had been
bottled in Weed.
A. Workshop/Study Session on proposed Sign Ordinance recommended by the Sign Committee
Mayor Barnett reviewed the procedures contained in
the Weed Municipal Code pertaining to the conduct of meetings.
City Administrator Wilson reviewed the history of
the item
Council Member Tallerico moved to deal only with
the off-site signs part of the recommended ordinance. Council Member Ramsey seconded the motion.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
City Attorney King noted that the recommended
sizes, heights, and distances were determined after discussion by the Sign
Committee and either by majority or unanimous vote.
Council Members considered the provisions under
“Signs not pertinent to land use”, and agreed to discuss size first. The Sign Committee recommendation is 500
square feet, and the CalTrans maximum is 1,200 square feet. Council discussed various preferences.
Finance Director McKinnis asked the Council to
consider sign size with recognition of those areas where residential uses are
nearby, and suggested that areas where residential uses are not nearby could be
considered for larger size signs.
Steve Anderson, a resident of Mt. Shasta, and
owner of Anderson Metal Building Products in Weed, requested the Council
consider 750 square feet.
Roger Ward, a resident of Weed and representing
Siskiyou Development, listed the sign sizes that they currently contract for on
I-5 in Yreka, and on Highway 97.
Marti Spiegel, a resident of Mt. Shasta employed
in Weed, stated that perspective is the issue and cited the example of the
Highway 97 signs located right next to the highway, whereas the Interstate -5
signs may have a frontage road between them and the freeway.
Joe Ganim, who resides on College Avenue, and owns
property in Weed, asked the Council to use the CalTrans limit of 1200 square
feet so there would be room for future advertisers. Mr. Ganim noted that Mr. Henry has already proposed the use of a
certain number of available square feet of advertising space.
Council then discussed using different limits in
the different bonus segments.
Charles Byrd, who resides on Black Butte Drive,
asked for and received clarification of location of the sign proposed for Joe
Ganim’s property.
Council Member Tallerico moved, seconded by
Council Member Ramsey, to limit sign advertising area to 1000 square feet in
the south industrial zones, and to 750 square feet in the central area
industrial zone.
Council continued discussion of how to define the
areas specifically, and considered using the milepost markers. City Administrator Wilson suggested using
the designations of north and south of Vista Drive noting it runs generally
east and west, and Council agreed the Vista Drive definition is to be part of
the motion.
Mayor Barnett called for the question, and the
vote to limit sign advertising area to 1000 square feet in the industrial zones
south of Vista Drive, and to 750 square feet in the industrial zones north of
Vista Drive was:
AYES: Council
Members Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: Council
Member Barnett
ABSENT: None
City Administrator Wilson explained the Sign
Committee’s recommendation with regard to maximum heights. The Committee recommended a maximum of 30
feet in height above the closest paved edge of the adjacent roadbed, and 100
feet total.
Council discussed and agreed to change the wording
to “the roadbed of the closest freeway or highway” instead of “adjacent
roadbed”. Council agreed that the
purpose of ordinance amendment is freeway-oriented advertising, and the change
would then exclude Shastina Drive in front of Mr. Anderson’s property and make
Interstate 5 the measuring point.
Council then discussed items #d. and e. in the
Sign Committee recommendation noting that these are CalTrans requirements but
inserted in the City’s ordinance for the purposes of public information.
Steve Anderson asked the Council to consider 55
feet and displayed photos with conceptual signs overlaid to give a visual idea
of approximate scale. Mr. Anderson
stated that his proposal is for two advertising surfaces stacked in order to
make it look less like a billboard. Mr.
Anderson added that in the case of his property, 30 feet above the paved edge
of the adjacent roadbed would put his sign on or near the ground.
Jim Henry, who resides in Redding, and represents
the South Weed Truck and Travel Center, stated that McHale’s Sign Company
visited his proposed sign site and determined that his sign requires a minimum
40 foot height in order to get view 4 seconds from the off-ramp.
After continued discussion, Council Member
Borcalli moved, seconded by Council Member Obuchon, to establish 45 feet as
maximum height above the closest paved edge of the highway or freeway, with a
total 100 feet in height, and to accept #d and #e as proposed by the Sign
Committee.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Council discussed the Sign Committee’s recommended
maximum of one sign every 2500 feet. It
was noted that the CalTrans requirement is 500 lineal feet.
John Oliver, residing on Old Edgewood Weed Road
and representing the Weed Mercantile, expressed concern about the spacing in eligible
areas because a greater distance limits the availability of advertising
surfaces.
Council noted that the Committee’s recommendation
takes adjacent residential areas into consideration.
Steve Anderson stated that he, too, is concerned
about the residents across the freeway, but feels that they were worried about
having somebody putting a sign on property between theirs and the freeway and
since the signs are limited to industrial zones, those worries were eliminated. Mr. Anderson requested the Council accept
CalTrans limits because deviation may open the door to possible dispute, and he
would like to have two signs on his property so he can provide four advertising
surfaces.
Council Member Obuchon moved, seconded by Council
Member Ramsey, to establish a maximum of one sign every 1,000 feet.
AYES: Council
Members Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: Council
Member Barnett
ABSENT: None
City Attorney King stated that the final ordinance
draft would slightly change the remainder of the Committee recommendation with
regard to “advertising permitted on both sides”. Mr. King added that the language will be refined.
Council discussed the Sign Committee’s
recommendation regarding permits and sequencing, and Council Member Ramsey
moved to open the meeting to additional public input, motion seconded by
Council Member Obuchon.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Steve Anderson commented on the CalTrans process
whereby the prospective site can be surveyed prior to the submission of the
full application. Mr. Anderson noted it
is nice to know a site will be appropriate prior to submitting the full
application.
Council agreed to accept the language in item #f.
as written.
Council discussed item h. as it relates to “v”
shaped or back-to-back signs. City
Administrator Wilson reviewed that the Committee opposed the “v” shape because
the lighting could become more visible to adjacent neighborhoods.
Steve Anderson asked the Council to consider the
wedge shape stating that his proposed sign was engineered that way because the
sign face can be better oriented to traffic.
Council Member Tallerico moved to accept the
language of items g. and h. as written.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, and Tallerico
NOES: Council
Members Obuchon, and Ramsey
ABSENT: None
City Attorney King asked the Council about
lighting, design standards, and permit fees.
The Council directed the City Attorney to pull
those elements pertaining to off-site advertising from the Sign Committee
recommendation and include them with the previously discussed parameters. Mayor Barnett suggested that off-site
directional signs also be included because those signs are coming into play for
the businesses that are located on the highway or the frontage roads.
City Attorney King agreed, and then a timeframe
was discussed. City Attorney King
confirmed he could have the drafted ordinance ready by the August 10 meeting.
Council Member Ramsey moved to accept further
public input, and Council Member Borcalli seconded the motion.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Jim Henry asked for clarification on the
illumination section of the Sign Committee recommendation noting it is not
clear. Mr. Henry explained that his
proposed sign is designed for internal illumination and the ordinance states it
is discouraged.
City Attorney King explained there are three
options for this issue included in the recommended ordinance and asked Council
for direction.
Council agreed to discuss the issue after a brief
recess. Mayor Barnett moved, seconded
by Council Member Borcalli, to take a 10-minute break.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Council adjourned at 7:35 p.m., and returned to
open general session at 7:46 p.m.
Council discussed the various language options on
pages 23a and 23b, and then Council Member Borcalli moved, seconded by Council
Member Obuchon, to select the third paragraph on page 23a of the Sign
Committee’s recommendation, and to include the definition of internal
illumination.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Council Member Tallerico moved adjournment, seconded by Council Member Obuchon.
AYES: Council
Members Barnett, Borcalli, Obuchon, Ramsey, and Tallerico
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
MEETING
ADJOURNED SINE DIE AT 8:00 P.M.