BOAMin09-27-00CITY OF LONGWOOD
BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS
Minutes for September 29, 2000
ATTENDANCE:
BOARD: STAFF:
]im Daly, Chaupwson F. Jay Sargent-Planning Division Manager
David Richarde. Vice Chairpwson Beverly Majors-Plarming Secretary
Edward Fagan
J. Russell }lammond
ADSENT:
Edward Strain
1. CALL TO ORDER:
Mr. Dajy called the mewing to order at 6:0'] P. M.
2. APPROVAL OF TILE MINUTES FOR Apri126,2000:
Mr- Hamneotrd mode a nmririr~ ro <rPprove rlre Nrntrtes ojApril 26. 2000. nrP.esented Mr.
XtGrnrdssecatded rNe matlart. the mwlair ~var rrnamnrrrvsly approved (+Oj.
3. PUBLIC REARING:
Mr. Daly opened the Public Fearing and asked for Notice ofPUblic Hearing for VAR-02-00.
Mr. Sargent preserted Proof of Publication, which was publicized September 11. 2000-
A. VAR-01-00 Applicant: Eller Media Company
Location: 8]0 S.R. 434 East
Request: Billboard Setbacks
Mr. Sargent presented the statT report on VAR-0L00 beginning with Lend Development
Regulations Conventional Varimce (Chapter 24f03.04)- He then presented a summar¢ed
infotma[io regarding the variance of setbacks.
pe~nF on of Vari ce Rem
Ellw Madia Company respectfully requests e variance to the Podowing wde secnans:
Land Development Regulations. Article VI. Section 24-60.13.G.
Permisaible Number, Area, Spacing and Beigkt of Permanent ORSite Signs. 5.
Setbacks
We respeott uy reque two pots s of Section 24fi0.13.G5.:
I) The minemum front setback ffom the Pont property One We
reque t e H foot fionr setback in lieu of the required I5 kG, and
2) lYte]5 foot eGback from the nearest property Tine ofany
residential district. We request a 65 foot sazback from the
n st property line ofa residential district. io heu of the
tequeted ]5 ( t.
Request 1) will allow the sign to be Z feG frther away Rom the residentially
oned property to the south resulting in a 46.6 % reduction The eight foot
front seback also allows a minimum ten foot aerial sabaek Rom power linos
above SR 434.
Request 2) asks fora 10 foot variance or a rednction of 13.3 % in the requited
distance from residetvial.l.ots (through 4 of the East Longwood SLbdivision
tuned G3 are only 121 feet deep. The subject property, part of loll 1- 4 are the
only Commercially zoned property. with CrC future land use along SR 414. and
adjacem to residential property with e depth of less then 2'10 fat. The subject
lot therefte has 44 R% less depth than all other properties under the same
This creates a scenario where lots 5-8 zoned R I-A are only 131 f from SR
434 e major arterial roadway- The 121 ket depth of the subject property will
of allow a 15 foot fionr setback. a 50 foot long sign and a ]5 f of setback to
reaidentiel. (15+50]5= I40').
The sign will hav impac n tha residential propert o the south as will
of be visible 6om said property due to en exi ring denset60 kot mll existing
bufkr of trees.
Allowing these reque ould not be se tinge w preceden violate the
spirit/ in t of the (.and Development Regulations. This reque t Is compatible
with tha cxtsting land uses in the area
Cove anal Var' (Cheater 24~I03041
I. That gran(ing [he proPOSed v will implement specifically
identified policiee and objectlves inrthe Comprehensive Plan; avd
Billboards are speoi6cally permited in Geneml Commeroiel firma land use.
Bataan 2A-60.13
Stag Comment. billboards are permitted in General Commercial Land Ilse.
z. rnm gra Img me proposed variance wai not resnh i.. ereadng, or
ting,a eof ellherasfractnre, lne lanA, ors mmnination of
In ndranJ stnrrb~rc, whim is not eompa(iblewilh adjacestt land uses In
the men, and
The current use of the property is non residential', law offices and is wmpatible
with the C-3 zoning and GC future land use. The proposed use (billboard) is
compatible with the C i sorting and GC future land use. Commercial zoning
and fuwre land use is dominant in properties fionting SR 4J4 on both sides of
the road. in this area. Billboards am permitted in these classifications
S jfCorrtrr~entr. The LOC regtures dil/bamds ro 6e sS' from reridemial
-anedprapzrtie.s ac approved by CITY Carnmivion. Norrnrber [999, Article 1'%
SiAm Regrrtarforrz
3. That granting (rte proposed variance is the mininutm action available
to permit reasonable use of the property; and
The combine nofboth ve will allow the sign to be%feet farther away
f om the residentinlly zoned property to [rte south, resulting in a 65 foot rear
setbacA.
The sign structure is a secondary use and not occupied. The sign support pole
will be placed in an area of unused space. There exist 60 foot tall buffets of
vegeta n along thew end south propetty Tines of the subject property that
limit the isibiliry of the sign [o only SR 434 end only west bound tmHic.
Sr ~Corrrmenrs: Cttrrenr]}~ the property is 6elrrg rrrlllardfor mr oJJ)ee Au/Id/r~g
and required mnenines. This propalry enrrertrly has aJrnrtr serhack varlaace
jrthe Arrildntg Aite mrhe Nghr fuay~raklugfarSRA3A-
4. That the physical characteristics o[tne sunjert site fire unique to the
specific site and not present on adjacent sites; antl
Lots 1 through 4 ofthe East Longwood Subdivision zoned C-3 areonly 121
feet deep. The subject propetty, part oflots I- 4 are the only Commercially
oned property, with GC future land use along SR 4]4, and adjacent to
residential property wnh a depth of less than 2'10 feet. Tlie subject lot therefore
has 44.8 % less depth thin all othu pinpeniea under the same uiteria.
Only the subject property would be conforming for a billboard sign, as spacing
regulations requir a mtmmum 1000 fut between billboards on the same side of
the road.
The 121 feet depth of the subjeo[ property will not allow a I S-loot from
setback e 50-foot long sign and a 75-foot setback to rosidential. (I S+Sp+]~
140 ).
.St ~Carrrrrrevt: I'he Pt'operry~raeers [he ntlrrirnam lnr reyrrlrerrrentj rC-3
n ring
.. That the circumstances erealing the neeA for a variance are not the
esuh of actions by the applicant, or action proposed by the applicant;
ana
The epphcant nor the property owner. were responsible for the lot division oC
less than 2]0 Rat oPdepth
.SlaffCortrment: ]he nroyerly meetr~the minlmrtnt [oi regalremer/jrnC'-3
=o ring.
6. That granting the proposed variance will not result in creating. or
ing,a -ooforrning use of elthera structure, the land, ore
<ombinatron of land anJ structure.
On the w Crary, allow ¢ [Ease vadenoes will in fact result in theremoval of a
sign that is non conforming undo Four enrols. See below-
The current sigo code, adopted November 1 k 1999 specifically removed this
rea fiom the list of"9illboord exofusion zonos."The following area was
ved from the list of prohibited ar as for w billboards: "The south side of
SR 4~4 between Eest Street and Oleander Street:
TFe torten[ use of the property; law office is wnforming in the C-3 zoning
anU GC future lend use_The proposed use (billboard)is conforming in the C-3
zoning and CrC fWUre land use.
All strucrural aspects of the sign conform to Article n, Section 24-6h Sign
Regalatioos. Aside from the two setback variances. all aspects of the
application are conforming.
StaRComm r. Thee ring sign at the school sire is a uoneovPorming sign
and the proposed eign willselso be von oonfonning due to the requesred
setbacks.
The Collowing iNOrmation is provided to insure compliance with the total
umber of allowable signs in the ciry..4n existivg EMC owned non-wnfotming
sign would be r ved as ~ to gain a perm to build the n
This proposal will no enthe number of sigvs mtthe oily and it will st
maintain the capon ihen~otelsnumbu of signs.
Desctipdon ofsign to bet oved:
Lyman High School k145 CR 42] South. Property owner: The Seminole
County School Board, Parcel # 5-21-30100-0080-0000.
'fbe s ~ to be removed is non covfotming for the Following re sons-
t) Bottom of the sign is less than 30` above the crown ofthe road
2) It has more than one steel support.
3) Is located in a prohibited Lantl Use classification (POblio)
4) Is located in the following area where OD=site sigvs ere
prohibited. §24-60.13 K "The eazt side ofCR 42'/ between the
oath side of Lyman High School and the south right-of ay
line of East Maine Ave."
As a wndition of approval, Eller Media Company would agree w have the
e sign et Lymav Kgh School dismantled before any advemsing copy u
nstalled at [he new location; 8]0 SR 434 East- Eller Media Company
unders ands that tailor to dos ould result i nediat wde enforc
on by the cry-Eller Media Cotvpeny agrees not to build another signnonn[he
Lyman High School property.
RECOMMENDATION
The Planning Divisiov staffand the DRD recomme0ds that the Board oP
Adjustment DENY VAR 02-00, to allow a billboard a variance to the front and
ar setbacks The font setback being reduced Nom IS tb4t to 8 feet :end tha
satbeek from residential from ]5 feet to 65 Ceet, based ov tlta following findings
offaa.
Fintlin¢s of Fact.
1- The proposed v with the polices end
objet soRhe Camprehen venPlatn
2 'fhe proposed va will cr elhat ompatible with
land u t theanadjacent a e specfi<elly setbacks
stablished from residential coned area mtd closer to a State Road.
3. The proposed v t the m vailable t
perm sable usne of the property.nlThe propertyas wrzently
being aril zed with s o1Hce building and amenities that has e
setback variance Por the building.
The physical characteristics are not unique o this specific site.
'IYie ceeds the minimum ste requirenrente for (reneml
CommeraieL
~. The proposed v nonce are a resnh of anions by the
applicant/ow
6. The granting of the variance (reduced setbacks) llcreateanon-
conforminguse on the property.
Following Mr. Sargen's prase Mr. Daly seated he would ask the Board for qua bons or
wmments aftu dte Applicant presented his variance requesa
Mr. Lou Musics. represeming Eller Media, was asked to speak. After imroducing himself Mr.
Musica spoke. advising the Doerd that he disagreed with etaffcommeots. Hehended outs mapto
Board and Staffoftbe subject propany with neighboring las marked Mr. Musica esplaioed the
map. the z ning and setbacks o t the propert es along 434. He also Ares tted Board and Staff
with Jett rs from o property o on Lyns Ave who would be impacted and m
affttted with the vanenca requestWStatsngthair support for the billboard- Last, he presentedaa
laver ftom the prinupal of Lyman High School smtiog they would not pursue the placement oC
another billboard sign ofthe school property.
He elm had prepared a card view of the property and explained the variance requests and
defended his request stating hewas attempting to keep thebllboerd from residences and placing
the bilboard closer to S R 434.
He smted if the variance request were detveA that the billboard would stay et the Lyman High
Sohool location uotl the end of the lease, which is approximately two years-
Mr. Mum aced with the Land Development Code alit was revised. he hasbeenu gad to
the sign fiomtthe prey nt location. Heis attempting to relocate thesign where it has leas impac
He war denied a similar request last year, but did not (eel he had any other options, since there are
only five IeSal rtes on SR 434. There are no legal sites on I7A2, and although there area number
of sites on 427, there is e visibility problem.
He concluded asking for his variance request to be approved.
Following Mr. Musica s presenmtion Mr. Daly asked the board ifthey had any questions.
f.9r. Fagan asked why the eign was closerto ihewesk and whet the feelings ofthet property owner
az. Nr. Mue eted that lot nedw cial and thu tins largenumber ofnce
which would buffer the sign This owner. Mr~Simmons wouldsnot haveaview ofthe billboards
Mr. Richard asked why the billboard was 50 foot, and if a smaller billboard mould be used to fell
within thesetbacks_
Mr. Musica rtaced thue are eettaio mendard sizes that he nses, oneoPwhicb is I S foot tall by 48
foot long. which is a total of6'/2 square feet. which is the maximum allowed square footage in the
mode The commission took into acwunt the standard size that could be used by those feats- Fle
said yes, a smaller sign could be made, but ewvotNCally it would impact the cost tremendously.
and although that is not a hardship, because he is volumarJy removing a sign which is incumng a
cost end volunmrily erecting a new one, whioh costs 525,000 to 530 000_
Mr. Daly asked the.aize ofthe sign on the Lyman property.
Mr. Musics replied [hat that sign is l5 or40f troll, avd isa poster, which isa different billboard
product, whioh is much smeller- They are 12 fat tall by 25 fat long, and they ere used in areas
where tratHCis not such that the bulletins or big faces that go for much moremovey. It is based
n the uatGCand visibility. They use the DOSter signs on less traveled roads and areas wherethey
can get very close to Ne roa0- The ivdusiry is v visibility oriented- Ha felt it was important to
point out that the eign et Lyman had two sides so there is 300 squxra f on one side, and 300
squaref too the othu sida_Hestated that the new sign would onlyhave oveside, even though
n ~s alarger ovYlgurano2
Nr. Fagan asked if it was oNy going to be one sided on the new sign-
Mc Musics statod yes.
Mr. Fagan said according co the drawings the sign could be seen from both ways.
Mr. Musira said that he was oNy trying to accomplish visibility from the west because the trees
would prevem visibility fiom the other direction.
Mr. Daly again stated thaz the picture showed an eastbound view and a westbound view. In both
as the sign is abovethetreeline, and it ehows Eller at thebottom. It apPearsthat it isadouble-
Faad sign.
Mr. Musma stmed that was corzect. when the compute endering was done he vied to show what
would look!ike. ifin fct there were no trees blocking the view He would be happy to agree to
a rtipula[ion [hat the sign only have one fee
Mr. Daly asked the total square footage of the ne. sign if it was one sided.
Mr. Musicareplied 14 x 46, which equals b]2 square feet He stated there were a numbaofsigns
to the city Chet were that size
He was agNv asked ifhe would be willing to stipulatetbat he would vevu usethewest sideoFlhe
sign.
Mr. Musics said he would be willin& not eager, but willivg He added that ovly because iv the
6tmre ihue might be a possbdiry of openivg up ofviaiblity.
Mr. Daly asked if he meant ifthe trees were to die_
Mr. Musics slated if someone ware to clear the trees.
Mr. Daly said who[ Mr Musiw was looking at was a possibility of almost 1400 square f of
signage es opposed ~o rho existing 600 synare fat double sided on the Lyman propany- In other
words. Mr. Musics would give up 600 square feet, bur asking to be given 1400 square feet.
Mr. Daly then asked Mr. Sargen in how n any instances was the Lyman High School non-
conforming.
Mr. Sargent slated [here were four as listed in the report.
Mr. Daly asked how many nonconforming issues would be on the 4I4 sign.
Mr- Sargen replied there would be two. which ere the serbeeks-
Mr. Sargenl asked the appliran[ how long is the lease on the school board site. which Mr. Musics
said two to three yearn At rhal rimethe sign would be moved someplace else
Mr. Sargent also asked ifthevariar~ce was only I'or theone sided billboard, or was therequut for
a two-sided billboard. Mr. Sargen stated he wanted to make this clear.
Mr. Musira replied that he was asking for a two-sided sign. In his explara~ion above the buRer
Ihar zthere ould nor be visibility for the second face, and that is why he offered the board
the possibility of a stipuledon
Mr. Musira did notf Ithe frees would becoming down Mr. Sargent interceded ~ha~although
there was en arbor ordinance. it did not cover tramming of the trees. only vetting down the trees.
it the trees wue trimmed up Por visibiliy ~o the sigq which is done everywhere, thel would
open up the side ofthebillboard withow aPecting an arbor Permit or soy otnu policies by theory.
Mr. Daly w awned tliat Mr. Mus said In the beginning that i[ -sided eign the
pier eshowed di~fiwen end oow Mr-Musics is no saying Ihar ~t could DOSSiblybea two-sided
signrHe asked Por cladtloation-
Mr. Sargent spoke and said when tl~e aDPlication was submitted it was prowssed as a two-sided
sign, and ifit is one-sided he wanted it to be stipulated in whatever motion might be made.
Mr. Daly brought up the variance that had been issued to Dut a Dorch on the front o(the building,
and asked if the Hoard w ao[hor zed to issue an additional vanance on one piece of property
unless there was a hardship involved.
Mr. Sargent staled that no vanance should be issued unless there was a hardship involved. The
~ ofva ould be up to the Board The variances that were received on a lot of the
panels was because of the widening of S R- 4i4, and so buildings oou10 stay in their postrlons.
Mr. Daly asked iF there was anyone on the south side of Lyns Dme. in the residential houses
contacted for their input.
Mr. Musics stated that the last year (here were two advertised LPA meetings and threeadvenisai
City Com rings. and at none of those Bearing no a showed up in opposition. Mr.
Sargent did at o that avd stated that twelve properly owners.nthin 150 ket omfere
otified_es ring on each iss end rro tie has showed up for them ring, nor bas anyone
wntacted the Planning D'visrov. Thota wetealso n wspapar notices on each occaewm
Mr. Sargent advised the board that the BOA was the final action on the request.
Mr. Daly stated the next step. on approval or disapproval would be appeal to the Eighteenth
Circuit Cou The Ciry Com ould not be herring the Variance. Mr. Daly stated he
wanted to point this out to the Applicam.
~U. Daly asked ifanyone waned to speak in favor of Variance 02-00. There tie pres
to speak in favor. Mr. Daly asked iCthere wes anyone who wished to speak in opposition of the
Variance. There was no one present to speak in opposition.
Aqua asked regardin¢the prowmiry ofrhe sign with the power lives, and the _ ould
be within the permuted allowance
Mr. Dalysum zed thev reque t. Hew mad with the sign hanging anynf
the hou s bate ured thine t the c 90MroDaly w rued with illegal non
conforming is uez and stated he was personally opposed to the variance
The heights ofthe trees wore questioned. There were no further questions from the Board. Mr.
Daly entertained a motion to close public hearing on VAR-02-00.
Mr_ Xmrrntarrdnuute a motion to dace pubHchenring mz iAtt-02A0. Hb~. Rlclurtvls sermrdedtlx•
nrotrart_ /he nroelon rtes anarrlnton.vl}~ approved (!-0/.
Mr. Daly stated that the signwould be nomintrusive to the residential area, but he was concerned
about thew side of the sign being open Pot sale and lightin6 being Put .Hew s also
rued with the applies ring the e sided and then o sided. the dilferen
the height ofther and that wof illegal acavhtes with the non errnfortmnce of[Ire
request. He stated he was opposed toethe request.
With no funher discussion he entertained a motion.
A1z. Richards made m motion ra deny 1'AR-02-0Ol+asedon the /~indinys oflacrand irT nnatlmr
provided Ay 5'rofJ, Mr_ F"agmr secundvd the motion- the vtnce rate u~ru Mi~. ])alydeny rhr
[--ernnnce; M~. Fngandet0~ the vnriance.~ Mr. Nantnrnnd, nor ro dnrv; Mr. 2iclrnrdsdet y the
mouan. [he rnortun nasapproved ro deny 4'AA-02-00 (3-IJ.
Mr-Daly advised the Applioenr Cher his nan step ro appeal would berhe EiShreen[h Circuit Court.
J. OLD ROSINESS: There was na oid business to dixuss.
5. NEW ROSINESS: There was no new business ro discuss.
6. DISCUSSION AND SCHEDULE FOR FUTURE ITEMS:
Next scheduled meeting dato Is October 25.2000. Thcro are no items achednled for that meeting
A Datewes established Por the NOVembu meeting due to the holidays. Thedeteset Por NOVembu
is November 29.2000_ December 27" wes kept the sema.
]. PUBLIC COMMENT: These wes no publicpresent for comment.
8. ADdOCiRNMENT:
Mr. Richm~~[rmMieainot/unjorndjmtrrtmertc Mv. Hn~~tmondsecarrdetl the ntotlnre ~hemotiwt
~~ ers „~tarrrmm,.s y a~Provv~i (107.