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Home My WebLink AboutHARMONY SAFEWAY MARKETPLACE, LOT 6, FUEL FACILITY - PDP - 33-94F - CORRESPONDENCE - RESPONSE TO STAFF REVIEW COMMENTSfour elevations of such a diminutive structure, the basic building form and function of the building are sacrificed. The architecture of the building is designed to blend in with the balance of the center by use of similar materials and secondary roof form. The addition of three extra wall signs will dominate this basic architectural perspective and reduce the image to merely "building -as -billboard," an image that is not in keeping with high - quality urban design established for the Harmony Corridor. Further, the additional wall signs detract from objective of blending in with the center and cause the building to appear as a stand-alone structure, reminiscent of strip center development, not a planned cohesive shopping center. Staff finds the request for wall signage on the north, south and west elevations to be excessive in relative proportion to the size and scale of the convenience store structure, and, therefore, violates the fundamental intent of the Residential Neighborhood Sign District. If you have any further questions regarding this finding, please feel free to call our office at 221-6750. Sincerely: _Q Ted Shepard Chief Planner Cc: Cameron Gloss, Current Planning Director E9 City of Fort Collins Commu v Planning and Environmental' Current Planning October 20, 2000 Ms. Peggy Friesen Galloway, Romero and Associates 5350 DTC Parkway Englewood, CO 80111 Dear Peggy: vices At our recent meeting on October 5, 2000, you asked for further clarification regarding the City's request to delete wall signage from the north, west and south elevations of the proposed convenience store on Lot Six of the Harmony Safeway Shopping Center. The purpose of this letter is to provide our justification in writing. The site is located within the Residential Neighborhood Sign District. This sub- district of the City was established in 1993 in response to growing concerns about the relationship of commercial signage to residential neighborhoods. The City has had a long-standing policy of mixing residential and non-residential uses. The challenge is to appropriately mitigate the impacts of commercial development and yet allow its proximity to neighborhoods in order to reduce vehicle miles traveled and encourage walking and biking to nearby commercial centers. According to the advisory task force that assisted the Staff in formation of the Residential Neighborhood Sign District, one of the methods to mitigate such impacts is to regulate the location of flush wall signs on commercial buildings. The primary intent of the Residential Neighborhood Sign District is make sure that wall signage on commercial buildings relates to the overall architecture of the building in a sensitive manner. The purpose is to preserve the integrity of a building's architecture from excessive wall signage and protect the aesthetic character of those neighborhoods near commercial areas. The convenience store is a small building totaling only 2,790 square feet. Its front door faces east, the gas fueling area under the canopy. It is wholly appropriate for wall signage to be placed on this east elevation. The building, however, is too small for three additional wall signs. With signs on each of the 281 North College Avenue • PO. Box 580 • Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580 • (970) 221-6750 • FAX (970) 416-2020 4. Sec. 3.8.7 (E) (13): For the first two hundred (200) feet in building frontage length in a neighborhood service center, the maximum sign area permitted shall be equal to one and one - quarter (1 ''/4) square feet for each linear foot of building frontage length. For that portion of a building frontage which exceeds two hundred (200) feet in length, the maximum sign area permitted shall be equal to two-thirds (2/3) foot for each linear foot of building frontage over such two hundred (200) feet. This site has one hundred and fifty three (153) feet of building frontage. This calculates to one hundred ninety one (191) square feet of sign area allowed. 5. Sec. 3.8.7 (D)(5): flush wall signs, projecting wall signs, window signs, freestanding signs and ground signs, provided that the placement and use of all such signs shall be governed by and shall be within the following limitations: (c) In no event shall the total sign allowance for any property be less than one (1) square foot of sign allowance for each linear foot of lot frontage. This lot has frontage of 280 lineal feet along Harmony Avenue, so this becomes the mar; Nuw� aie4num-allowed signage area. 6. The following table shows the convenience store wall sign calculation: BUILDING FRONTAGE LF S F ALLOWED SIGN AREA * S F USED SIGN AREA BALANCE SF SIGN AREA NORTH 46.5 87 0 87 SOUTH 46.5 87 30 57 EAST 60 100 60 40 WEST 60 0 30 (30) TOTAL 213 274 120 154 • Area is 75% of building frontage (Max. of 40 feet) X maximum cabinet height of 30 " • Sec. 3.8.7 (E) (8), (10). 6. The proposed signs are very much in proportion to the walls of the convenience store and significantly less than allowed. This is evident in viewing the elevations of the building. Please call me if you have any questions. G lloway o ero & Associates Yncw-Le- David H. Moore Project Supervisor CC: Dan Clayton, Safeway Stores No. 46, Inc. Cameron Gloss, Current Planning Director Lucia Liley, March & Liley Attachment: Your letter of 10/20/2000 Galloway, Romero & Associates Design Engineering Planning 5350 DTC Parkway Englewood, Colorado 80111 (303)770-8884 (303) 770-3636 fax david_moore@graa.com December 29, 2000 Mr. Ted Shephard City of Fort Collins Planning Division 281 North College Avenue Fort Collins, CO 80523-0580 Re: Safeway Fueling Facility at Harmony Safeway Marketplace Dear Mr. Shephard EJANO D In response to your request (12/18/2000) to remove proposed signs from the north, west and south elevations of the convenience store, I can find no justification in the Code. We have shown no sign for the north wall and propose signs for the east, south and west walls of the convenience store. We also propose canopy signs on the east and south sides of the canopy. In response to your letter of 10/20/2000, we have reviewed our proposal in the context of the City of Fort Collins I and Use Code, the overall Harmony Marketplace Center and the three other pad buildings. We feel that our proposal is in context with the established precedent already set by sign permit approvals and signs installed on the existing buildings. Further, we find no Code support for the rationale proposed in your letter. In fact, the existing conditions, for example at the bank, far exceed the sign impact from the proposed convenience store. I find the following Code justification for the proposed signs: 1. Street definition, 5.1.2.Street: Street shall mean a public way (whether publicly or privately owned) used or intended to be used for carrying vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic and shall include the entire area within the public right-of-way and/or public access easement. This site has streets on three sides, public Harmony Avenue on the south and private streets on the east and north sides. 2. Building frontage definition, 5.1.2. Building frontage: Building frontage shall mean that side of the building which faces and is parallel to or mostly parallel to a public or private street. The length of the frontage is determined by measuring along the outside walls of the building and including eaves which are at least eight (8) feet above grade and are an integral part of the roof or building wall. There can be only one (1) building frontage for each street upon which a building faces. This site has three building frontages, north, east and south. 3. Sec. 3.8.7 (E) (12): One (1) flushwall sign or under -canopy sign per street frontage, not to exceed twelve (12) square feet in area, shall be permitted on or under the fascia of a canopy covering the retail dispensing or sale of vehicular fuels. Three (3) canopy signs are allowed, one for each street frontage.