Title
Ordinance - Third and Final Reading on an Ordinance to Amend Section 7100, “Sign Standards,” of the Zoning Ordinance to Establish New Regulations for Temporary Realtor Open House Directional Signs and Human Signs; (OA#17-001)
Requested Action
To consider the proposed amendments to Section 7100.
Recommendation
The Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed the draft ordinance referred to them by the City Council and after holding a public hearing on May 1, 2017, voted 4 to 0 to recommend approval. Commissioners Horn, Knight and Mills were absent.
Description/History
First Reading - May 22, 2017
The following are the proposed regulations for Temporary Realtor Open House Directional Signs and Human Signs with minor changes recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
Temporary Realtor Open House Directional Signs:
The proposed amendment will add the following definition to Section 7100.C.2:
dd. Temporary Realtor Open House Directional Sign: A temporary sign used for directing realtors and potential buyers to houses for sale within the City which are open for public viewing.
Section 7100.K, “Signs Permitted in All Zoning Districts,” will be amended by adding a new Sub-section 15:
Temporary Realtor Open House Directional Signs
Temporary realtor open house directional signs must be no larger than twenty-four (24) inches by eighteen (18) inches in size (three square feet) and cannot be higher than three (3) feet above grade. Signs must not be placed closer than thirty (30) feet from an intersection, measured from the edge of the right-of-way line along any street, and must not be placed in the median. Signs must not be placed any closer than three (3) feet from the back of the curb or from the edge of the pavement.
These signs must not obstruct the vision of traffic on the roadway. Any signs determined to be in a location that causes an immediate hazard to public safety may be immediately removed by the city.
Signs must only direct traffic to properties located within the city limits.
The sign must contain the words "open" or "open house," as well as a directional arrow. The signs must contain the name of the realty company, the name of the listing agent and a current phone number (cell phone) in a font size and manner that is smaller and less prominent that the “open,” “open house” and directional information.
No more than four (4) signs shall be posted for each address, including a sign on the property at which the open house is being held.
These signs must be kept in good repair. These signs must be made of metal and/or plastic. These signs must not be made of wood or paper. These signs must be self-supporting and placed into the ground. These signs must not be placed on a utility pole, streetlight pole, sign pole, fence, tree, or any other manmade or natural feature. These signs must not be illuminated.
Placement of these signs shall only be allowed on Saturdays, Sundays and City holidays, and shall be installed no earlier than one (1) hour before an open house event and removed no later than one (1) hour after the open house event. For the purpose of this subsection, a city holiday is any day recognized as an official holiday by the City of Mansfield. The list of official holidays observed by the City of Mansfield shall be maintained for public viewing on the City's official website.
Human Signs:
The proposed amendment would add the following definition to Section 7100.C.2:
cc. Human Sign: A sign held by or attached to a human being who stands or walks on the ground at a business or other location. A Human Sign includes a person dressed in costume, for the purposes of advertising or otherwise drawing attention to an individual, business, commodity, service, activity, or product.
The proposed amendment will include Human Signs in the prohibited sign list in Section 7100.L, “Prohibited Signs,” by amending Paragraph 1:
Any sign, including a human sign, which is not included under the types of signs permitted in Section 7100.D or in Section 7100.J.
Second Reading - June 12, 2017
At the Council's request, we have talked to residential real estate agents regarding the day and time when open house signs should be permitted.
- It is general preference to have open house on Saturdays and Sundays. It could be on a Friday or other weekday evenings but very rare and is mostly by appointments.
- Different real estate agents have different preferences and methods to prepare for an open house. Some prefer to put out their open house signs early, and some prefer to wait until just an hour or two before. It is customary for agents to remove the signs as soon as the open house is over, unless they are held up by late arrival or unforeseen reasons.
- Nobody wants to abuse open house signs so as to avoid potential buyers knocking on seller's doors.
Based on the input, we propose to add Fridays and remove the 2 hour time limit on placing signs before an open house (see redline in the attached ordinance).
Prepared By
Lisa Sudbury, Acting Director of Planning
817-276-4227