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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/13/1999 AGENDA MAPLEWOOD COMMUNITY DESIGN REVIEW BOARD April 13, 1999 6:00 P.M. City Council Chambers Maplewood City Hall 1830 East County Road B 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of Minutes - March 9, 1999 4. Approval of Agenda 5. Unfinished Business 6. Design Review a. Comprehensive Sign Plan Revision - Crown Plaza, 1700 Rice Street b. Election of 1999 Chairperson and Vice Chairperson 7. Visitor Presentations 8. Board Presentations 9. Staff Presentations a. CDRB Volunteer Needed for the April 26 and May 10 Council Meetings. 10. Adjourn p:com-dvpt~cdrb.agd MINUTES OF THE MAPLEWOOD COMMUNITY DESIGN REVIEW BOARD '1830 COUNTY ROAD B EAST, MAPLEWOOD, MINNESOTA APRIL '13, '1999 CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Erickson called the meeting to order at 6 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Marvin Erickson Present Marie Robinson Present Ananth Shankar Present Tim Johnson Present Matt Ledvina Present III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES March 9, 1999 Boardmember Johnson moved approval of the minutes of March 9, 1999, as submitted. Boardmember Ledvina seconded. Ayes--all The motion passed. IV. APPROVAL OFAGENDA Boardmember Robinson moved approval of the agenda as submitted. Boardmember Shankar seconded. Ayes--all The motion passed. V. UNFINISHED BUSINESS There was no unfinished business. VI. DESIGN REVIEW A. Comprehensive Sign Plan Revision--Crown Plaza, 1700 Rice Street John Dietrich, of Nash Finch Company, requested that the board reconsider the decision on this variance request. He said Buy-N-Save is testing a new concept in retail operation with three stores--one in Maplewood, Brooklyn Park and Albert Lea. Mr. Dietrich thought that continuity in signage would help improve their chances for consumer recognition. He said considerable time and corporate resources have been invested in this design. Also, the design and coloring of the sign are consistent with signs inside the store and also used in their advertising. As the major anchor tenant for Crown Plaza, Mr. Dietrich said it was important that this store "be successful for the sake of the whole center." He added that their sign company cannot find a way to achieve the same visual impression using channel letters. Community Design Review Board Minutes of 04-13-99 -2- Mr. Dietrich said the other two Buy-N-Save stores are freestanding stores. He stated that he was told of the comprehensive sign plan in Maplewood before leasing the space, but was given an indication that the cabinet sign would not be a problem. Mr. Dietrich had a letter from the landlord supporting the proposed sign. Boardmember Shankar pointed out that since these are the first three stores, the company has not set a precedent yet in establishing an image based on the outside signage. Mr. Dietrich answered that much of their material has been prepared with this logo and design. Boardmember Robinson stated that the review board was looking at this request from a consistency standpoint on what was required for this shopping center and code. She thought the store might be able to meet these objectives, perhaps by checking with another sign company. Mr. Dietrich said items have been ordered and he did not want to confuse the consumer by changing the identity of this store. Secretary Tom Ekstrand said that if the board denied this request, the applicant could appeal to the city council. He added that there was a 15-day appeal period. Chairperson Erickson said that, because Maplewood has a sign code requirement for shopping centers, it was difficult for the board to deviate from this code. He said that other applicants have presented similar reasons for requesting amendments to the sign code. Mr. Erickson understood but said it was too inconsistent for the board to grant these requests. Mr. Dietrich claimed there are situations where major anchor stores in malls are exempted from similar codes. Boardmember Robinson was concerned that granting this would be setting a precedent as a board after having denied previous requests. Boardmember Ledvina moved the Community Design Review Board · Deny the request by Stuart R. Deuring, of the Nash Finch Company, that the city revise the comprehensive sign plan for the Crown Plaza shopping center to allow two cabinet- type signs for the Buy-n-Save store. Denial is because cabinet signs are inconsistent with the style of signage in use at Crown Plaza and would be noticeably different which would be contrary to the purpose and intent of the city's sign code. B. Revision of the comprehensive sign plan for the Crown Plaza shopping center as follows (deletions are crossed out): For consistency, all wall signs for the Crown Plaza tenants shall be individual letters exc~ ,,,o,, ........ o, o,u ...... y ,,~ ,~ .......... ~,,. n he shall not exceed 36 inches. Signs shall not extend closer than 36 inches to the sides of the tenant's store front. These signs shall be placed on the designated sign band. 2. Signage for the two automotive buildings shall comply with Condition One. 3. Burger King signage shall comply with code. 4. Signs are not allowed on the awnings. Boardmember Johnson seconded. Community Design Review Board Minutes of 04-13-99 -3- Mr. Dietrich mentioned that the Burger King store in this mall has similar signage. Chairperson Erickson pointed out that Burger King is a "stand-alone" building and does meet the sign criteria. Ayesmall The motion passed. B. Election of 1999 Chairperson and Vice Chairperson Chairperson Erickson announced that this would be his last meeting. The increased workload with his new job has made it difficult for him to commit the time needed. He said he has enjoyed working with the board, liked this type of involvement and complimented staff on doing an excellent job. The members, in return, showed their appreciation for Mr. Erickson who has been on the board since 1987. He did tell the board that he would come back after he retires. Boardmember Robinson said she is seriously thinking of moving and, thus, would prefer not to have the vice-chair position in case she does move out of Maplewood. Boardmember Shankar nominated Matt Ledvina for chairperson and Tim Johnson for vice- chair. Mr. Shankar said he has been very busy with his job and would only consider being vice-chair. Mr. Johnson nominated Mr. Shankar for vice-chair. Mr. Johnson said he was up for a promotion at Home Depot and wasn't sure how his schedule would be affected by this new position. Mr. Ledvina said he would accept the position of chairperson. Boardmember Robinson seconded the motion for Mr. Ledvina as chairperson and Mr. Shankar as vice-chair. Ayes--all The motion passed. VII. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS There were no visitor presentations. VIII. BOARD PRESENTATIONS A. April 12 City Council meeting: Mr. Ledvina reported on this meeting. B. Ms. Robinson will attend the April 26 city council meeting. Mr. Johnson will attend the May 10 council meeting. X. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m.