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Minutes 04-23-98 MZNUTES OF THE CZTY COMMISSZON WORKSHOP MEETZNG HELD IN THE LIBRARY PROGRAM ROOM, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 1998 AT 6:30 P.M. PRESENT G~rald "Jerry" Taylor, Mayor Shirley .~askiewicz, Vice Mayor Henderson T man, Mayor Pro Tem Nellie Denahan, Commissioner ~larnie Titcomb, Commissioner Kerry Willis, City Manager Jim Cherof, City Attorney Sue Kruse, City Clerk OPENING A. Introduction by Mayor 3erry Taylor Mayor Taylor called the meeting to order at 6:40 p.m. He was pleased that so many people were in att~endance. Mayor Taylor explained that the City's focus for the last five years has been to change and be.~utify Boynton Beach.. We are now at a point where it is necessary to address landscapgin and sJg~age. Changes ~n these areas will have a major impact on businesses and residents as well. :In some ca~es, the change will be easy. However, in other cases, the change will be drastic. The City will provide time and assiStance, and will investigate to seeif fUnding assistance can be provided through the use of C~ dollars. Tambri Heyden, Planning & Zoning Director, advised that 415 notices were sent out with respect to nonconforming signs and/or nonconforming landscaping along Federal Highway and/or Boynton Beach BoUlevard. DISCUSSZON A. Removal of nonconforming signs Understanding of the current sign code definition of a nonconforming sign (size, height and setback) 2.:[nventory of nonconforming signs (maximum :[4) 3. Sign slide show (signs that only partially meet the nonconforming definition). Ms Heyden advised that our current sign code contains an amortization period. When the sign code was ad~pted several years ago, a date of December 31, 1999 was included that mandated compliance or. renloval of all nonconforming signs. A definition of a nonconforming sign is included in the sign code. 1990, the sign code was changed with regard to height, setbacks and size. For a sign to be considered nor~conforming, it would not meet the height, size and setback requirements. ]:f the sign meets any one of those criteria, it is not considered nonconforming. Ms.i Heyden presented a slide show that depicted signs throughout the City. Because signs must meet all thr~e criteria (height, size and setback), attendees expressed surprise at some of the signs that are con He~ thr~ sidered nonconforming and others that are in conformance but appear to be nonconforming. Ms. den explained that the purpose of the slide show was to show everyone that unless the signs meet all ~e criteria, they are acceptable under the current code. MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 4. Comments from the public 5. Agreement on enforcement nonconforming definition) of existing code (removal date and Thle purpose of this meeting was to seek input from the public with respect to their feelings about the current sign code. The following questions and remarks were made: What is the objective of the sign code as currently written and what is the City trying to accomplish with this code? M~yor Taylor advised that the purpose of the code is to provide standardization of signs. After viewing the slide presentation, a gentleman in the audience felt it would be unfair to require some pebple to remove signs while others will be permitted to keep their signs in place. rvl~ other gentleman felt any changes being made to the Code should apply to new businesses that come 3 the City. He urged the Commissioners to leave the current signs as they exist at this time. yor Taylor explained that Delray Beach implemented a code and gave the businesses a certain amount time to come into conformity. Tf a person has a sign that was in conformance when it was erected, will that person have to remove that sign? Ms! Heyden explained that signs erected since 1990 will be conforming. ~ 3. Is the theme for every company to have the same sign? Ha.~or Taylor advised that the point of this project is that signs should not exceed certain sizes, heights an~t setbacks. A ~entleman in the audience advised that the sign at Tiffany's was erected in 1992. It was shown in the slic~e presentation as a nonconforming sign. Ms. Heyden explained if there was an existing sign and the te~.ant in the building changed, the City has alloWed only the sign face to be changed. Amortization does no~ cover that item. However, if the sign structure is nonconforming, it would have to be removed. sar all, Ma' eft( 4. TS my sign at Lucille & Otley's conforming? Heyden advised that the sign at Lucille & Otley's is a conforming sign. Only nine signs in the entire are nonconforming. 'or Taylor explained further that the remaining signs are conforming as the current code is written. vever, the City is attempting to make changes to standardize the code so that all signs will look the le. entleman felt the businesses are the backbone of the community. He recommended grandfathering in :urrent signs and applying the new code to new businesses that come into the City. for Taylor pointed out that leaving everything "as is" is a very popular thing to do but that will not ~ct change. 2 MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 A gentleman in the audience pointed out that everyone is in favor of change for the better. However, since there are only nine nonconforming signs in the City, they should be grandfathered in and all new copstruction should be required to abide by the new code. Signs are identification for businesses. He explained that the sizes of signs are being increased everywhere. Even street signs are larger to help people identify where they are going. Another gentleman agreed with this opinion and pointed out that the cost of changing the signs would put a tremendous burden on small businesses. He said the recent construction on Federal Highway nearly put him out of business. A number of people aired their complaints about changes that were made recently by DOT along Federal Highway. The complaints involved the elimination of parking areas, signage and landscaping that hides business signs. St~ve .]ones complimented the City Commissioners on the job they are doing. He said he has been here fo~ 20 years and the appearance of the City has improved. He owns a plaza a few blocks from City Hall. W§en that building was built, the setbacks were different than they are today. His building is close to the street and his sign is almost on the sidewalk. While he understands that he might have to remove his sig~, he does not understand how he could possibly erect a sign that would be in conformance. He questioned why his sign is considered objectionable now when it was not objectionable when it was permitted. ke~ th( Al sig pe~ pr( yor Taylor reiterated that the City would like to have a sign code that everyone can live with and to ;p our City from looking like Military Trail in West Palm Beach. He acknowledged that the remarks of ,se present indicate the current signs should be grandfathered in. nember of the audience questioned whether there are any funds available for the owners of the nine ~s that are nonconforming. Ms. Heyden advised that there are no grants available for signs on 'sonal property. Mayor Taylor offered to investigate whether or not the City could work with the ,perty owners with regard to matching funds or no-interest loans. St~ve Scott said he has lived in Boynton his entire life. He believes conformity is a great thing and he wa~ts to be able to compete with businesses in other towns. He does not have a problem replacing his sigh if some help is made available. ~ A ~ember of the audience questioned whether or not the City Commission felt the objective of this code change would be of any benefit to small businesses along Federal Highway. Mayor Taylor feels that if thele are no code requirements, the business :owners could keep increasing the size of their signage. That could be competitively unfair. Vic.~ Mayor Jaskiewicz explained that although there are inconveniences since the work took place on Fe~leral HighWay, the end result would make eVeryone very happy. The City does not have contro over the bicycle paths. It is difficult to deal with the DOT on some issues. DOT felt the median cuts were Cremating accidents. An attr A~ as' hor audience participant explained that the cost of his sign was $20,000. He feels the City should let ition take its course on the sign issue. 'oman representing Gulfstream Lumber pointed out that these types of decisions affect the businesses ~/ell as the employees. The cost of a sign pays an employee's salary. She felt dealing with DOT was 'endous. She does not want to have to deal with the City now. .3 MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 5. Do all signs have to be freestanding or can they be on the roof? Ms. Heyden advised that there are nonconforming roof signs. However, because the definition does not address roof signs, they will be allowed to remain even after 1999. Mayor Taylor pointed out that the City might want to address this issue. BOb Renault said the sign codes are contradictory, omit the City and are unfair to the small business owners. Mr. Renault accused the City of running small businesses out of town. DOminic Desiderio is a convenience store owner. He advised that he is unable to display a Lotto banner, but the City is immune from its own Codes. During G.A.L.A., City employees hung banners for 10idays. Mayor Taylor advised that G.A.L.A. is a community event that is held for a short period of time. M~ yor Taylor reminded the members that the Commission represents the people. Business runs the colnmunity, but business owners are only a percentage of the population. The business community does no want the sign code changed for existing businesses. However, he pointed out that the City of Bo/nton Beach is made up of 55,000 residents. There may be a percentage of that population that wa nts to see change. Rc bert Foot said the City has been responsive to business owners. He urged the audience to think ab,)ut what the Commission was asking and offer additional ideas. He would like to see a compromise wcrked out. He thought it was amazing how few signs are nonconforming in the City. In his opinion, m~ ny of the signs he see are hideous. He urged everyone to be reasonable. M~. :]:rving showed aerial photos of Seaview Trailer Park to point out the fact that there is no space aw ~ilable for a sign to be erected. ' La-fy Finkelstein said there is nothing in the code that addresses aesthetics of existing signs. If the Cit lets attrition take its course, it could take forever to eliminate the nonconforming signs. Sc(~tt Blasie, Code Compliance Administrator, advised that maintenance is addressed in the sign code fro ~ the standpoints of safety and aesthetics. Va lerie Pleasanton explained that her sign is in compliance. However, when the City planted trees, they blocked the view of her sign. If 20' is the recommended limit, she suggested that the City consider the issue of landscaping. She further pointed out that DOT also installed a sign that blocks her sign. She feels the City needs to look at ways to make the sign code work for the existing signs. Ma'for Taylor questioned how the audience felt about the signs that are displayed in stores such as 7-11. On, convience storeowner pointed out that signs sell merchandise. A~audience member asked for an opinion about allowing banners on a temporary basis. Ms. Heyden advised that banners are prohibited under our current code. When the discussion turned to the use of sigl~s that are not visible from main thoroughfares, Mayor Taylor advised that he is already receiving comPlaints from people who live oPposite the rear of the new Winn-Dixie on Federal Highway. / Anc~ther gentleman recommended that the City send out surveys to individuals to seek their opinions on the use of numerous signs in stores such as 7-1::[ and The Pantry. He recommended that a list of questions be provided and suggested that business owners would respond in private. / 4 MEETING MINUTES CiTY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 B~b (;erda said he has been here 20 years. A number of years ago, he was cited for using a banner sign. He questioned whether they are permitted or illegal. MayOr Taylor reminded Mr. Gerda that the cdmmission was accepting public input at this po nt No decision has been made yet regarding what will be done with banner signs in the future. A iepresentative from (;race Fellowship said he spent $17,000 to bring that property up to the City's specifications. He has now learned that his sign is nonconforming. Wi~h respect to complaints about the DOT, Mayor Taylor recommended that complaints be directed to RE ~resentative Sharon Merchant to seek her assistance in dealing with the DOT. BE~cky 3ones said there are many places in Boynton Beach that have signs that cover more than 20% of th~,~ square footage of the window. She agrees that effective advertising can be done without having to co/er the windows from top to bottom. She questioned why some people do not have to comply with th~ regulations. Mayor Taylor advised that all businesses are under the same regulations. WI)en a member of the audience asked the City to make the sign codes available to people who are int.~rested in them, Mr. Foot advised that they are available for purchase at City Hall. City Manager Willis explained that the purpose of this meeting was to seek input from the public re(larding the issue of signs because the current codes do not make sense and are not uniform in uniform sit~Jations. She recommended setting up a panel to sit down and spend one month making suggestions th[it make sense, and are clear and easy to understand. A meeting can be arranged for a future date to discuss this issue. At that point, we would be able to determine how much money we need in grant fur~ds and loans. A sign-up sheet was circulated throughout the room. Tn Mayor Taylor's opinion, a pa lei of more than 20 would be ineffective. City Manager Willis recommended a panel of not more than 10 Wl~en a member of the audience asked if the American Flag was considered a banner, Mr. Blasie re~ ~onded negatively and advised that American Flags are permitted. B. Proposal to require upgrading of landscaping :t. Slide show of nonconforming landscaping along East Boynton Beach Boulevard and Federal Highway Ms Heyden advised that the City is considering a proposal to adopt an amendment to the landscape code the t would require property owners with nonconforming landscaping to bring their properties up to code. De ray Beach did this in 1990 and they now have almost 100% compliance. After putting the rec uirement in place, they sent out City staff to do a formal checklist of each property owner's property to ~etermine what was nonconforming. City staff provided technical assistance to help them comply. Cib staff has visited each site on Federal Highway and Boynton Beach Boulevard and ranked the prc~ )erties from i to 3 with respect to nonconformance. Following is a description of the rankings: i Ranking #1 means maintenance is needed and adding minimal trees or hedges would be nec essa ry. Ranking #2 means additional material is needed and the required location of landscaping requires removal of some asphalt or concrete. There would be no loss of parking spaces or rec,)nfiguration of the parking lot. ~ 5 MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 Ranking #3 requires adding significant landscaping and would result in loss of parking and redesign of the parking lot. Of all of the sites visited on Federal Highway and Boynton Beach Boulevard, 39% ranked #1, 26% ranked #2 and 35% ranked #3. Ms. Heyden presented a slide show that depicted examples some of the sites around the City. This slide shOw was previously viewed by the City Commission and the Planning & Development Board. w Recommended "curb appeal" changes to the landscape code vs. requirements of existing landscape code. The City Commission was concerned that in comparison to other cities, our landscape code is not stringent enough. Staff was asked to make recommendations. The recommendations that were made relate to curb appeal that will be viewed from the street front. We currently have a native species requirement of 50%. Staff recommends keeping the requirement at 50% but requiring a minimum of 25% of the species to be drought tolerant. Currently, trees along the front of property are required to be 8' !n height at planting. Staff recommends that height requirement be increased to 12' with the canopy to be 6' with a 2" caliper and one tree planted every 30 lineal feet across the frontage of the property. Staff is recommending that Palm trees be 12' in height and because they do not provide shade, they will beirequired at a ratio of 3 to 1. Staff also recommends limiting the maximum number of Palm trees to 30% of the overall landscaping along the frontage of the properb/. Wi~ sp~ Ou Be~ tre :h respect to shrubs, staff recommends the height of the plants be increased to 24" at planting and ~ced at 24". current code requires a perimeter landscape buffer 5' in width. This is the narrowest buffer in Palm ~ch County. Therefore, staff is recommending a 10' wide buffer with a continuous hedge and a row of .~s. With respect to the interior lot line, staff is recommending a 5' wide continuous hedge and a row of :rees. Parking area screening as viewed from the front will remain as is but the hedge height will be increased to 24". The City of Boynton Beach currently has no requirement for foundation landscaping and no landscaping aloi3g the front of the property is required unless a parking lot exists in front. To improve the appearance o fl pri~ Wit Ho~ off Sta :he frontage, staff is recommending a 5' wide around each side of the building that faces a public or 'ate street. h respect to dumpster and recycling screening, staff recommends this requirement remain as is. vever, we currently require a 6' high concrete block stucco wall. Staff recommends allowing the use encing as an alternative to a CBS wall. also recommends a tree species ratio so that there will be a mixture of trees on a site. 3. Comments from the public. 4. Agreement on whether to direct staff to prepare an ordinance to require landscaping upgrades. Th~ owner of Sunshine Court on Federal Highway said he would be out of business if he has to eliminate parking~ to install landscaping. He feels new codes should be applied to new businesses but existing businesses should be grandfathered in. MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 Ms. Heyden explained that staff is recommending to the City Commission that existing businesses be required to upgrade short of losing any parking spaces, Donna, from Act ZT Consignments, said her building is ranked #3. She has a very small building and almost all of her parking has been eliminated as a result of the DOT improvements. Customers must pa~k on the property in front of her garage. Tf she is required to install landscaping, she will have absolutely no place for anyone to park. ViCe Mayor .laskiewicz explained that her hope is that if these changes are made, there will be a high degree of flexibility. She pointed out that it might be possible to put out potted plants to help improve the appearance of the property. One member of the audience announced that 12 plants were stolen from his property last Friday. Another member of the audience said he was in favor of making the buildings more attractive if the business owners are given a reasonable time to comply and if the new code does not affect the parking of the existing businesses. Kathy Shabotynskyj said she did not notice any mention of landscaping around dumpsters in the proposal. She was advised that landscaping around the dumpsters is included. DOminic Desiderio of Atrium Place said he has complete visibility into the plaza and the Police Department loves it. He keeps building lights on all night. He has no bushes for anyone to hide under and he has had no problems with purse snatchers. This property is well lighted and well landscaped. Gary Lehnertz recommended that the City require 60% to 75% native species rather than 50%. He fur[her suggested that where the current landscaping does not meet that level, the property owners should not be required incur costs to replace existing landscaping. He feels the City Commission should make it a policy that non-Cypress mulch be used. carl Towilliger said that by changing the requirement for tree heights from 8' to :t2; the City would be eliminating some of his business. His customers purchase less expensive trees when replacing exotics. He urged the Commission to keep the tree height at 8'. He further urged the Commission to eliminate theI use of exotics and to have the ordinance apply in residential communities. . Tn response to Larry Finkelstein, Ms. Heyden explained that the City is discouraging the planting of Palm trees in order to bring more shade trees into the City. Mille Bower felt Mr. Towilliger was attempting to tell people what to do with their property. He does not feel the City has the right to tell people what they can and cannot plant on private property. Stella Rossi urged everyone to use native materials for planting because they will survive without water. Sh(~ reminded everyone that Queen Palms offer nothing, and that there are other Palms that can be used instead. Ha~'Vey Oyer feels people want conformity but also want individuality. He suggested that when the ordl.nances are written, the City should use the carrot approach instead of the stick approach. He reminded everyone that when he was a child, the City thought Melaleuca trees would beautify the City. Foll~)wing that, Australian Pines were planted. Those trees have' been determined to be invasive exotics. MEETING MINUTES CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 23, 1998 He recommended that all residents be provided with a list of hazardous vegetation, and he suggested that the City use moderation in imposing its view of aesthetics on others. In i closing, Mayor Taylor advised that in setting up a panel to talk about the sign codes, his recommendation to the Commission will be to appoint members who are residents of the City. MS. Shabotinskyj advised that in some cases, the business investor has a bigger investment than a homeowner. Since these ordinances affect the business owners, the City will miss the opinions of many people. Mayor Taylor feels no one has a bigger investment in this community than the peOple who live in the community. Onie of the members of the audience stated the business owners pay much more tax than the condo owners in this City. However, Maurice Rosenstock disagreed with this remark. In Hr. Desiderio's opinion, this meeting was a farce. Comm ss oner Titcomb suggested having a residency requirement while still allowing for representation from the business owners. A re.~ Mr re~ Coi -nember of the audience explained that the group should be made up of business owners and idents. The panel will come up with recommendations to the Commission. Rosenstock pointed out that a representative to the Chamber of Commerce was seated at the head of table. She has had more input than the taXPayers. Although the seating members might have to be idents, that would not stop anyone from having input to those members. The members of the City ~mission represent both residents and business owners and the Commissioner want to do what the people want. IIl. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Commission, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:45 p.m. A~E~: City'Clerk ~"/Deputy City .(Three Tapes) ]mp j '