Developers: One 32-square-Foot Sign Doesn't Fit All

Planning & Zoning Commissioners are proposing a maximum size of 32-square-feet for free-standing signs, but developers speaking at last week's public hearing on zoning regulation updates expressed a belief that one-size doesn't fit all.

During the hearing at the Masuk High School auditorium, David Sippin, principal of Sippin Commercial Properties, told the commission the restriction could pose a problem in shopping centers. If a business' name cannot fit on a free-standing sign to lure in traffic off the road, the owner will not want to rent a space there, Sippin explained.

John Kimball, a developer with The Kimball Group, agreed. He pointed out that, under the current proposal, a one acre property and an 88 acre property would both be limited to a 32-square-foot sign, and suggested that larger properties be permitted to have bigger signs.

One possibility would be to allow 32-square-feet per every 10-acres or some formula like that, Kimball said.

David Bjorklund, an engineer with a business in town for 32 years, and Bryan Atherton of Atherton Associates Commercial Properties, also agreed that larger free-standing signs should be allowed.

If a business does not have its name on a sign, Atherton said it may move to another town for the exposure.