Davidson’s Town Board will hold a public hearing Tuesday night, Oct. 11, on proposed changes to the town’s sign ordinance that could let shop owners install bigger signs. The hearing will come during the monthly town board meeting, which also will include votes on a new Parks & Recreation user fee policy and a planning amendment that would revise the town’s bonding requirements for developers.

The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at Town Hall, 216 S. Main St.

SIGN ORDINANCE REVISIONS

Tuesday’s meeting will include a public hearing on revisions to the sign ordinance. At a meeting of local merchants on Friday, downtown manager Kim Fleming told business owners the changes mean “you will be allowed to have larger signs.”

In the past, the town has limited external wall signs to 5 percent of building facades. The revised text says the total area of wall signs may be 5 percent, or 24 square feet, whichever is greater. Also, the revisions say any signs of more than 50 square feet must be approved by the Design Review Board, even if they are less than 5 percent of the surface area.

The changes also would allow for larger hanging signs and those projecting from building facades. And it would allow all businesses to have chalk board easels to announce special sales, menus and other changing information.

Hanging banners would continue to be prohibited except at grand openings, changes in management and business closings.

Ms. Fleming told merchants that the existing ordinance was confusing, with different categories of signs.

Download copies of the changes affecting the sign rules below. The town has said the documents are continuing to be revised in advance of Tuesday’s meeting.

CHANGE IN BONDING REQUIREMENTS

Davidson’s planning ordinance currently requires developers to obtain “performance or maintenance bonds” to ensure that roads or other infrastructure are installed properly before the town agrees to take over maintenance.

The town is proposing to eliminate the conversion from performance to maintenance bonds, and to allow the town staff “to review and evaluate the condition of active development infrastructure on an annual basis.” The town wants to make sure that bonds are sufficient to cover the cost of completing improvements if a developer defaults, or to cover potential street repairs once the town takes over a street.

The Town Board held a public hearing on the proposed change in August. Planning manager Lauren Blackburn told the board that town officials have noticed that with some recent projects, developers have reduced performance bonds to maintenance bonds, but the maintenance bonds wind up with too little money to cover the actual costs of improvements on streets, especially in cases where projects have dragged on for 10 years or more.

The board will vote on the change Tuesday as part of its “consent agenda,” a series of items considered as a group, with no additional discussion at this meeting.

AGENDA

TOWN OF DAVIDSON BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
October 11, 2011, 6 p.m.
Town Hall Board Room – 216 South Main Street
(Click links to download documents in PDF form)

I. CALL TO ORDER

II. ANNOUNCEMENTS

(a) Crime stoppers Citizen of the Year (Chief Jeanne Miller)
(b) Barnstock fundraiser for Davidson Fire Department (Carl Cormier)

III. CHANGES TO AGENDA

IV. CITIZEN COMMENT

V. PRESENTATIONS

(a) Comprehensive Planning for a Healthy Community (Deb Ryan, John Chesser, and Margo Williams)

VI. PUBLIC HEARING

(a) Amendments to Davidson Planning Ordinance:

• Section 4.8, Rural Planning Area; Exhibit VI (a1)
• Section 5, Uses Permitted with Additional Requirements; Exhibit VI (a2)
• Section 14, Signs; Exhibit VI (a3)
• and Section 23, Definitions Exhibit VI (a4)

VII. CONSENT

(a) Approve Minutes from September 13, 23, & 27

(b) Consider approval of Resolution #2011-10-1 to amend Chapter 6, Performance Bonds,
of the Davidson Planning Ordinance Exhibit VII (b)

(c) Consider approval of Resolution #2011-10-2 to implement a Parks & Recreation
User Fee Policy Exhibit VII (c)

VIII. NEW BUSINESS
IX. OLD BUSINESS
X. ADJOURN