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2. PERMANENT SIGNS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY BY-LAW - Technical aMENDMENTS
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Committee recommendations
That
Council approve the following amendments to the Permanent Signs on Private
Property By-law:
1. To allow the
use of video screens in pre-menu board information signs for fast food
restaurant drive thru businesses;
2. To establish
a fee to recover the costs of reviewing and processing by-law amendments to the
Sign By-law;
3. To approve
housekeeping amendments to the Sign District Tables; and
4. To amend the
regulations for Street Ad signs to ensure consistency in third party signage
provisions.
Recommandations du Comité
Que le Conseil approuve les modifications suivantes au
Règlement municipal régissant les enseignes permanentes sur les propriétés
privées :
1. permettre l’utilisation d’écrans vidéo pour
les enseignes donnant des renseignements avant l’enseigne des menus dans les
services au volant des restaurants-minutes;
2. établir des frais afin de recouvrir les coûts
d’examen et de traitement des modifications au Règlement sur les enseignes;
3. approuver les modifications d’ordre
administratif aux Tableaux des districts d’enseignes;
4. modifier les réglementations en ce qui a
trait aux enseignes publicitaires de rue afin d’assurer l’uniformité dans les
conditions de signalisation des parties tierces.
Documentation
1. A/Deputy City Manager's report (Public
Works and Services) dated 15 May 2006 (ACS2006-PWS-UTL-0011).
Report
to/Rapport au :
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
Submitted by/Soumis par : Ned Lathrop, Deputy City Manager/
Directeur municipal adjoint,
Planning and Growth Management/Urbanisme et Gestion de la croissance
Contact
Person/Personne ressource : Sandra Garnett, Manager
Building Services and Chief Building
Official/Direction des services du bâtiment et Chef du service du bâtiment
(613) 580-2424 x, sandra.garnett@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
PERMANENT SIGNS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY
BY-LAW - Technical aMENDMENTs |
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OBJET : |
RÈGLEMENT
MUNICIPAL RÉGISSANT LES ENSEIGNES PERMANENTES SUR LES PROPRIÉTÉS PRIVÉES –
MODIFICATIONS TECHNIQUES |
REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS
That the Planning and Environment Committee recommend Council approve
the following amendments to the Permanent Signs on Private Property By-law:
1. To allow the use of video screens in pre-menu board information signs for fast food restaurant drive thru businesses;
2. To establish a fee to recover the costs of reviewing and processing by-law amendments to the Sign By-law;
3. To approve housekeeping amendments to the Sign District Tables;
and
4. To amend the regulations for Street Ad signs to ensure consistency in third party signage provisions.
RECOMMANDATIONS
DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité de l’urbanisme et de
l’environnement recommande au Conseil d’approuver les modifications suivantes
au Règlement municipal régissant les enseignes permanentes sur les propriétés
privées :
1. permettre
l’utilisation d’écrans vidéo pour les enseignes donnant des renseignements
avant l’enseigne des menus dans les services au volant des restaurants-minutes;
2. établir
des frais afin de recouvrir les coûts d’examen et de traitement des
modifications au Règlement sur les enseignes;
3. approuver
les modifications d’ordre administratif aux Tableaux des districts d’enseignes;
4. modifier
les réglementations en ce qui a trait aux enseignes publicitaires de rue afin
d’assurer l’uniformité dans les conditions de signalisation des parties
tierces.
BACKGROUND
In
September 2005, City Council approved By-law 2005-439 to regulate permanent
signs on private property. The by-law
established height and area restrictions, as well as, spatial separation and
other regulations based on the land use in line with the zoning designation for
each property. The Municipal Act, the
legislative authority for the regulation of signs, provides the regulatory
framework for Council to consider minor variances to the by-law
provisions. Sign minor variances are
however limited to those sign types that are allowed in the By-law and where
the alteration to the proposed sign would respect the general intent of the
by-law.
The
City Solicitor has advised that applicants who request permission to install
signs that are otherwise prohibited or restricted in a Sign District (zoning
by-law based) cannot be considered by Council on an exception basis. That is, the approval of an amendment cannot
be site specific, as minor variances can be, and must apply city-wide. Thus, only requests that will have a city‑wide
application can be submitted for Council consideration.
In
consolidating the Permanent Signs on Private Property By-laws last year, the
Department did not anticipate a request to amend the by-law so soon after its
enactment. However, a request to
introduce a new kind of sign with small video screens as a component of
pre-menu boards that are permitted at fast food drive-thru restaurants has been
submitted. This request, based on a
technological development, serves to highlight the need for the Department to
establish a process and to seek authority to cost recover the review of such requests.
Recommendation
1.
The
Department received an application for a sign minor variance to allow video
screens within pre-menu board
information signs for drive through service areas for a national restaurant
chain. The Permanent Signs on Private
Property By-law does not permit 'animation' on signs and therefore, the request
could not be considered through the minor variance process. The applicant subsequently requested that
the by-law be amended to permit this new sign type. The approval of this amendment would allow for video screen
pre-menu board signs as an option for all drive‑thru businesses in the
City.
The
applicant advises that the purpose of the new video screens is the promotion
of products and services related to the
use of the business located on the property where the pre-menu sign is located
and to display public service messages.
The proposal has been reviewed to determine the potential impact of
introducing this technology and to create an appropriate regulatory framework
that would accommodate this technology while continuing to protect adjacent
properties.
A
"drive-thru-sign” is an information sign that provides specific
information for a land use that incorporates a drive-thru service. These drive-thru signs are only permitted
where the land use itself is permitted by the zoning by-law, specifically in
districts zoned commercial and industrial.
This amendment will add the
definition of “a pre-menu video sign” and will add the option of a pre-menu
video screen to the definition of a drive-thru sign.
The
new provisions for drive-thru signs will limit the size of the video screen to
0.15m2 and prohibit the video screen from producing sound. The amendment will apply city-wide where the
zoning allows drive-thru restaurants.
All other restrictions regulating pre-menu information signs will apply,
as well as the general provisions for signs.
All pre-menu signs must be located a minimum of 30 metres from
residential uses in a residential zone.
As
the video screens are located in an area already approved for a drive-thru
service and the restrictions respecting distances from residential uses and
residential zones remain, the Department supports the application for the
by-law amendment.
Recommendation
2.
The
Department recommends that Council approve an amendment to the Permanent Signs
on Private Property By-law 2005-439 to include a new application type
"By-law Amendment Application" and the associated fee of
$2,000.00. The fee is established to
recover the costs associated with the required processing, legislative notification
and consultation.
Recommendation
3.
Sign
size, area and height restrictions vary according to the land use permited by
the zoning by‑law, which has been grouped into five (5) Sign
Districts. Since the approval of the
Private Signs on Private Property By-law in 2005, new zoning designations have
been created and should be captured in the appropriate Sign District. In
addition, correction of minor technical anomalies are necessary. The
Department, therefore, recommends this housekeeping measure to ensure that the
Sign District Tables are current with the latest zoning designations.
Recommendation
4.
Street ad signs are free standing structures that are located on private property and approaches to the public right-of-way. Street ad signs are classified as third party advertising signs just as billboard signs but considerably smaller in size. The protection provided to unique ceremonial routes from visual presence of billboard signs was intended to include street ad signs, however, this provision was not captured in the By-law approved September 2005. The Department, therefore, recommends the duplication of the 500 m restriction zone from ceremonial and significant capital routes into the provisions for Street Ad Signs as set out in Section 6 of Document 1.
CONSULTATION
The report deals with administrative matters and as such public consultation was not undertaken.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
There
are limited financial implications from this report. Sign By-law Amendment Application fees will offset the costs
associated with the review of the application, the development of a report to
Council and public notification of the proposed amendment. The Department does not expect requests to
exceed one or two requests per year.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Document 1 Draft by-law amendment to amend the Permanent Sign on Private Property By‑law.
Document 2 Amended Tables for Sign - Districts
DISPOSITION
Corporate Services Department, Legal Services Branch to prepare the by-law amendments for City Council approval.
DOCUMENT 1
DRAFT BY-LAW
AMENDMENT TO AMEND THE PERMANENT
SIGN ON PRIVATE
PROPERTY BY‑LAW
A by-law of the City of Ottawa to
amend By-law No. 2005-439 respecting permanent signs on private property.
The Council of the City of Ottawa
enacts as follows:
1. Section 1 of By-law No. 2005-439 entitled “A by-law of the City of Ottawa regulating permanent signs on private property”, as amended, is amended by striking out the definition of “drive-thru sign” where it occurs therein and substituting the following definition therefor:
“drive-thru sign” means an information sign containing specific pre-menu or menu information necessary for a restaurant that functions in a drive-thru service and may include a pre-menu video sign .
2. Section 1 of By-law No. 2005-439 entitled “A by-law of the City of Ottawa regulating permanent signs on private property”, as amended, is amended by inserting the following definition of "pre-menu video sign":
“pre-menu video sign” means a drive-thru sign that contains an electronic screen displaying moving video images providing information on the menu or other activities associated with a drive-thru service and it may contain public service messages .
3. Section 6 of the said By-law No. 2005-439 is amended by repealing Table 3 entitled “Sign Districts – District 3, Table 4 entitled “Sign Districts – District 4” and Table 5 entitled “Sign Districts – District 5” where they occur therein and substituting therefor the Tables 3, 4 and 5 attached hereto in Schedule “A”.
4. Table 6 entitled “Fees and Charges” of Section 44 of the said By-law No. 2005-439, is amended by inserting the following row in the table immediately following the Sign Minor Variance Application row:
“Sign By-law Amendment $2,000”.
5. Subsections (1) and (2) of Section 109 of the said By-law No. 2005-439 are repealed and the following subsections are substituted therefor:
109 (1) “In Districts 3, 4 or 5 where the zoning permits a drive-thru restaurant service, a drive-thru sign for pre-menu information and a drive-thru sign for menu information are permitted for a drive-thru business if,
(a) the
pre-menu sign face area is not more than 1 m2 ,
(b) menu
sign face area is not more than 4.62
(c) the
height of the pre-menu sign or menu sign does not exceed 3m,
(d) the
pre-menu video screen is not more than 0.15m2, if it is included,
and
(e) such pre-menu information video screen does not produce sound.
(2) “In
Districts 3, 4 or 5 where the zoning permits a drive-thru restaurant service, no owner shall erect or cause to be
erected or maintain a drive-thru sign for pre-menu information and a drive-thru
sign for menu information for a drive-thru business unless,
(a) the
pre-menu sign face area is not more than 1 m2 ,
(c) menu
sign face area is not more than 4.62
(c) the
height of the pre-menu sign or menu sign does not exceed 3m,
(d) the
pre-menu video screen is not more than 0.15m2, if it is included,
and
(e) such
pre-menu information video screen does not produce sound.
6. The said By-law No. 2005-439 is amended by adding the following Section thereto immediately after Section 182:
182A. No
person shall erect or cause to be erected or maintain a street ad sign within
500m of the following roadways:
(a) Airport
Parkway,
(b) Aviation
Parkway,
(c) Colonel
By Drive,
(d) Ottawa
river Parkway,
(e) Queen
Elizabeth Driveway,
(f) Rockcliffe
Parkway,
(g) Vanier
parkway, or
(h) Stittsville Main Street, between Fernbank Road and Hazeldean Road.
7. This by-law includes Schedule “A” annexed hereto and Schedule “A” is hereby declared to form part of this by-law.
ENACTED AND PASSED this ** day of
**, 2006.
CITY CLERK MAYOR