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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-05-19; Planning Commission; ; PS 98-132 - CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE SIGN PROGRAM... . The City of Carlsbad Planning Department A REPORT TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION P.C. AGENDA OF: May 19, 1999 ItemNo.@ Application complete date: NIA Project Planner: Chris DeCerbo Project Engineer: N/ A SUBJECT: PS 98-132 -CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE SIGN PROGRAM - Request for an appeal of the Planning Director's decision to deny a sign program for the Cornerstone Corporate Centre office project located on lots 7, 8, 11 and 15 in the Carlsbad Airport Center (Specific Plan 18l(A)) adjacent to Palomar Oaks Way and Wright Place in Local Facilities Management Zone 5. I. RECOMMENDATION That the Planning Commission ADOPT Planning Commission Resolution No. 4558, upholding the Planning Director's decision to DENY PS 98-132, a Sign Program for the Cornerstone Corporate Centre, based upon the findings contained therein. II. INTRODUCTION The applicant is requesting that the Planning Commission overturn the Planning Director's denial of a Sign Program for the Cornerstone Corporate Centre office project which is located in the Carlsbad Airport Center (Specific Plan 18l(A)). The proposed sign program includes up to four (4) tenant wall signs to be displayed along each building elevation whereas the Sign Requirements of the Carlsbad Airport Center Specific Plan allow either one (I) tenant wall sign per building elevation or smaller multiple tenant signs to be located at the building entrance(s). Staff recommends that the Planning Director's decision to deny PS 98-132 be upheld by the Planning Commission in that the sign program does not comply with the Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 18l(A). III. PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND BACKGROUND On October 20, 1998, the project applicant submitted a Sign Program (PS 98-132) for the Cornerstone Corporate Centre (See Exhibit "A',, an office project which is located within the Carlsbad Airport Center. Specific Plan 181(A) regulates all development within the Carlsbad Airport Center. Pursuant to Specific Pan 181(A), each project within the specific plan area is required to have a sign program approved by the Planning Director. Upon the approval of a sign program by the Planning Director, all individual project signs are subsequently required to comply with the sign program. The approval of a project sign program by the Planning Director is contingent upon it being found to be in compliance with the Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 181(A) (See Exhibit "B"). As discussed below in the "Analysis" section of this staff report, the proposed Sign Program 98-132 does not comply with the Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 0 PS 98-132 -CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE SIGN PROURAM May 19, 1999 Page2 181(A). Accordingly, on December 4, 1998 and again on March 10, 1999 correspondence was sent to the project applicant identifying what the project (Sign Program) issues were (see analysis section of this staff report) and requesting that Sign Program 98-132 be revised to comply with the sign provisions of Specific Plan 18l(A). In the interim, Planning staff met on several occasions with the project applicant to clearly discuss the identified Sign Program issues relative to the applicant's project signage requests, and the need for the applicant to process an amendment to Specific Plan 181 (A) in order to enable the consideration and possible achievement of the proposed project signage. Rather than processing an amendment to SP 181(A), on March 22, 1999, the project applicant submitted a request to the Planning Commission to appeal the Planning Director's decision on Sign Program 98-132. The subject appeal request is processed pursuant to Section 21.54.140 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code and contends that, "the Planning Director has applied an interpretation of the applicable language of the Specific Plan which is at odds with its meaning and is therefore in error in denying the approval of the proposed sign program". Sign Program 98-132 is subject to the Sign and Graphic Requirements of the Carlsbad Airport Center Specific Plan 181(A). IV. ANALYSIS The recommendation to uphold the Planning Director's decision to deny PS 98-132 is based upon the finding that the subject sign program does not comply with the Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 18l(A) as discussed below. Table I includes a summary comparison of the Sign and Graphic Requirements of SP 18l(A) relative to the signage proposed through Sign Program 98-132. TABLE 1 -COMPLIANCE Wim SIGN AND GRAPIDC REQUIREMENTS OF SP 18l(A) SPECIFIC PLAN SIGN ST AND ARD PROPOSED SIGN PROGRAM COMPLIES General Sign Standard: Only one single or double-faced permanent sign Up to four wall ( 4) signs and 1 NO ( wall or ground mounted) per street frontage per monument sign per street frontage tenant ( except as otherwise indicated). The per building. exception refers to multi-tenant buildings (see #2 below). _...__ PS 98-132 -CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE SIGN PROGRAM May 19, 1999 Pa e3 Buildings which do not front along Palomar Buildings "A" -"C" Airport Road: 1. Single-Tenant Buildings -Maximum of 1. None of the buildings are 1 wall sign per street frontage. proposed as single tenant occupancy. a. Maximum of 200 square feet of signage (ground or wall signs) per lot. b. Maximum of one and one-half square feet of wall signage per foot oflineal building frontage. 4. Multi-Tenant Industrial/Office Bldgs - Each tenant may have a wall sign over the 2. Building "A "-"C" -Each entrance. Each sign shall be limited to 5 building includes from 6 to 12 square feet in area with a letter height not to tenant wall signs and 1 to 4 signs exceed 6" high. per building elevation. Each of the signs are larger than 5 square feet in area, have letter heights ranging from 18" -24" tall, and are not located above the entrance, but are instead prominently displayed along the building elevations. NIA NO To summarize, for single tenant buildings within the Carlsbad Airport Center which do not front along Palomar Airport Road, the Sign and Graphic Requirements of SP 18l(A) allow one (1) sign (wall or ground mounted) per street frontage and a maximum of 200 square feet of signage per lot. Notwithstanding the provision which allows only one (1) sign per street frontage, the specific location of single tenant building signage is not further regulated. For single tenant buildings which do front along Palomar Airport Road, the Sign and Graphic Requirements of SP 18l(A) allow a maximum of four (4) wall signs per building, two (2) wall signs per street frontage and a maximum of 100 square feet of wall signage per building. For multi-tenant industriaVoffice buildings which either front or do not front along Palomar Airport Road, each tenant is allowed a wall sign (restricted to a maximum 5 square foot area and a maximum 6 inch letter height) that must be located over the building entrance. No other wall si1ns are permitted for multi-tenant buildin1s. Sign Program 98-132 indicates that none of the buildings within the Cornerstone Corporate Center are proposed as single tenant buildings. Accordingly, all of the buildings are regarded as multi-tenant industrial/office buildings and are therefore subject to the applicable standards. As shown in Table 1 above, Sign Program 98-132 clearly does not comply with the Carlsbad Airport Center Specific Plan sign standards for multi-tenant buildings. The proposed project signage does not comply with respect to: 1) the number of tenant wall signs per building elevation (1 PS 98-132 -CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE SIGN PROGRAM May 19, 1999 Pa~e4 sign permitted; up to 4 signs proposed), 2) the maximum sign area per sign (5 square feet permitted; in excess of 5 square feet proposed), 3) the location of wall signs (permitted over building entrance; proposed along 1st and 2nd story building facias) and 4) sign letter height (6" permitted; 18" -24" proposed). Staff acknowledges that the sign provisions of SP 181(A) are more restrictive for multi-tenant compared to single-tenant buildings. However, these sign standards allow for the "reasonable identification" of businesses within the Carlsbad Airport Center without compromising building architecture or creating sign clutter. This community objective is particularly important for buildings that are located along or visible from Palomar Airport Road, which is designated as a future community theme ("scenic") corridor. As a general rule, with the exception of a few non- conforming wall signs that were issued in error, these Specific Plan sign standards have been consistently applied to all projects within this business-park. It is also important to note that these same sign standards apply to other industriaVoffice developments with approved sign programs within the City. In conclusion, because Sign Program 98-132 does not comply with the Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 181(A), staff recommends that the Planning Commission adopt Planning Commission Resolution No. 4558 upholding the Planning Director's decision to deny Sign Program (PS 98-132). Pursuant to Section 21.54.140 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code, the Planning Commission action on this matter is final and is not subject to further appeal to the City Council. V. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW The Cornerstone Corporate Centre Sign Program (PS 98-132) was denied and is, therefore, exempt from environmental review pursuant to Section 15270 of the State CEQA Guidelines. In the event the Planning Commission approves the applicant's appeal of PS 98-132, then the Sign Program must be sent back to staff for environmental processing. ATTACHMENTS: 1. Planning Commission Resolution No. 4558 (PS) 2. Location Map 3. Appeal Letter from Applicant, dated March 22, 1999 4. Exhibit "A" -Cornerstone Corporate Centre Sign Program, dated September 24, 1998. 5. Exhibit "B" -Sign and Graphic Requirements of Specific Plan 181(A). 6. Copy of original application 7. Letter dated December 4, 1998 to Dave Holt 8. Letter dated March 10, 1999 to Scott Brusseau CD:eh:mh CORNERSTONE CORPORATE CENTRE PS 98-132 March 22, 1999 LAW OFFICES OF STANLEY D. PROWSE CAMINO CORPORATE CENTER 2385 CAMINO VIDA R08l.E, SUITE IOI CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA 92009·11509 TEl.EPHONE (760) 438-8460 F"AX (7601 438·4379 Secretary, Planning Commission City of Carlsbad 2075 Los Palmas Drive Carlsbad, CA 92009-1576 Re: Cornerstone Corporate Centre Sign Program Ladies and Gentlemen: We represent Cornerstone Corporate Centre, the developer of a four building class A office building project adjacent to Wright Place and Palomar Oaks Way in the City of Carlsbad. Cornerstone Corporate Centre hereby appeals the decision of the Planning Director, by Chris DeCerbo, Principal Planner, denying approval of the sign program proposed by Cornerstone Corporate Centre pursuant to the provisions of Specific Plan 181 (A) as amended July 1991 requiring the approval by the Planning Director of a sign program as a precondition to the issuance of any sign permit. The reason for this appeal is that Cornerstone Corporate Centre is unable to fulfil its obligations to tenants to erect signage on the buildings without the approval of a sign program by the Planning Director. The manner in which the decision of the Planning Director is in error in denying approval of the sign program submitted by Cornerstone Corporate Centre is that the proposed sign program complies in every respect with the plain language of Specific Plan 181 (A) as amended, but that the Planning Director has applied an 'interpretation' of the applicable language of the Specific Plan which is totally at odds with its plain meaning. Secretary, Planning Commission Page2 March 22, 1999 We look forward to receiving a notification from you regarding the date, time and place where the appeal will be heard by the Planning Commission, after receipt of which we will submit a detailed brief for the Commission's consideration. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation. Stanley D. Prowse SDP: mjg cc: Scott R. Brusseau John Couvillion .. CLIENT APPAOVAL: ITEM #SB (1st FLOOR TENANT I.D.) ITEM #SB (1st FLOOR TENANT 1.D.) I HAYE READ, UNDERSTOOD.AND APPROVE THIS DRAWINCi roR PRODUCTION. AGkl&D _________ DATE _____ _ ----------· ITEM #SB (1st FLOOR TENANT 1.D.) BLOO.C 6 TENANT SIGNS MAX. BLDG. D 8 TENANT SIGNS MAX. CJ -I = > ' • J 18" MAX. • ·• ..J ..J DESCRIPTION FABRICATION STANDARDS: Individually mounted internally illuminated (or non-illuminated) fabricated aluminum reverse pan channel letters finished with polyurethane paint to match frazee #8720W "Pongee Tint". Internal illumination to be I 3mm or 15mm ◄500 30ma white neon. Letter backs to be 3/ 16" clear lexan. Letters to be pin-mounted I 1/2" off building fascia. ITEM SB -FIRST FLOOR TENANT 1.D. Same as above, with the exception of 18" letter height maximum and fifty square feet (SO sq, ft.) sign area maximum. BUILDING C & D -WEST ELEVATION I ◄◄ linear feet CRITERIA STANDARDS: 2-4" maximum letter height 200 square feet maximum aggregate sign area per building Quantity -maximum two (2) per elevation Landlord approved tenant logo typestyle or project typestyle. :_ -t 2-4" MAX. --=t 18" MAX . .. -EXHIBIT 11 B11 Palomar Airport Road. Oiltlnctlve landl,Cape daign COftliatlng of ground cow, and hedgerowa combined with contour beming ... be included. Entr)wayl lhall be Umfted to ground ligna which contain 1t,e name of the bUlinNa center on9V and which conform to the Sign and graphic standarcla of thia plan. Entryway plana shall be submitted to ttle Planning Director tor approval prior to issuance of lign permita. Entryway ligna lhaJI be limited to 25 fNt In length and I feet in height. 7. A dfllilld llndnPI IQCI jntqatiqn Rt1Q tor III speciaJ landlCaped ltrNla, mini-parka Ind common arN1, lhaJI be submitted to and approved -ttle Planning Director prior to approval of ttle tlnal map far NCh phaN. a. Mini-Park R,vtlqpmfnt. Four mini-parka, located• lhown on the tentallve map and ,.._ 7 of thia Speciftc Plan, shal be canetruc:ted to provide ~ rest and pk:nlc .... faremplOylll ll'ldvllllols of Airport luaineu Cent•. Each park lfl8I be developed according to the requirerMnll of tl'le Clly'I Parka and AecrNtlon Director. Prior to development of _,, phaN, plw far conatrucllon of II parlcl wllllrl 1111 phaN 1h11 be IUbmlled to the Parka and AlcrNllon 0lrlctor for approval. The mini-parka 1h11 be malntillllld bJ lie property owners IVough a propeltr OWlllr'a IIIOclallon acoardl19 to ltandllrdl NllbllMd -tl'le Plllrl and Alcreallon Dlrectar. Each mini-park wll lnoorporlll blrml. W.cllcllplng and turnllure (lo Include pier& bancNI. tllblll and ...... receplaCIN). F. SIGN AND QNPHIC 81QU181MIND 1. 0-.Standardl & 0niV one .... o, doul:III faced pen'WMinl lign .. be allowed par .... l'onlaga per ... (eacept • ollerwlle lndlc--,. D. Slgrll wll be ralllc.1ld ID ldl:llfrtnl onlr lie pe,w-.. Inn, ~. ot oorpcnlan operalllag lie ... oonductlld on lie• o, t,e producla IOld thnln. 21 . ,, --- c. The area of a wall sign will be mNIUrec:t by a rectangle around the outside of the lettering and/or the ~ symbol. d. AH signs auched to the building will be surface.mounted. •· Signa vtlibll from the exterior of any building may be llgt,tec:t, but no lign or any other comrtvance wil be devised or conatruc:ted 10 • to rotate, gyrate, blink. move, or appear to move in any tunion. f. Pubic NNice d9Vlcel IUctl • clOclca and temperature indicators will be devoid of adVertiling. g. Each pro;ec:1 shall have a lign program approved by the Planning Director. No sign which la not conliatent with said program snail be allowed. Each sign must receive a sign permit. 2. 'Nall Sieg a. No wall sign wil exc:Nd an .,.. ~ to one and one-half square fNt ot sign .,.. far each foot of llnul frontage of the building or store. Total lignage ltlal not exc:11d 200 square fNt In arN per lot or comprlle more than 10 percent of 1he ••• ot 1he eleYatlon upon which 1w sign la IOcated, wl'llc:h.-la lesl. b. In rnullManant indullrlll or oftloe buildlnge, NCh individual bUlinNa may _,. a wall llgri over 1he entrance to Identify tne tenanL Said sign wll give only ttw name of the company and wlH be llmll8d to -.. lix inchee high. Said signs will be orientld toward ttw parking or pedNtrlan na for that bulldlng and lhml not ac11d a maximum .,.. of tlve .._,. fNt. c. In mullMenlnl commerclal buldlngl. NCh ground 1loor Mlnw fflaW ha. OM wal llgn per buldlng tontagl. Said lignl lhall not be locaad lbcM lie ground 1loor fllcla. Each sign shall be llmitecl to an.,.. equal to 10.percll'II d.ttw bueiW face upon which it la localed or a maximum ol 31 lqullf9 tNL 3. Grpynd <a Em• Slandm) Skl1I a. C3nu1d llgl,e 111111 nat tmclld fourfNtaboW grade In height nor men thin one and one-hal lqullfe fNt In na for NCh one fool ol lnNI tontagl al lie buldlng or 111n. How9v9r, no sign shall a::11d 200 lqU8l9 fNt In .,_ (bolh facll). 22 b. Every lot may l'lave at !Nat one ground sign. Additional ground signa may be added for every 200 fNt of street frontage in excea of the ftrst 100 feet of 1trNt frontage. c. No ground lign lt'lal be located within 100 feet of another ground sign. Fronting Palomar Airport 891'1 It i1 the Intent of thia MCtion to ..,... that aa signs fronting Palomar Airport Road are •lthetlcally plelling in design and appearance and do not adVerNfV impact the appearance of the potential Palomar Airport Road Solnlc Corrtdor. The ligne ~ to thNe standardl are d s.gnI fronting Palomar Airport Road ~ L.otl 1, 10, 11, 12, 13, 21, 22. 28 and 29. For purpoMS of thla Mdlon, frontlltg Palomar Aill)Ort Road meana "Vilible from the portion of Pa6omar Airport Road directly adjacent to tne lot in which the sign ii located.• a. Special care 1h11 be taken In the clNign of aft signa fronting Palomar Airport Road. Al WIii and monument signa shal be subdued In tone and ~ Into the architecture of the building. The intent of Ilia Medon .ii not to lpeciftcaly prohibit recogruzeNetogoe. b. Al _,. fronti,g Palomar Airport Aoad lhal be subject to tne review and approval of the Pllnntng Director. c. If a Scenic Con1dor Overlay II pieced on the Pllomar Airport Road corridor, IWI II ~ ligrll tou11ng Pllomar Airport Road 1h11 ~ wlh ,_ requiremlnl9 of 1lle IClnic corrldOr CMrtay zone (Ch 21.«J). Slgrw .... allfl on lie 9ffec1h,t dale of t,e ICel'lic corrldOr MIich are not In complm lhal be allowed to remain for tl,e ltrM llmill lpecilld_ (Chlptaf 21.41) l.l'lleN 'WV are modltled Of changed In .., WIit ..... tar routine rnalntrm lltd/Of repllr. d. WII --frollllllg Pllamar Airport Road· 1h11 not uc:11d a oomblnld _,...,.. of one tuldred (100)..,.,. fNt per buldlng ( ... dng fflOlunn ligni). An addlllonlA 40 lqUlf9 fMI of 1igr1age ma, bl-llc.I.dN Wider WUIUII ciramllanCN, IUCh • an UflUIUllly long name llltd/OI a llgn which would not normally be .-.. 23 visible unless extra square footage were available. A maximum of • signs per building fronting Palomar Airpon Road snatl be allowed. Of th-4, a maximum of 2 signs•per elevation shatl be mlowed. A curvilinear elevation with dlatinctty separated sections of subatantial length may be counted U more than one elevation. Signs permitted in Section F2b and F2c are exempt from these regulationl. The overall area of each wa11· Sign fronting Palomar Airport Road should be in taltetul proportion to the overall area of the etevation on which it ia located and to the elements of the elevation. and the letters or symbola employed should ordinarily be .,-c, larger than reasonably neceaary to enable them to be read or recogniZed quickly and ealily by vehicular passers-by. As a guideline the total area of sudl sign(a) on each etevation should not exceed a ratio of 1 /2 sq. ft. sign area per 1 linear foot of building elevation fronting Palomar Airport Road (and in no cau shall-the combined total area ol lUCh lignage per buik:Hng exCNd one hundred (100) sq. ft.) except under special circumstances noted above. e. Monument signa are allowed In addition to wall sign1, limited to one (1) monument lign fronting Palomar Airport Road per lot, not to exc:1ed thirty.five (35) aquare fNt per face. f. Shoulct LOIS 28 and/or 21 develop entirety with commercial uw, llgn programs for 1hoN loll lhal be subfed to Planning Commllllon rMM wlltl Wff accompanytng discretionary appleallon. 1. rtm:ZTIRYI S1g01 a. Ifl'WIIY ldfnlftlclllqn Slg]I •• 1) SalN or LNN Sign. One llgn not to ac1ed 15 aquare feet in area acMrtleing tl'le ule, lem. or hire of the lite wtl 2) COl'lltructlon Sign. One lign not to exc1ed 20 fNt In area denotllag 1tle arct.ftecla. engin11ra, cormactor, and othel ·l'lllllcl•--Ytlbllbwd•taca111 ■a.,llr1dcznm:l:n 2, 12/04/1998 16:33 7607413480 ·~' DEC-04-98 FRI 15:29 Clf'l-l)F CARLSBAD 0011M OE .-0...T DESIG-1 FAX NO. 4380894 - PAGE 03 P.02 _____ c.::::=; _ __;;i;_t..:::...,~r,---o...;;=-..;:f:-..,_ .. \!ll:.6;"'··r","l"O"r.,,.,1111.s .. ,,.,t.J.,~ ..... r1111.11;411d~11 .. , l)oocmber 4, 1998 Mr. Dave Holt Holt Dosign l81S S. Citn1s Ave. E,corldido, California 92027 Subject: Coruentoi,e Corporate C".enter Sip PTosnm Dear Mr. Holt, The sian proJrlffl fOr the C:Omcrstonc Coq,orate Centre lhat you submlued for review with the Planning DepUlfflen.t i1 not con1iltent with dte Carl1bad Ab:port Cadre Specific Plan (SP 181). The Specific Plan statct that in multi-tenant industrial buildin11, each individual bu~ine.s1 may ha,•e a wall sian over the entnnoe 10 identify the tenanl, The said si&n will give only the name of 1he company 1Dd will be limited to six inchos bi1b and ,hall n<>t txet.ed a maximum of fivo square feet. Therefore, please revise the proposed sign program to include one wall sign over each entnmc:e in accordance with the above mentioned criteria and delete other proposed tenant wall tia;ns. If you have any sPcciiic questiona or conceim reJardiq 1his please call me at 431M lfil •xt. 4329. Sincm:Jy, -~ Planning lntem c: GaryWaync / l\fflfitd.n.-~ -Plo.nninc3 Pt~~ File ------- 2075 L•• P.,,,, •• Dr.• Carlsbad, CA 92001M978 • (7CJD) 431M191 • prAX (7fSO) 438-0894 City of Carlsbad •4Fi,i,ii,1·■·14·Elii,,14,il March 10, 1999 Mr. Scott Brusseau 2117 Industrial Court, Suite C Vista, CA 92083 Dear Scott: It was a pleasure meeting with you on March 9, 1999 to discuss the proposed Cornerstone Corporate Center Sign Program. As we discussed at this meeting, the proposed Sign Program does not conform with the Sign and Graphic Provisions of Specific Plan 18l(A). Specifically, the sign provisions of SP 18l(A) allow the following signage: Buildings which front Palomar Airport Road (i.e.; Building "D") 1. Maximum of I 00 square feet of wall signage per building. 2. Maximum of 4 wall signs per building. 3. Maximum of2 wall signs per elevation. Buildings which do not front along Palomar Airport Road (i.e.; Buildings ••A-C") 1. Maximum of 200 square feet of signage per lot. 2. Maximum of one and one-half square feet of wall signage per foot oflineal building frontage. 3. Single-tenant buildings -Maximum of 1 wall sign per building. 4. Multi-tenant buildings -Each tenant may have a wall sign over the entrance. Each sign shall be limited to 6" high and not exceed 5 square feet in area. If you have any questions or concerns please call me at (760) 438-1161, Extension 4445. Sincerely, 0JuvQ~ CHRIS DeCERBO Principal Planner CD:eh c: Assistant Planning Director 2075 La Palmas Dr.• Carlsbad, CA 92009-1576 • (760) 438-1161 • FAX (760) 438-0894