OCTOBER 15, 2009 ISSUE
No New Billboards in Watauga County? Ever?
Voice Your Opinion During Public Hearing October 20
Unless opposing viewpoints triumph during a public hearing on Tuesday, October 20, no new billboards will be permitted in Watauga County and existing LED billboards and on-premise signs will face additional provisions. The current moratorium on all new billboards and all new off-premise electronic signs in Watauga County expires on Friday, October 23. Photo by Sam Calhoun One week is left until a moratorium on all new billboards and all new off-premise electronic signs in Watauga County expires and, unless opposing viewpoints triumph during a public hearing on Tuesday, October 20, no new billboards will be permitted in the county and existing LED billboards and on-premise signs will face additional provisions, per proposed amendments to the Watauga County Ordinance to Regulate Signs.
The public can now access the amended ordinance by clicking to www.wataugacounty.org and downloading the full document. The Watauga County Board of Commissioners will host a public hearing on the proposed amendments during its regular meeting in the Commissioners’ Boardroom, located within the Watauga County Administration Building on King Street in Boone, on Tuesday, October 20, at 6:00 p.m. Hard copies of the proposed ordinance will be available to the public during the public hearing.
According to Planning and Inspections Director Joe Furman, the commissioners are expected to vote on the proposed amendments to the ordinance following the October 20 public hearing so a decision can be made before the current moratorium expires on Friday, October 23.
Proposed Changes
According to the proposed ordinance, “newly erected advertising signs shall not be permitted” in Watauga County. “Advertising” signs are “most typically billboards,” said Furman, but also include all types of off-premise signs, or signs that advertise a business but are not located on property owned by the business.
A new definition for what are called “changeable electronic variable message signs”—the LED billboards that originally caused the debate and moratorium—is included in the proposed ordinance. Per the ordinance, a changeable electronic variable message sign is “a sign—other than a public variable message sign, which is erected by town, city, county, state or federal government or agency for traffic communication purposes—which results in illuminated display or messages or information by the use of a matrix of lamps, i.e., digital, LED or similar or refined display technology, movable discs, movable panels, light apertures or other methods, which allow the message change to be actuated by a control mechanism rather than manually changing of message; and which changes the message more often than twice daily.”
The proposed ordinance also prohibits flashing and moving signs, but includes exemptions for signs that provide time and temperature readings and for existing changeable electronic variable message signs, assuming the signs meet the new provisions. According to Furman, existing changeable electronic variable message signs will be grandfathered-in under the proposed ordinance once they comply with the new guidelines. Under the proposed ordinance, changeable electronic variable message signs are not considered flashing or moving provided the signs comply with the following provisions:
-The sign does not contain or display flashing, intermittent or moving lights, including animated or scrolling advertising;
-The sign facing remains in a fixed position for at least eight seconds for off-premise signs and one hour for on-premise signs;
-If a message is changed electronically, it must be accomplished within an interval of two seconds or less;
-The sign must contain a default design that will freeze the sign in one position if a malfunction occurs;
-The sign shall be equipped with a control system that automatically adjusts light emission level to ambient light conditions so as to not cause glare or excessive brightness. In no case shall the light level of any such sign exceed 300 nits between the time of sunset to sunrise, nor 5,000 nits at other times. No more that 25 percent of the sign may be white. Notwithstanding the acceptable light levels, internal illumination shall not be at an intensity that is distracting to vehicular traffic; and
-Subsequent to installation, Watauga County shall have the ongoing discretion to require that brightness, frequency, colors or other qualities be adjusted in order to address safety concerns.
On-premise signs, or signs located on a business’s property, must also comply with the provisions listed above—to the extent applicable—under the proposed ordinance.
In addition, the proposed ordinance stipulates that no source of illumination on a sign, such as floodlights, spotlights or unshielded bulbs, can shine directly into any public right-of-way. Per the ordinance, “internal illumination shall not be at an intensity that is distracting to vehicular traffic.”
Let Your Voice Be Heard!
Residents who would like to share their opinion on the future of billboards in Watauga County are encouraged to attend a public hearing on proposed amendments to the county’s sign ordinance, which takes place in the Watauga County Board of Commissioners’ Boardroom, located in the Watauga County Administration Building on King Street in Boone, on Tuesday, October 20, at 6:00 p.m. Just arrive and sign your name on the registration sheet prior to 6:00 p.m., and you will have three minutes to share your opinion.
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