Woodburn Independent Online

WCC OKs temporary yard signs in Senior Estates

• By: Rachel Cavanaugh  
• Published: 11/3/2009 9:31:14 AM

WOODBURN — The Woodburn City Council has fast-tracked a measure to allow temporary yard signs at Senior Estates.
 
In a narrow 3-2 vote, councilors agreed to let residents in Woodburn’s RS-1 zone put up items including real estate signs, garage sale signs and political signs in front of their homes.
 
The vote will remove the measure from an ordinance currently being evaluated and push it forward on its own, hopefully ahead of schedule.
 
“They still want to have the focus group’s input into it but they want it to go through separately,” said Community Development Director Jim Hendryx.
 
At the moment, a focus group is evaluating a more comprehensive sign ordinance. This would bump that part ahead several months, Hendryx estimated.
 
According to Hendryx, part of the concern is that Woodburn’s current code prohibits all signs from public right-of-ways. In order to be considered outside of that, signs must be about 15 feet from the curb.
 
At Senior Estates, most of the right-of-ways extend into the lots, he said. Real estate agents have complained no one can see the signs when they are that far back.
 
“The houses have minimal front yard setbacks from the right-of-way,” Hendryx said.
Before casting the split vote, the council debated the issue Oct. 26.
 
“I don’t see any reason why we can’t make a decision and if we’re going to fix it, fix it and if were not going to fix it, don’t fix it, rather than waiting another six months or a year before the whole sign code comes out,” said Councilor Jim Cox, who proposed the idea. This really isn’t a sign code issue,” he continued. “The issue is whether or not the city is willing to allow temporary signs that don’t have immediate impacts on traffic.”
 
Yet Councilor Pete McCallum, a member of the sign ordinance focus group, said he was against the idea.
 
“A group has been given a task to do,” said McCallum. “… Let’s not start taking pieces out. … We need to look at signs in a total context, as well as individual problems. … It ought to come as a total package.”
 
Councilor Frank Lonergan agreed.
 
“I have no problem waiting for a recommendation from a group that’s going to be looking at everything that might impact them,” Lonergan said.
 
In the end, Cox voted for the motion, along with councilors Dick Pugh and Mel Schmidt. Lonergan and McCallum voted against the measure. Mayor Kathy Figley said she would have voted against it had she been able to.
 
“Getting signs out of the right-of-ways in most parts of town has been positive and I think that the issue of signs in the right-of-way should be considered as part of an overall … package,” Figley said.
 
Hendryx is now working out details of the motion before putting it forward for a public hearing later this month. It then goes to the Planning Commission and then back to council.
 
He estimated it will be passed sometime in December.
 
The broader sign ordinance could be passed in the springtime, he said.
 
Hendryx has been working with the sign focus group for about six months, reviewing sign standards including pole signs, monument signs, wall signs, and window signs. They are currently debating the final element, electronic signs.

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