No permit shall be issued for a sign to be located in a unified business center until a coordinated design plan has been approved for the center and the sign complies with the provisions thereof.
(A) Unified business center sign plan approval. Approval of a unified business center sign plan shall be at the discretion of the City Council, after review and recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission and in accordance with the criteria noted herein.
(B) Application content. In addition to the requirements listed for permit applications in § 152.190, the application for a unified business center sign plan shall include a format for all signs to be used in the center, including their maximum size, color, location, illumination details, lettering type and mounting details.
(C) Criteria. The criteria used by the city in its review of the proposed unified business center sign plan shall include:
(1) Scale and proportion. Every sign shall have good scale and proportion in its design and in its visual relationship to the other signs, buildings and surroundings;
(2) Integral elements. The signs in the plan shall be designed as integral architectural elements of the building and site to which they principally relate and shall not appear as incongruous “add-ons” or intrusions;
(3) Harmony. The colors, materials and lighting of every sign shall be harmonious with the building and site to which it principally relates;
(4) Effective composition. The number of graphic elements and letters shall be held to the minimum needed to convey each sign’s message and shall be composed in proportion to the area of the sign’s face;
(5) Compatibility. Each sign shall be compatible with signs within the proposed unified business center; and
(6) Unified image. The effect of the signs proposed in the plan shall be the establishment of a unified image for the center.
(Ord. 10-3277, § 3-3.15, passed 1-4-2010)