City Council Approves Business Sign Law Changes

The City Council approved an ordinance Tuesday changing various business sign laws. 

The ordinance—which was approved with an amendment requiring the Council to revisit the new laws in 36 months—modified Chapters 17.04 and 17.40 of the Poway Municipal Code pertaining to business signs.

The changes include:

• Allowing temporary community event signs at eight different locations. 
• Limiting election signs to private right-of-way areas.
• Allowing flag banners to hang, in addition to building-mounted banners.
• Allow for 12-inch-by-17-inch pennant flags to be on display on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

The ordinance, which is scheduled for a March 6 adoption, will be enforced with city staffers rotating weekend shifts.

Other actions by the City Council included:

• Following a court order by rescinding a Jan. 15, 2008 resolution. The council had denied the appeal of two Poway property owners who had wanted to avoid the obligation to obtain a permit to construct fences on their property. The public hearing resulted in three comments, including those from residents Lee Tartre and Diane Armstrong, who argued that the hearing was illegal. (Read previous Patch stories for more on this case and check back with Patch later for more.)  
• Adopting resolutions to approve the mid-year budget review and the operating budget for the successor agency after the Feb. 1 shutdown of the Poway Redevelopment Agency. The city report included an announcement of five employees being laid off for a savings of roughly $400,000. A structural deficit of up to $2 million is expected in the next fiscal year. 

Check out the video above to watch the meeting and watch more videos on Poway Patch's UStream Channel.