04-25-2007 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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NORTHWEST ASSOCIATED CONSULTANTS, INC. 4800 Olson Memorial Highway, Suite 202, Golden Valley, MN 55422 Telephone: 763231 .2555 Facsimile: 763.231 .2561 planners @nacplanning.com MEMORANDUM TO: Little Canada Planning Commission FROM: Carie Fuhrman / Stephen Grittman DATE: April 10, 2007 RE: Electronic Signs — Ordinance Amendment NAC FILE: 758.10 - General BACKGROUND The purpose of this memo is to provide information as to how various metro communities have been handling the subject of electronic billboards /signs. The following information provides a summary of various communities and how they have reacted to the concerns that the recent technological changes in outdoor advertising signs have caused. ANALYSIS Ordinance Amendment. Several communities have recently chosen to address the issue of electronic signs /billboards immediately through ordinance changes. The cities of Lakeville, Plymouth, and Bloomington, for example, have recently amended their ordinances to address electronic signs. The City of Bloomington adopted regulations in the fall and winter of 2006; the City of Plymouth adopted regulations in January of 2007; and the City of Lakeville adopted regulations in February of 2007 regarding electronic signs. The following is a list of elements that were generally included in the ordinance updates by these communities. I. Definitions. One element that all three of the communities, Bloomington, Plymouth, and Lakeville, recognized as an essential portion to expand upon in their Ordinances was the Definition portion. The cities recently added key definitions for the following specialty signs to their Ordinances. The following definitions were taken from the City of Lakeville's Ordinance No. 816. However, the City of Plymouth and the City of Bloomington's definitions for these specialty signs are very similar in nature.