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1 the business but to obtain more visibility by means of the sign. Hansen •2 noted that increased visibility was not stated in the request as a 3 reason for requiring the proposed signage, although the petitioner had 4 just indicated in his hearing testimony that two colors would increase 5 the visibility of the sign. Hansen stated that he agreed that the sign 6 as it now exists is not very visible, but one of the reasons he voted 7 for the original October, 1986, variance was that the sign was not a 8 gaudy, two-color, 144 square foot sign. 9 Mr. Sterner reviewed the fact that the letters are twelve inches high 10 and that the sign was 24 feet wide. Commissioner Hansen indicated that 11 there was no dispute as to how the measurements were arrived at. He 12 restated his question as to whether the petitioner's intent was merely 13 to update the sign or to gain more visibility. He stated that he would 14 support the addition of the word "Community" but that he would oppose 15 a two-color sign which was not listed in the request. 16 Mr. Stieve replied that he had received comments about difficulty in 17 reading the sign when it had first been erected, and that he felt now 18 was the appropriate time to request a background panel as well as the 19 addition of the word "Community. " Commissioner Hansen reminded the 20 petitioner that the Commission had made the same suggestion to the 21 petitioner at the time of the October, 1986, variance request. Mr. 22 Stieve agreed, but commented that at the time he was working on 23 obtaining a community charter. 24 Commissioner Brownell agreed that the word "Community" would fit on one 0,5 line with the rest of the words, and that adding a background to the 26 one-line sign would satisfactorily increase its visibility. He felt 27 that increasing the square footage of the signage from 36 to 144 was 28 excessive considering the, small size of the depository. 29 Mr. Sterner felt unsure that all the letters would fit on one line. He 30 pointed out that the picture distributed to the Commission was computer- 31 generated precisely to the dimensions of the space available. He 32 admitted that it might be possible to fit the sign into a 30 inch 33 vertical space rather than a 36 inch vertical space. He was concerned 34 that passing motorists would be able to read the sign and absorb its 35 message easily, and said that a crowded sign is a problem for the 36 motorist trying to read it and accomplishes little. He also raised the 37 possibility of shortening the ends, but cautioned against modifying the 38 proposed sign to the point where it became lettering or reading material 39 rather than a sign. 40 Commissioner Wagner commented that he had actually driven by the sign 41 and observed that there was sufficient blank space on the existing sign 42 to accommodate the word "Community" on one line. He felt that there was 43 no real need for blank space on either side of the lettering and that 44 a background would acceptably increase the sign's visibility. 45 Mr. Stieve said he did not want the lettering to appear "squashed. " Mr. 46 Sterner said that his company has twenty years' experience in creating • 3