The HTC Sign Advisory Committee paused action Feb. 4 on a master sign plan filed for the building housing NIR Retail at 0 Main Street so the applicant can submit a revision that incorporates a proposed new sign for 0 Main Street.

Committee Chair Chris Young said the applicant had prepared a master sign plan documenting existing, previously approved signs but had not included the new 0 Main Street sign because that individual application has not yet been approved. "I feel like making one for the signs that are already there makes sense. And then for that one singular addition, we can make a revision to this existing plan," the applicant said during the meeting.

Why it matters: a master sign plan establishes permitted sign locations and sizing for multi-tenant and multi-sign buildings; approving an incomplete plan can require immediate amendments if a new sign is later permitted. Several committee members said they preferred to review a single, consolidated application rather than approve the master plan now and have the applicant submit an immediate amendment.

Committee debate focused on process rather than design. Members repeatedly noted that master sign plans should show future sign locations and dimensions so tenant changes can be handled without repeated ad hoc approvals. Paul Wolf said the master sign plan should include "the location and size and so forth of future signs," while other members said it was acceptable to establish a baseline of existing signs and accept a later revision for the 0 Main Street submission.

The committee also discussed a specific hanging bracket location (the Cooper Shepherd location) that the file reviewer could not locate in the record. Staff member Nikki Sheriff said she had searched the file and could not find the earlier application for that sign; committee members recalled a past discussion about moving an existing sign into that position.

Outcome: The committee voted to hold the master sign plan for revision so the upcoming 0 Main Street application can be included with the master plan as a single approval package. The applicant said the new sign application for 0 Main Street should be submitted for the committee's next scheduled meeting.

Next steps: The applicant will submit a revised master sign plan that includes the proposed 0 Main Street sign; the committee will review the consolidated packet at a future meeting.