04/14/1986 Meeting (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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e e e Answering questions from Mr. Holmer and Ms. Bascom, Ms. McDonald said the Williams-Wilson Honda Dealership is also in the Outlying Commercial Sign District and all its signs comply with the code. She said the owner of Centennial Imports would probably have to buy a new sign if the variance is not granted and if the owner wants three names on the identification sign. Responding to a question from Mr. Hansen, Ms. McDonald said the BMW sign is 6 feet in diameter and has an area of 28 square feet. Mayor Obie opened the public hearing. Marv Nelson, 80 Centennial Loop, represented Centennial Imports, Inc. He said Centennlal Imports acquired the BMW dealership on February 1 and had to pur- chase the BMW sign displayed by the former dealer. He said it is important for people to see that Centennial Imports is the BMW dealer. He said the Williams-Wilson sign at the corner of Centennial Loop and Centennial Boulevard is mounted on the building and has a "greater presence" than the Centennial Imports free-standing sign. Mr. Nelson said the Porsche and Audi manufacturers forced the owner of Centennial Imports to change the company's sign in April 1985. The BMW manufacturer now wants the dealership to be identified on the sign. Mr. Nelson said Centennial Imports is the only retail business on Centennial Loop. He said it is a low-traffic area and people need to be able to identify the BMW dealer. He said the proposed sign would be attractive and would not set a precedent because other retail businesses probably will not locate on Centennial Loop. He said redesigning the existing 4 foot by 8 foot sign with three logos would be an unnecessary expense and would result in an unreadable sign. He said additional employees have been hired since BMW was purchased, the dealership hopes to grow, and the names of the cars sold needs to be di spl ayed. There being no additional requests to testify, Mayor Obie closed the public hearing. Answering questions from Ms. Ehrman and Ms. Bascom, Ms. McDonald said the new sign could be displayed in a window. She said the dealer would like to mount it between the two existing posts. Replying to a question from Ms. Schue, Ms. McDonald said the dealer indicated that denial of the variance would cause a hardship because the new sign could not be used. Mr. Hansen said he was surprised to see the lack of automobile dealership signs on Centennial Boulevard. He said denying the variance will create a hardship because the dealer will not be able to display the names of all the automobiles sold. He said product identification is important because the street curves. He favored approval of the request. MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 14, 1986 Page 11