CITY OF PEPPER PIKE
PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION
MEETING MINUTES
MONDAY
SEPTEMBER 16, 2013
7:30 P.M.
PUBLIC HEARING
A Public Hearing was held for variances to permit a garage to face Chagrin Boulevard, the
Graneto residence, 31799 Chagrin Boulevard. Mayor Bain said a letter from neighbor Diane
Sahley will be part of the record; she could not attend this meeting and her letter is on page 5 of
these minutes.
The Public Hearing was closed at 7:31 p.m.
PUBLIC HEARING
A Public Hearing was held for sign variances, Howard Hanna, 3550 Lander Road.
The Public Hearing was closed at 7:32 p.m.
REGULAR MEETING
The Planning & Zoning Commission of the City of Pepper Pike met in a regular session on
Monday, September 16, 2013 at 7:32 p.m. in the Council chambers. Mayor Richard Bain
presided.
ROLL CALL: Members Present:
Others Present:
Mayor Richard Bain, Bill Melsop, and Dave DeWolf.
Law Director Steve Byron, City Engineer Don
Sheehy, City Planner George Smerigan, and Clerk
of Council Sheila Brett-O’Connor.
MINUTES
Moved by Melsop and seconded by DeWolf to approve the minutes of July 15, 2013.
ROLL CALL:
Yeas: Bain, Melsop, DeWolf
MOTION CARRIED
FRONT FACING GARAGE VARIANCE
GRANETO RESIDENCE, 31799 CHAGRIN BOULEVARD:
 Mrs. Graneto said the current garage is front facing. Mr. Graneto had a letter from the Law
Director and Mayor Bain said this letter will be on the record (page 4 of these minutes.) Ted
Wolf of Charles Fazio & Associates, Inc. went over this plan and said they are building a
better garage that will be a little larger than the current garage. They have met with ARB
twice and came back with a smaller garage that has the same pitch and siding as the house.
Mr. Smerigan said the variance makes sense. Mr. Gentile asked what the hardship is, and
Mr. Byron said the standard is a practical difficulty standard that considers a number of
factors including the current conditions and the impact of the change on the existing
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Planning & Zoning Meeting Minutes
September 16, 2013
conditions and the cost that would be incurred. Mr. Graneto said if they turned the garage it
would result in losing many substantial trees. Mr. Sheehy told Mayor Bain there is about
600 feet of open lot behind this house, and Mr. Graneto said it is heavily wooded.
Moved by DeWolf and seconded by Melsop to approve this variance request.
ROLL CALL:
Yeas: Bain, Melsop, DeWolf
MOTION CARRIED
SIGN VARIANCES
HOWARD HANNA, 3550 LANDER ROAD:
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Brad Petro, Vice President of Cicogna Electric & Sign Co., Inc. said they are asking for a
new monument sign for this property. Howard Hanna is consolidating their Pepper Pike and
Woodmere offices in this multi-tenant building. They will replace the old ground sign, and
the new sign is actually identical or smaller than the signs around Lander Circle. The sign
will be illuminated, and there are no existing building signs on the property; traffic is quick
coming off Lander Circle and they need this sign to identify the building.
Mr. Smerigan said they are requesting two variances. The first is for the sign to be larger
than the 24 square foot limit; they are requesting a 43.9 square foot sign that meets the 10
foot height requirement. Mr. Smerigan said the second variance is for the sign to be
internally illuminated lighting up only the graphics, and this is preferable over an external
spotlight and Mr. Smerigan is okay with this approval. Mr. Smerigan thinks the 43.9 square
foot sign is larger than necessary and less square footage would get the job done. Mr.
Byron went over the specific sign standard; the size and scale of the sign has to be
appropriate with the size of the building. The sign is the minimum relief necessary and the
location and sign design will not adversely impact the adjacent residential areas or other
public interests.
Mr. DeWolf said the question they have always asked is how big does the sign need to be in
order to be visible and usable. Mayor Bain said this property is not on Lander Circle, and
Mr. Petro showed the Commission where the sign would be placed using the site plan.
Mayor Bain asked how tall is the existing sign, and Mr. Petro said about five feet tall. Mr.
Petro said this is a large property and building and in relation to signs in the area a 24
square foot sign for a multi-tenant unit is not the standard in the area, Pepper Pike Place
has a sign that is about 60 square feet, and Waterway’s sign is 50 square feet and Key
Bank’s sign is 35 square feet and he does not think their sign request is excessive in any
manner.
Mr. Melsop asked Mr. Byron if they are bound by precedent, and Mr. Byron said this code
was put in place in 2008 and he does not know what the prior code was or if there was any
grandfathering. Mayor Bain said any variance needs to be looked at uniquely.
Anne McLain said she lives on Lander Road north of this property, and she wanted to see
what the sign would look like compared to the current Howard Hanna sign. Mr. Petro
showed Ms. McLain how big the sign is using the drawing given to the Commission. Mayor
Bain said they discussed illumination in the sign ordinance when they were dealing with the
Key Bank sign, and the Mayor thinks the sign ordinance should be updated changing the
lighting requirement. Mr. Melsop is not bothered by the lighting of the sign and agrees with
Mr. Smerigan, but Mr. Melsop said he objects to the size of the sign and agrees with Mr.
Smerigan that the size of the sign is excessive and he will not approve that variance
request.
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September 16, 2013
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Mr. Byron asked Mr. Petro if they have done studies of smaller signs, and Mr. Petro said
there are traffic speed issues and they tried to design the sign similar to the other Howard
Hanna sign that is also a multi-tenant sign. Mr. Melsop said he has seen many signs in the
area with multiple tenants that are much smaller, and Mr. Petro said there are larger signs
on Lander Circle that don’t comply with the code. Mr. Melsop said those signs must be
older than the 2008 sign ordinance, and he represents the residents of Pepper Pike and is
opposed to a sign this size. Mr. DeWolf said the Waterway sign is a safety issue and Mr.
Sheehy said they had existing signage. Mr. DeWolf said they kept Key Bank within the size
requirement. Mayor Bain said this sign is different because it is not on Lander Circle and it
is across from a residence, but they need to address how bright the sign will be and if it
needs to be left on all of the time. Dan Riley, Vice President of Administration for Howard
Hanna Real Estate Services said their intent is for the sign to always be illuminated. Mr.
Riley said the building is across the street from commercial lots, and Mr. Sheehy said a
portion is zoned residential.
Mayor Bain went through the ordinance guidelines, and the Mayor said he does not have
any clue if what has been presented is the minimum relief necessary for a passing driver.
Mr. Melsop said with the first criteria there is no mitigating factor because motorists have
slowed down already for a stop sign or they are leaving the Circle. Mayor Bain said the third
criteria is the additional sign area will not adversely impact the adjacent residential areas or
otherwise compromise any other public interests, and Mr. Melsop said therein lies his
complaint. Mr. Smerigan said they are on the edge of the commercial area, and they have a
recognizable logo and are just identifying the building; an 80% increase is beyond what is
necessary to get the job done and this sign could be done with less square footage and get
the same affect.
Mayor Bain said they can’t pass this variance without making sure the lumens are good, and
they have to come back next month after conferring with Mr. Smerigan about lumens issues
and the size of the sign. Mr. Riley said there are probably ways they can reduce the sign,
but they want to honor their existing tenants. There is a concern that the sign would
disappear at 24 square feet and they will have a difficult time with that size restriction.
Mayor Bain said Howard Hanna is a valued and important business in the City but the
variance would be defeated if they voted on it tonight, and the Mayor said they can see
where they are in a month. Mr. Petro said he is concerned about the ARB process.
Mr. Riley told Mayor Bain that Howard Hanna’s sign at their current location will be coming
down after they move their 120 real estate agents into this new building tentatively on
November 20th. Mr. Riley told Mr. Melsop that Howard Hanna did purchase this building,
and Mayor Bain said they will try to coordinate with them so this doesn’t interfere with their
move. Mr. Byron said they can come back on October 7th with their revised plan.
Moved by DeWolf and seconded by Melsop to table these variance requests.
ROLL CALL:
Yeas: Bain, Melsop, DeWolf
MOTION CARRIED
ADJOURNMENT: The Planning Commission unanimously agreed to adjourn at 8:18 p.m.
APPROVED:
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Richard M. Bain, Mayor
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Sheila Brett-O’Connor, Clerk of Council
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