SB Item 4 - SV17-005 FW Brain & SpineCase No.
SV17-005
S T A F F R E P O R T
July 28, 2017
CASE NO: SV17-005
PROJECT: Sign Variance for Fort Worth Brain & Spine EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY: Fort Worth Brain & Spine Institute is requesting approval of a variance to Sign
Ordinance No. 704, as amended, to allow an upper story attached building sign
to be located on a wall that is not congruent with the tenant’s lease space. Fort
Worth Brain & Spine is located at 1050 E. State Highway 114, Suite 110,
Southlake, Texas.
REQUEST
DETAILS: Fort Worth Brain & Spine is located in the North Country Building on the
northwest corner of E. State Highway 114 and N. Carroll Avenue.
With the adoption of Sign Ordinance No. 704-H in October 2015, upper story
signs were prohibited unless approved by City Council as part of a Master Sign
Plan or variance. The proposed attached building sign qualifies as an upper
story sign. In addition, the proposed location of the sign is on a wall not
congruent to the tenant’s lease space. The applicant is requesting a variance to
allow the proposed upper story sign on the southeast elevation of the building;
directly above their first floor lease space. The proposed sign meets all other
sign ordinance criteria regarding size, letter type and illumination.
The details of the sign variances requested are as follows:
Sign Regulation Permitted by Sign Ord. Proposed
Upper Story Sign Prohibited unless permitted by City Council
approval through a MSP or variance
upper story,
southeast elevation
Location of attached
sign
Affixed to wall congruent to tenant’s lease space, if
located below ceiling of the 1st story and less than
20-feet above grade of closest roadway
upper story,
southeast elevation
ACTION NEEDED: Consider Approval of Requested Variances
ATTACHMENTS: (A) Background Information
(B) Vicinity Map
Link to PowerPoint Presentation
Link to Demonstration
Link to Support Documents
STAFF CONTACT: Dennis Killough (817)748-8072
Lorrie Fletcher (817)748-8069
Department of Planning & Development Services
Case No. Attachment A
ZA17-005 Page 1
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
APPLICANT: Fort Worth Brain & Spine Institute at North Country
PROPERTY SITUATION: 1050 East S.H. 114, Suite 110, Southlake, Texas.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: Lot 7R1, Block A, 114 & Carroll Addition
CURRENT ZONING: “C-3” General Commercial District
HISTORY: June 6, 2006 – City Council approved a plat revision creating Lot 7R1
under ZA06-062
June 3, 2008 – City Council approved a site plan for Xaris Office
Development under ZA07-167
January 6, 2009 – City Council approved a sign variance for the office
development monument signs under SV08-001
February 16, 2009 – sign permits were issued for the monument signs
under SIGN09-0134 and SIGN09-0135
March 2, 2009 – sign permit was issued for an attached building sign for
North Country Family Practice under SIGN09-0175
March 3, 2009 – City Council approved an amendment to the previously
approved sign variance for the tower monument sign under SV08-001R
June 3, 2010 – sign permit was issued for an attached building sign for
First American Title under SIGN10-0379
October 2, 2013 – sign permit was issued for an attached building sign
for Waddell & Reed under SIGN13-1151
October 3, 2013 – sign permit was issued for an attached building sign
for Tolleson Orthodontics under SIGN13-1166
STAFF COMMENTS: The application exhibits are hyper-linked to this report. City Council
approval of the request does not eliminate the requirement for an
appropriate sign application submittal prior to sign installation. Please
contact Seantay Carpenter for sign application processing and pre-
install inspection. Seantay can be reached at 817-748-8215 or
scarpenter@ci.southlake.tx.us.
DESIGN GUIDELINES:
8.4.9 Multistory Buildings
a. For multistory corporate offices and hotels, signs should be limited
to monument signs and possibly a single façade sign of
appropriate scale and size that identifies the name of the major
tenant or building.
b. For multistory commercial buildings, upper story signs should be
limited to tenants that have a minimum of 25 feet of horizontal
building frontage.
Variance Criteria:
9.6.2 VARIANCES
Case No. Attachment A
ZA17-005 Page 2
a. Variance Authorized. The City Council may authorize variances to
any restriction set forth in this ordinance, including but not limited
to the number, type, area, height, or setback of signs, or any other
aspect involved in the sign permitting process.
b. Approval Standards. In granting any variance, City Council shall
consider the following criteria:
(i) Special conditions exist which are peculiar to the land,
structure or building involved and are not applicable to other
lands, buildings or structures in the same zone. The City may
attach such conditions to granting all or a portion of any
variance necessary to achieve the purpose of this ordinance,
and;
(ii) The strict interpretation of the provisions of the ordinance
would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by
other properties in the same zone under the terms of the
ordinance, and;
(iii) The special conditions and circumstances do not result from
the actions of the applicant and such conditions and
circumstances do not merely constitute pecuniary hardship
or inconveniences, and;
(iv) Granting the variance will meet the objectives of the
ordinance and not be injurious to the adjoining property
owners or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare, and;
(v) The request will be the minimum variance necessary to
alleviate the special hardship or practical difficulties faced by
the applicant in meeting the requirements of this ordinance;
and;
(vi) Granting of the variance will be in harmony with the spirit and
purpose of this sign ordinance.
(vii) Granting of a variance shall be specific to the subject sign(s).
Any modification of the signage approved by the variance or
the installation of new or replacement signage that does not
meet the specific requirements of the City Council variance
approval is prohibited and will be deemed non-compliant.
Application Process. Any request for a variance shall be made to the
Administrative Official and be accompanied by a completed application
and a non-refundable filing fee in the amount specified in the current fee
schedule adopted by City Council. The sign variance will be considered
by the City Council following a recommendation by the Sign Board. The
Sign Board’s recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council for
their consideration.
N:\Community Development\MEMO\Signs\2017\005 – FW Brain & Spine
Case No. Attachment B
ZA17-005 Page 1