EL DORADO — The El Dorado Planning and Zoning Commission has called for a joint meeting with others who are working on efforts to establish commercial design standards and a comprehensive signage ordinance in El Dorado.
Commissioners reviewed Wednesday proposed design standards for the city’s commercial districts and sign regulations that were prepared by Jim von Tungeln, a planning, zoning and land-use consultant for the Arkansas Municipal League.
Michael Rogers, chairman of the P&Z, reminded the group that vonTungeln drafted the city’s original planning ordinance and helped to create the El Dorado Historic District Commission.
For more than a year, a task force led by the El Dorado-Union County Chamber of Commerce has explored options to help improve the look of the city’s retail corridors.
Robert Waggoner, chairman of the task force, observed from the audience Wednesday as P&Z commissioners pored over the material prepared by vonTungeln.
“What we want to do is to start talking about this,” Rogers said, adding that the information had been forwarded to the task force.
He said the design standards would cover each commercial zone in town — C-1 (Central Business District), C-2 (general commercial), C-3 (office commercial) and C-4 (neighborhood commercial).
Rogers noted that the historic district commission has design guidelines and a city ordinance that apply to the C-1 zone, which is the Union Square District.
The guidelines and ordinance were drafted by vonTungeln.
“We’re not trying to override them. This is mainly everything that goes away from the downtown — North West Avenue, Hillsboro, College and Timberlane,” Rogers said.
In his notes, vonTunglen made similar statements, saying that the proposed standards would be applicable to all commercial districts in El Dorado, except the Central Business District.
The draft covers procedures for obtaining building permits for commercial and non-standard commercial buildings, the review/decision process of the P&Z, and appeals to the city council.
Design standards are also outlined with acceptable materials building materials for certain portions of the structures.
Materials listed in the draft were exterior insulation finish systems (EIFS), brick, glass, native stone or mortar, wood, tile, etc.
Rogers pointed to some of the provisions, with specifics such as, “the building plans shall designate one facade of the building as the ‘front’ of the building and this facade shall have windows and doors comprising no less than 15 percent of its total square footage.”
“It can’t just be a solid brick wall. Fifteen percent has to be some other material, like glass. You’ve got to have secondary material, windows, stone, EIFS or something of that nature,” Rogers said. “It can’t just be a brick wall with a metal door.”
VonTugeln wrote that the draft proposal also reflects the potential for the city to establish business incubator districts, Special Development Districts, that would reduce the commercial design standards in order to promote small and start-up businesses in specific areas.
Rogers said the P&Z wanted to couple the design standards with the proposed signage regulations.
“There is no real sign ordinance that this commission is over,” he said. “The (city’s existing sign) standards are completely separate. This sign ordinance would align with the planning and zoning commission so it would not be a separate thing.”
He said efforts, some by the El Dorado City Council, have been made over the years to “tackle” the issue, but the matter still lingers.
The information submitted by vonTungeln addressed a variety of signs, including poles, portable, ground, porjecting, illuminated, flashing, canopy, etc.
Commissioners have noted in recent months the number of digital signs that have cropped up around town and that there are no city sign codes that address the lumens in such signs.
Commissioner Netasha Williamson inquired about one of the proposed sign prohibitions for the city.
In the draft, billboards would not be permitted within city limits. Existing billboards would be grandfathered in, but new ones would not be allowed.
Williamson asked if the provision pertained to the advertising on the billboards.
Rogers said no, explaining that the provision targets the structure, not the advertising.
“In 20 years, you’ll see a whole lot less billboards than we have here now, and the ones that here now would have to be maintained,” he said.
Commissioner Vicky Dobson asked if the existing signs would have to be updated or modified to comply with any new regulations.
“That’s a good question. If they’re complying now, would they have to change because we’ve changed the ordinance?” Rogers noted.
He said the matter and others pertaining to draft proposal could be discussed with vonTungeln and the retail task force.
“I would like to set that up for our next (regular) meeting,” Rogers said.
The P&Z commission regularly meets at noon on the second Wednesday of the month, but they discussed possibly changing the schedule to the second Tuesday of the month.
Tia Lyons may be contacted at 870-862-6611 or by email at tlyons@ eldoradonews.com.