Program Description
Sign Committee Meets alternate Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m.
History
The City of Santa Barbara has long recognized that signs are an integral part of the cityscape and, as such, can detract from or enhance the City's image and character. The City first adopted a sign ordinance in 1922, and many changes in sign review have occurred since that time. In 1960, the Architectural Board of Review (ABR) began reviewing certain types of signs.
Its purview expanded intermittently until all signs - permanent and temporary - were subject to ABR review. In 1977, the Landmarks Committee began to review signs in El Pueblo Viejo in order to assure that such signs complied with the Historic Structures Ordinance. In July 1977, due to the amount of time required to review signs, a Sign Sub-Committee was formed to review, approve, conditionally approve or deny all signs, subject to ratification of its actions by the full bodies of the ABR and Historic Landmarks Committee.
Also in 1977, lengthy studies began on amending the sign ordinance, in an effort to reduce processing time, clarify the sign ordinance requirements and include Sign Sub-Committee policy in the ordinance. The Sign Ordinance was adopted in the Spring of 1981 and changed the Sub-Committee to full committee status as the "Sign Committee" with two members and an alternate from the business community added, appointed by City Council.
In 1995, the Sign Ordinance was again amended, and the composition of the Sign Committee was again changed, this time to reduce the membership to five members and two alternates with qualifications as outlined below. In 1995, the Sign Ordinance was again amended, and the composition of the Sign Committee was again changed, this time to reduce the membership to five members and two alternates.
In 2010, City Council temporarily scaled down the Sign Committee due to the recession and reductions in staffing. The Sign Ordinance was amended and sign applications were reviewed in two separate “Consent” meetings by members of the Architectural Board of Review and the Historic Landmarks Commission.
In 2017, the Sign Ordinance was amended to reflect an action by City Council to re-establish the full Sign Committee, with the composition changed to reduce the membership from five members to three, with two alternates, one from the Architectural Board of Review and one from the Historic Landmarks Commission, with qualifications as outlined below.
City Council Acts to Re-Establish Full Sign Committee
On Tuesday, May 23, 2017, City Council approved the re-establishment of the full Sign Committee, which had been temporarily scaled down in 2010 due to the recession and reductions in staffing. Over the last seven years, sign proposals have been reviewed in two separate ABR or HLC “Consent” Sign meetings. With the recent reinstatement of the Sign Committee, one bi-weekly meeting will occur every other Tuesday morning. Meetings will be held at 9:00 am in the David Gebhard Public Meeting Room, at 630 Garden Street, beginning on July 18th, 2017. The Sign Committee will comprise three primary members, with two alternate members, one from the ABR and one from the HLC, serving as needed to meet quorum requirements.
The lower-level Conforming sign review will still occur, and will be condensed from two separate meetings into one weekly meeting every Tuesday morning.