4-B-21-DT

Level I: 310 W. Jackson Ave - Neon "Selfish" Sign

Approve Subject To Conditions

APPROVE Certificate 4-B-21-DT, with the condition that the text on the sign (letters) not exceed 30% of the total window area for the bay of windows (including the transom), and that the polycarbonate background on which the letters are mounted be clear.

Case File

Recommendation

Staff recommends denial of Certificate 4-B-21-DT as submitted. A revised sign proposal should be submitted to meet City sign code and the Downtown Knoxville Design Guidelines

Applicant Request

Level I: Sign
Three-story, brick masonry building with altered storefront entries, decorative arched brick corbeling above third story windows, and a dentiled brick cornice between the storefront and second-story windows.

- New sign, to be installed on an interior wall fronting the rightmost bay of windows on the 310 W. Jackson Avenue storefront. The sign is pink neon on a polycarbonate clear background, to be fixed to an interior wall (wall extends the full length of the four adjoining windows). Per conditions of approval of April 2021 DRB meeting, letters on sign must not exceed 30% of the overall window area (four single-light storefront windows and transoms above). Applicant has submitted a revised proposal where the letters measure 96" wide by 28" tall, within a bay of windows which measure approximately 7' tall by 14' wide,

Property Notes / Work to be Completed

- As currently proposed, the sign does not meet Downtown Knoxville Design Guidelines or City sign code. In DK Zoning, attached signs are limited to a total sign area of 10% or below the wall area of primary building elevation. The wall area for the tenant space measures 32' wide by 10' tall, 320 sq. ft. Therefore, the allowable total sign area is 32 sq. ft.
- The building is a contributing resource to the Southern Terminal and Warehouse Historic District so the Historic Resources section of the guidelines applies. Design guidelines recommend window signs be limited to less than 30% coverage of the window (Warehouse District guidelines specifically reference neon signs as characteristic of the subdistrict). Projecting signs are recommended to be 9 sq ft maximum.
- Previous Design Review Board determinations have discouraged "façade changes to a publicly-oriented space or interior change that would obscure windows and doors (such as drop ceilings or display cases)." This citation draws from the previous iteration of the City of Knoxville Code of Ordinances for D-1 zoning but was not incorporated in to the new zoning ordinance. The Board may discuss the installation of a full-height interior wall obscuring the four adjoining windows. The wall has been installed but has not been issued a permit through Plans Review and Inspections.
- New window signs at less than 30% window coverage, including neon signs, are recognized in the design guidelines for the Warehouse District and Historic Resource sections as appropriate. The proposed neon window sign could meet the design guidelines if it covered 30% or less of the subject window area.

Applicable Guidelines

Downtown Design Guidelines

- B. Private Realm
- 1. Building Mass, Scale, and Form
- 1e. Avoid blank walls along street-facing elevations.
- 4. Architectural Character
- 4b. Enhance pedestrian interest in commercial and office buildings by creating a largely transparent and consistent rhythm of entrances and windows.
- 5. Ground Floor Doors and Windows
- 5e. All windows at the pedestrian level should be clear.
- C. Historic Resources
- 7. Recommended Signs
- 7a. Locate signs above storefront windows, below second-story windows on the sign board, or on the storefront windows themselves (30% is maximum coverage), or off the front of the building as a projecting sign (maximum size: 9 square feet).
- 7b. Create signs that are proportional to the building where they are located.
- 7c. Do not light signs internally.
- C. The Warehouse District
- 1. Recommended Signs: the entire warehouse district is already listed on the National Register of Historic Places and these buildings are also eligible for local overlays. Signs should therefore be governed by historic standards. These recommendations recognize that certain types of signs are dominant in the Warehouse District and should be encouraged in the future.
- 1a. Projecting signs of modest size (9 square feet, maximum); larger sign must be approved by the board
- 1b. Wall signs on sign boards mounted flush to the building façade
- 1c. Painted wall signs
- 1d. Painted or new window signs, less than 30 percent coverage, including neon sign