EDMOND —
Sam’s Club was granted a variance request Tuesday evening by the Edmond Planning Commission for a 60-foot-tall ground sign with 150 square feet on both sides. The vote was 5-0.
Fifteen acres of property is in the process of being purchased by Sam’s Club from Jim Tapp to build a 138,000-square-foot store north of Walmart on the west side of Interstate 35.
The Planning Commission was originally presented with a variance request for a 70-foot tall sign with 500 square feet combining both sides, said Bob Schiermeyer, city planner.
Residents of the Fox Lake addition spoke against the variance request, noting that Title 22 allows 25 feet in height with 60 square feet per side along the I-35 corridor. The field of view of the sign from the 40 homes west backing up to the lake area beside the property was another concern by residents.
“The bigger challenge is the visibility for traveling south,” said architect Larry Craighead, representing Sam’s Club. “We need to get something out there that identifies our site.”
Planning Commission Chairman Barry Moore asked Craighead if Sam’s Club has considered placing a billboard in Logan County letting people know that the store is 5 miles south.
“That has not been discussed,” Craighead said.
Oklahoma City attorney Blaine Nice, representing Sam’s Club, said that Tapp has indicated that he would reduce signage for property he owns on the north side of the proposed store. Nice said he didn’t want to leave the meeting with none of the signage needs met for Sam’s Club.
Planning Commissioner Mark Hoose said the Walmart sign is hard to see. Imposing a strict interpretation of the sign ordinance is not reasonable or economically feasible for Sam’s Club, Hoose said. He added that he could support a 60-foot tall sign with reduced square footage.
Integris Health Edmond and Mercy Health Services both have 150-square-feet signs on both sides, Moore said. He questioned why a retail club store should have greater footage than medical facilities that people need to find in life or death situations.
Fox Lake Homeowners Association member Deborah Reisweber said that Mercy has 1,000 feet of frontage.
“They have gorgeous landscaping and have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a wonderful project,” Reisweber said. “This is going to be a Sam’s Club. There will be no extras of anything.”
Mercy did not need a variance being zoned as a planned unit development, Schiermeyer said. The Mercy sign will be 60 feet tall, he said.
“That’s about as large as you can get on I-35 — the maximum allowed for a PUD in height,” Schiermeyer said. “If they didn’t have a PUD they wouldn’t have the extra height for signage on Mercy.”
Integris was granted a variance for its 150-square foot sign, but did not request extra height beyond 25 feet, Schiermeyer said.
Tapp said he appreciates the significance of the existing ordinance to protect the integrity of Edmond’s central corridor.
The item will go before the City Council on Oct. 8.
Local News
Commission wrestles with Sam's Club sign size
City Council will consider request Oct. 8
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