DIGITAL SUPERGRAPHICS - SIZE LIMITS:

AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING CHAPTER 138, “SIGNS,” ARTICLE VI, “SPECIFIC USE SIGNS,” AT SECTION 138-204, “NON-COMMERCIAL GRAPHICS AND IMAGES,” BY MODIFYING THE EXISTING REGULATIONS FOR ELECTRONIC GRAPHICS AND IMAGES; PROVIDING FOR CODIFICATION; REPEALER; SEVERABILITY; AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

HISTORY
On October 18, 2017, at the request of former Commissioner Joy Malakoff, the City Commission dually referred this item to the Land Use and Development Committee and the Planning Board.

On October 30, 2017, the Land Use and Development Committee recommended that the Planning Board transmit the proposed ordinance to the City Commission with a favorable recommendation. Commissioner Micky Steinberg and Vice-Mayor John Elizabeth Aleman are the co-sponsors of the item.

PLANNING ANALYSIS
In 2016, the City Commission adopted an Ordinance amendment that reorganized and revised the signage section of the City Code in order to ensure compliance with recent US Supreme Court precedent. The revisions also included modifications to reduce the number of variances, and generally increased the overall signage area allowed. As part of these modifications, updates to the existing code regarding artistic or super graphics were also incorporated to include electronic images as part of an allowable super graphic. Prior to this change, projected or illuminated still/changing images were not allowed, and the overall size of an artistic or super graphic was subject to the review of the Design Review Board or Historic Preservation Board, as applicable.

Since the City Code was amended to allow electronic super graphics, only one project, located on Alton Road, has received approval from the Design Review Board for the construction of an illuminated super graphic. The attached Ordinance would remove the ability of the DRB or HPB to approve an electronic artistic or super graphic in excess of 100 square feet when facing a street or sidewalk. Limiting the size to 100 square feet facing a street for electronic super graphics will ensure that such graphics will not overwhelm the character of the City’s neighborhoods.

Additionally, pursuant the recommendation of the Land Use and Development Committee, the text pertaining to the proximity and visibility from a residential zoning district has been clarified.

PLANNING BOARD REVIEW
On November 21, 2017, the Planning Board transmitted the proposed Ordinance Amendment to the City Commission with a favorable recommendation.

UPDATE

The subject Ordinance came before the City Commission for First Reading on December 13, 2017. Due to the length of the agenda, the item was deferred to the January 17, 2018 meeting.