Plan To Restrict Niles' Business Signs Moves Forward

Niles business owners came out Monday night to stress the importance of signs to their businesses as the village's Plan Commission and Zoning  Board of Appeals considered an ordinance that would restrict sign heights, sizes and details. 

After debating free speech issues, the plan commission voted 4 to 3 to approve the ordinance, which will require most businesses to keep signs below 22 feet tall, among other measures. Commission members stressed throughout the hour and a half debate that the point of the ordinance was to update and modernize the code, and to simplify it.

The proposed ordinance next moves to the village board of trustees for a vote, and if they approve it, it will become law. 

Director of Community Services Chuck Ostman said at a previous meeting that most villages are following the trend toward more compact business signage, and that Niles, which has permitted taller and bigger signs than most surrounding suburbs, would benefit by going to the newer standards, which will still be more business-friendly than most towns. 

The commission also discussed signs residents can put in front of their homes, such as political and celebratory signs. 

Businesses showed the greatest interest in the ordinance, however, saying signs are their lifeblood.  

Anna Maria Kowalik, Regional Property Manager at Inland Commercial Property Management, spoke on behalf of the stake her company has in Niles. 

"We are the owners and managers of the Four Flaggs Shopping Center in the village of Niles,” explained Kowalik, adding her concern for making sure her tenants would have a clear understanding of the ordinance's changes to code. She asked for clarification on some matters including the grandfathering in of some businesses’ signage and also additional interior signs like “No Skateboarding” or “Watch for Pedestrians."

Jeramiah Yeksavich, senior planner for Rolf C. Campbell & Associates, said that established businesses will have 15 years, until 2026, to comply with code if the ordinance passed, or be “grandfathered” in. Any new businesses would have to comply with the code upon being approved by village board to open.

As for interior signs described by Kowalik, those would be excluded from the ordinance. He added that packets would be created for local businesses detailing very clearly what kind of signage would and would not be permitted by the ordinance on an individual basis.

Kowalik thanked the commission board members for their time.

“Signage is one of the vital life lines for a business. This is an extremely important issue to business owners, particularly in this climate,” she said. “...We're your partners in that effort."

New restrictions brought about by the ordinance include signage being restricted to a 20 foot height in a manufacturing district; a 22 foot height for large shopping centers; and up to 32 feet high in businesses over 500,000 square feet, such as Golf Mill Shopping Center.

An estimated 50 percent of businesses’ ground signs on Milwaukee Avenue would be considered nonconforming with the passage of the ordinance, Ostman said.

Additionally, the proposed ordinance states that window signs may not take up more than 75 percent of windows. Neon borders in windows would no longer be allowed. Banners may not be larger than 24 square feet and may be up for a maximum of four weeks and no more than four times a year. Inflatables promoting businesses may not exceed 10 feet.

Teresa Connors spoke on behalf of Tucker Development Corporation in Highland Park, which owns Pointe Plaza Shopping Center in Niles. She voiced her concern that businesses may be less likely to sign leases with her company if they are not guaranteed adequate signage on which to advertise.

“I understand the wall signs, but in terms of the ground signs, this would greatly impact our shopping center,” said Connors. “We have a new [store called] Ross: Dress for Less coming in and these tenants expect to be going on our sign. One of the major things that drew them to our shopping center was the nice exposure our sign provides. At some point we will not be able to meet the requirements of our leases.”

Ostman responded by asking to sit down and work with Connors and others who share her concerns. 

“If we found there was a major impact on our shopping centers, this would be back in front of this board,” said Ostman. “We would like to sit down and see what the alternatives are for these shopping centers and see what others have done.”

In terms of residential signage, the ordinance would have placed restrictions on the number of political signs a 20-foot space could contain and for how long, as well as signs considered celebratory or holiday-related. This part of the ordinance was struck by the commission in a 4 to 3 vote.

The code currently allows for one political sign, although Director of Community Services Charles Ostman pointed out it was not enforced. The proposed ordinance would have increased this number to three. The commission decided instead to add political signs and others to the list of exempt signage and recommend the ordinance to the board of trustees with this amendment. Exempt signage would not have the same restrictions as other signage spelled out in the language.

“We’ve never really had a problem with this,” said Plan Commissioner Morgan Dubiel about political signs in Niles. “The limitation is excessive. This could be a major free speech issue."

Commission Chairman Thomas Kanelos agreed, saying he had a big problem with the restriction of political free speech.

With the commission’s recommendation of the ordinance to the board of trustees, residents will have future opportunities to hear about the proposed changes.

“This is not an easy thing to resolve," said commission board member Robert J. Schulter, Jr. "One question I had was, have other communities gone forward with something like this? But it turns out a lot of other have, such as Northbrook, Wheeling, Schaumburg and others. We've been more lenient with our signage for a long time, and we still will be, compared to others."