Historic Zoning Commission
Market Square H-1-Continued: Level II
10-J-15-HZ
Staff Recommendation
Approval of the hanging projecting sign. Conditional approval for the awning provided that 1) the tiebacks are not more than 1-1/2" inches thick (If the engineering calculations indicate that a greater thickness is needed, then the awning and tiebacks will be required to be reviewed by staff to determine if there are any mitigating measures), and 2) the awning on the Wall Street side is visually broken up with transitions such as that of gaps, color and/or reveals (slight changes in level).
Applicant Request
Level II. Installation of signage and awning--POSTPONED FROM OCTOBER 15, 2015 HZC MEETING
Awning or canopy; SignsREVISED FROM OCTOBER 15, 2015 HZC MEETING
AWNING
Install continuous sloped canvas awning on the front and north sides of the building with an arched awning over the corner and side entrances. The clearance of the awning will be 9'-1", increasing to10 feet at the east end on Wall Street. The lettering for "Market House Café" will be screen-printed on the arched gable front. The frame will be black welded aluminum, attached to the facade and supported by tie-back rods. The quantity and diameter is to be determined by the engineer.
Dimensions:
24'-9" long by 4'-7" tall - projection over Market Square
6'-8" long by 4'-7" tall - projection with 10-foot wide arch over corner entrance
111'-7" long by 4'-7" tall - projection over sidewalk on Wall Street, with arch at 20-'6" wide over the double-door side entrance
7'-8"-wide arch above the northeast residential entrance
SIGNAGE
Install hanging projecting double-sided wooden sign panel framed in decorative metal sign at the corner entrance of the building at Market Square and Wall Street. The proposed sign is 33" wide by 4'-6" tall. The sign would be mounted at a 45-degree angle over the building entry on the corner of the building so as to be readable from both sides of the building. The overall sign square footage is proposed to be 9.33 square feet. The sign would be hung from an existing metal signage arm which extends 4'-4". The sign would have a clearance of 14'-6" above the ground. The thickest point of the sign measures 1- 1/8 inch.
Site Info
Neoclassical Commercial (c. 1910)(320 Wall). Woods & Taylor building. Four-story brick building with engaged Tuscan columns punctuating bays, pressed metal cornice with modillions, chambered corner with quoins, altered c. 1950 storefront, segmental arched one-over-one windows. This building housed Woods & Taylor clothing store and in 1940, Bower's Department Store, together with restaurants, office, space, a watch repair stop and a beauty shop.
AWNING
1) The sloped canvas awning with half-round arch over the entries is an appropriate style for the Market Square and the era of the building.
2) Historically, awnings were installed over storefronts on the narrow side of building, emphasizing their verticality.
3) The dimensions of the awning are appropriate with the exception of the length down the Wall Street side which will be 111'-7". The arched portion over the Wall Street entries and the contrasting color bands will somewhat break up the length of the awning on that side. However, staff believes the continous portion of the awning running along that side emphasizes horizontality and gives the side entry a prominence it did not have historically. The awning on this side would therefore be too long without further breaks--either visual or actual.
4) Ending the awning just east past the side door recess would be an appropriate length, with a separate awning over the Wall Street tenant door.
5) The tiebacks for a previously approved awning on Market Square that were 2" thick were found to be too heavy and obtrusive in appearance.
SIGNAGE
5) The guidelines recommend that one secondary sign (two signs total) per façade be allowed, not to exceed 6 square feet each. The proposal is for one sign on the arched awning face over the front entry, one on the arched face at the side entry and a hanging projecting sign with one face for each side. Therefore, this proposal meets this recommendation with a total of four signs - two signs per side of the building.
6) The proposed wood and metal sign is of an appropriate design and material for Market Square. The sign is proposed be 9.33 s.f. and a sign of similar size (9.44 s.f.) was approved for 37 Market Square in October 2014 since it is located on an outer corner building of the Square. The subject building is similarly situated and is the tallest building on the Square. The findings for the appropriateness of a sign larger than recommended by the guidelines were stated at the October 2014 meeting as the following:
"THERE ARE 3 OTHER BUILDINGS IN MARKET SQUARE (LOCATED ON EACH OF THE OTHER 3 CORNERS) THAT ARE ADJACENT TO A PUBLIC CITY STREET. THIS FINDING MAKES THESE AND THE SUBJECT BUILDING LOCATIONALLY UNIQUE FROM THE OTHERS LOCATED INTERNALLY TO MARKET SQUARE. SIGNS MOUNTED ON CORNERS ADJACENT TO STREETS AT THE ENDS OF MARKET SQUARE CONTRIBUTE LESS TO SIGN CLUTTER THAN THOSE LOCATED INTERNALLY ON MARKET SQUARE."
