East Ridge adopted a new sign ordinance at the Thursday night council meeting. Codes Enforcement Officer Kenny Custer said it has taken over 12 months to create.
Help was received from Hamilton County, the Regional Planning Agency, legal counsel, billboard and sign companies and companies that develop LED technology.
The revamp was started when LED signs started appearing and the city was not prepared with a way to regulate them. He said the new ordinance is intended to enhance the city by making them more consistent and attractive and at the same time to promote businesses.
Old signs will be grandfathered in until a change is made, and if that change is judged to be 50 percent or greater, the new standards must be met. Mr. Custer said that in the future the city may offer sign grants for making improvements and to encourage sign replacements.
A public hearing on this ordinance will take place at the Feb. 23 council meeting.The city will be considering another ordinance at the first meeting in March to adopt architectural design standards and guidelines within the commercial district.
There was a lot of discussion about this during talks about signs, said Mr. Custer. This ordinance will be to promote more attractive buildings with good access, and walk-ability. It will set standards such as preventing blank walls facing the streets, will require entrances to face the street and promote mixed-use buildings with retail on the first floor and residential spaces above. Design features such as building materials and roof lines will be addressed in the new codes for buildings moving forward.
City Manager Scott Miller asked and received from the council the authority to solicit Requests for Proposals for engineering and design of sidewalks along Ringgold Road. The entire project will be done in two phases. Mr. Miller would like to start on the section from McBrien Road going west to the tunnels that would be implemented in 2018.The second phase would be from McBrien Road going east to I-75 which would be built in 2021. He told the council that if completed by 2022, it could be paid for with tax money received from the border region program. He said that enhancements to Ringgold Road would encourage improvements in buildings, as well, and should heighten owners’ interest in making improvements to their properties.
In another move to improve the city, Mayor Brent Lambert proposed the creation of a redevelopment authority. It would take a petition with a certain number of signatures before a public meeting could be set up, and then the council would determine if any unsafe or unsanitary buildings existed in the city. If so, they could create a resolution to create the authority that would have five members.
Judging by what has taken place in East Ridge in the past, he said it is undeniable that some housing exists that is dangerous, referring to the condemnation of the Superior Creek Lodge in September 2015. The authority would give the city more tools to regulate those properties and urge compliance from the owners. He said some dangerous situations exist and the city needs to be proactive not reactive.
The position of city attorney for East Ridge has been advertised and four applicants responded. The council members determined that their two top choices were Mark Litchford, who is currently acting as interim city attorney, and Alex McVeagh, who has worked as the East Ridge assistant city attorney. The two candidates will be interviewed on Monday, Feb. 20, at 5:30 p.m. The public is welcome.
On second and final reading, the council voted to abandon a third of an acre and give it to the developers of Jordan Crossing. That land had been given to the city for use when building Camp Jordan Parkway. The entrance into the development is now being reconfigured and, when the new road is built, it will no longer be on that property and will have no use for the city. The developers will use the space to increase parking.
The applications for two grants were authorized at the meeting. The 2017 Firehouse Subs Grant, if received, would provide radio equipment for the police department. A state of Tennessee community Development Block Grant will also be applied for in the amount of $315,000. The city’s match would be $34,650. If this is received, it would be used for the demolition of slum and blighted property.