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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPN_Project Narrative_Project Narrative_181221_v1.pdf Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org City of Renton Department of Community and Economic Development Planning Division 1055 South Grady Way Renton, Washington 98057 RE: Submittal Requirements VARIANCE NARRATIVE Thank you for the opportunity to file a Variance Request pertaining to a reader board that is situated on the property owned by New Horizon School 501(c)(3) (NHS) serving children with neurological learning disabilities and/or disorders since 1995. NHS has owned the property on S. Carr Road since 1998 – the sign has been in the same location on the property since about 1975 long before it was purchased by NHS. Please see responses below to the application: 1. Pre-application meeting summary: Brent Manley, CPA, Finance Director, New Horizon School Board of Directors and Tami Gillman, Board Consultant, New Horizon School met with Angelea Weihs, Associate Planner, City of Renton to discuss the proposed upgrade of the reader board located at NHS. We had hired Plumb Signs to upgrade the board by painting it and installing software as the lettering is manual; sign is decades old and broken so lettering won’t stay on the sign properly. Plumb Signs told us that the City of Renton would not provide the needed permit to upgrade our monument sign. We requested a meeting with Ms. Weihs to discuss the matter. She was extremely helpful, clarifying why we wouldn’t be allowed a permit. We explained that there are extenuating circumstances about which we would like everyone to be made aware at which time she advised that we should explain the circumstances in a letter to the planning department. After doing so, she later contacted us to let us know that the planning department understood our reasoning and concerns, suggesting that we file a variance request with the planning department. 2. Yes, we did receive a waiver form which is included with our application. 3. Land Use Permit Application Form Attached with legal description and title report included. Signatory authorization for Marla attached. Marla Veliz is the CEO/Administrator who signs all contracts encumbering New Horizon School. Attached our recent refinance loan with US Bank for which she signed on behalf of New Horizon School. Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org 4. Fees: $1300.00 plus $65.00 technology fee = $1365.00 check attached 5. Thank you for the opportunity to provide this narrative. Our goal is to upgrade the existing reader board/sign on New Horizon School (NHS) property by replacing the logo with our new logo, replacing broken cabinets, and by installing digital software and painting the poles. The permit to do so was denied which is why we are filing a variance request application with City of Renton Planning Department. The reader board/monument sign was first installed in the middle seventies when the building was constructed as a church. We purchased the property in 1998 utilizing it as a school. From our discussions, it appears that the initial overwhelming road block to our installing the software in the existing reader board is that we are not a “public” educational institution but a private school and that the Renton City Planning regulations for Digital Reader Boards/Monument Signs restricts installation at a private school. I want to digress briefly to help you understand from where the majority of our funding originates. While we are a private, non-profit school 501(c)(3), the majority of our funding comes from the public schools in the Puget Sound area. As well publicized, the public schools for the most part do not have the bandwidth to educate children with learning disabilities even though the statistics from the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Education indicate that 1 in 5 students in the Puget Sound Region has a learning disability. The school districts’ office for special needs students refers students to our school and redirects federal and state funding to our school. Hence, we are primarily supported by public government funds which will hopefully cast us in a different light in your eyes. Currently we are serving students from 12 different public school districts in the Puget Sound Area. Since deciding to file a variance request application we learned that we needed to have a professional survey completed in order to determine the distance of the sign’s location from the right of way of the property. We learned from the survey results we meet the requirements but that we do not meet 20 ft. required set back from the right of way in order to have a sign that is taller than 6 ft. from grade. So, our variance request is two – fold; 1) we want to keep the existing sign’s location and height as it has been there for forty (40) years, and 2) we want to be able to install digital software so that the signage can be remotely programmed. No trees are proposed for removal per the waiver form. There are no trees near or around the existing sign. Keeping the existing height of the sign – monument sign/pole sign that exceeds height requirements related to right of way: Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org  If lowered to a maximum 6 ft above grade it would require the sign to be relocated in order to see it making it very susceptible to vandalism. It would not be that visible from the street if only maximum 6 ft. above grade and moved. Pictures of the property and the current sign are included with the application. In order for us to install the public information sign so that it could be seen from the street, we had to cut back 6 ft tall above grade blackberry bushes that grow unabated in the culvert in front of the property.  The distance between the current sign location and pavement of the improved public street is 84 ft.  Probably the most important consideration is that we had the Security Review Department from the Renton Police Department come to our school and assess our security issues in October of this year. We have a homeless encampment – off and on - behind us in the greenbelt; there have been videotaped drug deals happening in the middle of the night on our campus with cars/trucks coming and going and people entering our property on foot from Carr Road to visit folks in the encampment and to engage in nefarious activities. The Security Review Officer recommended that the most effective deterrent is an electronic security gate so that unwanted cars cannot enter from Carr Road; they also recommended a 6 foot perimeter fence in front of the school along the right of way. We plan to install the security gate and also install a fence; the fence would definitely preclude visibility of the sign from the street if we are not allowed to keep the existing sign at its current location and its current height.  The existing sign has been there for forty (40) years and hasn’t posed a problem for the community. There have never been any complaints to our knowledge.  We don’t have neighbors on either side of us or in front of us. We are basically bordered by greenbelt on all sides except in front of us. Installation of digital software for the reader/monument sign/board:  Installation of the software would reduce operating costs (can be managed by a computer rather than a human standing trying to manipulate the letters on the board). In inclement weather it is far less hazardous to operate a computer than to be outside in the snow, cold and/or rain, simply impractical and time-consuming.  We would commit to NOT using the flashing options so that the potential for distraction doesn’t occur.  It is the best way to communicate with the student body and families of our students in an affordable and efficient manner. Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org  When integrated with an emergency alert system, it can help notify students, visitors, and faculty of emergencies such as an electrical outage, weather, etc.  Signage would probably be updated on a bi-weekly or monthly basis to announce events.  Great avenue for community public messaging o Last spring we heard of a school that had a threat – it activated a “call for help” on their digital reader board asking people to contact the police. Don’t really know the full circumstances but could imagine that digital signing could be useful for all sorts of alerts including “Amber” alerts, “Silver” alerts, weather alerts and other public service announcements.  Most importantly, instant management of communications. The digital signage is cloud-based so it can be accessed from anywhere — great for remote management. Digital signage apps and content widgets automate the gathering and delivery of information. With features such as playlist management, multi-user roles and comprehensive scheduling, the digital signage does most of the work. Our school administrator, Marla Veliz, can adopt a “set it and forget it” content management approach that is more efficient and effective than our traditional signage. Once again, more effective use of management time and resources and reduction of operating costs.  In addition to reducing paper and ink consumption, digital signage at NHS can also help increase ticket sales to our school events, encourage alumni and parents to contribute via recognition programs, and boost attendance to fundraising festivities by increasing awareness of these events to our Renton Community. In short, digital signage is the most efficient and affordable method of getting the word out on any size school campus, education digital signage is essential to streamlining campus communication and sustaining superior communication protocols for our school. 6. Variance Request Justification: New Horizon School has owned the subject property since 1998. The reader sign has been on the property since the mid 1970’s. While we are not classified as a public school, we are a school that serves students from 12 different public school districts in the Puget Sound Region whose government funds are redirected to us. Most of our students are funded by government funds. We are very proud of the work we perform in the educational community on behalf of children who are challenged by a neurological learning disability and/or disorder. The public schools simply don’t have the bandwidth to provide a specialized personal educational experience for students with special needs. The public schools depend on us to assist in the education of these students and greatly appreciate us as their educational support system. While we are classified as a non-profit private Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org school, we certainly don’t view ourselves in this way. We think of ourselves as a “destination for all children with learning disabilities” which serves the interests of public education which can’t for a myriad of reasons effectively provide a personalized educational experience for students with learning challenges. We can and do. Therefore, given that the majority of our students are referred to us by public schools with their government funds redirected to us, we strongly believe we should receive a variance as we operate more as a public educational institution rather than a private school. We desperately need to upgrade our signage as it is broken and manually operated. Case in point: I drove up to the school and saw the lettering on the sign advertising our fundraising breakfast happening October 18th. The lettering said “ Break Fast” whereupon I went to the office and asked if we were trying to attract attention by the misspelling of breakfast. I was told that the sign won’t hold the lettering properly any longer! Very embarrassing for an educational institution to have misspelled words on their reader sign. We understand the height of the sign does not conform to current monument sign requirements based on set back of right of way. The sign has been there for 40 years and has not posed a nuisance or problem for the community. We are surrounded by greenbelt so the signage doesn’t impose itself on our neighbors. If we lowered the sign to 6 ft. above grade we would be confronted with potential for vandalism, and it simply would not be that visible from the street. We are requesting a variance for the sign height, leaving the sign in its current location. We believe we are suffering practical difficulties with a less than fully functional reader sign which is producing unnecessary hardship. We know the variance is necessary because of special circumstances applicable to our property, including location of the subject property, and the strict application of the Zoning Code was found to deprive us of rights and privileges enjoyed by other schools, private and public. Reasonably speaking, the granting of the variance will not be materially detrimental to the public welfare or injurious to the property or improvements in the vicinity and zone in which subject property is situated. Your approval will not constitute a grant of special privilege inconsistent with the limitation upon uses of other properties in the vicinity and zone in which our property is located. As stated previously, signage has been there for over 4 decades. All that we are asking for is to be allowed to install digital software and to leave the sign where it is and has been for 40+ years - as other educational institutions are allowed. Receiving approval for the variance is critically important to us. While we certainly understand that financial burden is not an argument that city staff can use in its analysis or staff reports, I think it is worth mentioning that we’ve made a Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org substantial financial investment and effort in preparing and submitting this variance application:  survey - $750.00  title report - $400.00  the cost of labor to complete the application  the application processing fees - $1365.00  public information sign - $300.00  installation of public information sign - $250.00  trimming the blackberries so that the public info sign is visible from the street - $2500.00…you can see the unabated growth of the blackberries on the eastside of the entrance. They are easily 6 ft above grade. 7. Density Worksheet: WAIVED 8. Title Report Attached 9. Neighborhood Detailed Map Attached – Stewart Title contacted Renton Planning Department who directed them to provide us with your City of Renton Map which is included with this application. 10. Affidavit of Installation of Public Information Sign Attached 11. Photo of existing Monument Sign is attached (front and back), measurements provided by Plumb Signs and survey are below. The current sign will remain the same dimensions except it will be slightly shorter than the existing sign, will just get a new cabinet and new logo sign. No change other than to upgrade it and repaint the existing support poles. Survey says existing sign is 14’ tall Replacing Cabinet and logo will lower the overall height to 13’ 8” according to Plumb Signs 12. WAIVED 13. N/A 14. N/A 15. N/A 16. N/A 17. N/A 18. N/A 19. N/A 20. N/A 21. N/A 22. N/A Address Tel Toll Free Fax Email Web 1111 S. Carr Road Renton, WA 98055 425.226.3717 800.571.6979 425.226.4605 info@new-horizon-school.org www.new-horizon-school.org 23. N/A 24. N/A 25. Architectual Elevations: Map of monument sign dimensions attached. Sign is two sided. Attached are photos of each side. 26. N/A 27. N/A 28. Photographs of the property are attached. Photographs of the sign as seen from the street are also attached. 29. Colored Maps for Display - Neighborhood Detail Map attached, no site plan changes are proposed, no landscaping plans are involved, no changes in elevations