City revising sign ordinance again, seeks input|[11/2/05]

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, November 2, 2005

Vicksburg is again retooling its sign ordinance, City Planner Wayne Mansfield said at the Zoning Board meeting Tuesday.

City Attorney Nancy Thomas said the city is not just addressing billboard advertising, but also on-site signage.

&#8220We’d like to get input from the business community,” Thomas said.

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The discussions follow a negotiated settlement with Lamar Advertising. The billboard company had sued in 2003 after disputes arose over enforcement of new city restrictions, specifically regarding the maintenance of existing billboards.

In the deal, Lamar will take its signs down from historic and residential areas of town, but will be allowed to put up new signs in business districts.

Overall, the ordinance, passed in 2002, set new criteria for all commercials and non-commercial displays.

Mansfield said the revisions will be a work in progress and people with comments are questions should contact his office.

Also during the Zoning Board meeting, James Buie was granted a special exception to operate J & B Towing & Repair at 1801 Poplar St., which is zoned C-4 General Commercial.

In 1998, Buie received approval from the Zoning Board to operate his towing business on Poplar Street, despite the area not being designated for heavy industrial use. In that same year, some residents of the area filed an appeal and went before the City Board of Mayor and Aldermen, where the decision was reversed.

The board revoked Buie’s approval to operate, but the city mistakenly issued Buie a license anyway. He has been paying the yearly fee to maintain the business license and it wasn’t until Buie wanted to come before the Zoning Board for another matter that the problem was discovered.

Buie presented a petition from local residents and churches Tuesday that said they approved of his business being at its current location.

&#8220I’m willing to do whatever I have to do to stay at my business,” Buie said.

He has built a fence around his property at the direction of the Zoning Board, which also determined that he must maintain the fence to blend into the residential area. The board also said Buie can only have short term storage of trailers and vehicles on his property and must allow the Zoning Board to revisit the issue in a year.

Also during the meeting, a resident was denied a request for a variance.

Hewey Purvis, 326 Lake Hill Drive, applied for a variance to the front yard setback requirement from 30 feet to 23 feet. Purvis said he wants to build a front porch on his property.

However, board members did not think it was in the city’s best interest to allow the variance and voted 3-2 against it.

In other business, the board voted 3-2 to grant the Dollar General, 2203 Clay St., a special exception to place a modular storage unit on the property.

Eddie Bell, a representative for Dollar General, said the company wants a 20-foot on-site storage container for two months during the holiday season to store seasonal merchandise.