Kelowna Telus wants to legalize signs on Enterprise Way

COMPANY ASKS TO DOUBLE THE SIZE OF SIGNS IT ILLEGALLY INSTALLED

KELOWNA – After years of thumbing their nose at bylaw enforcement over their outside signage, Telus is coming in from the cold — but only on their own terms.

The company is proposing to make legal signs it installed in 2010 without a building permit or variance applications required by the city.

Bylaw began investigating the signs in 2011, according to a report by city planner Trisa Brandt, but the company still made no effort to obtain the proper permits despite changing the graphics on the signs several times.

Five years later, the company wants to legalize their signs but are asking for four variances that allow a new sign along Enterprise Way and the other two signs to be at least double what the current bylaws allow.

The biggest sign would have an area of almost 36 square meters, just slighty less than double what signs in public and institutional zones are allowed.

The other two signs would have areas of approximately 33 and 30 metres respectively.

Despite its rogue past, staff are recommending council endorse the variances.

"The proposed fascia signage will be incorporated well into the architecture of the building and compliments the overall character,” Brandt says.

The signage will be predominantly located on the second floor windows as well as covering up a blank three-storey vertical wall. The graphic design of the signage is relatively modest and communicates a simple marketing message. The corporate logos are minimal in size and only repeated a few times on the signage.

Should the company be granted the necessary variance, Brandt says that will preclude Telus from building or installing any other signage including the pylon-style sign preferred by the city.

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