Why is a seemingly innocuous change to a zoning ordinance such a concern?
This amendment opens the door to branded advertising at the roofline of buildings, and to a proliferation of large signs – including illuminated, multi-colored signs – that would fundamentally alter the appearance and character of our community. In addition, the amendment represents a huge uncompensated giveaway to big landlords and it puts small- and medium-sized local businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

What changes are included in this amendment?
The proposal makes a number of changes to Section 7 of the Cambridge Zoning Ordinance, which regulates signs. Two of the new provisions, “Building Identification Signs” and the “General Waiver”, have a profound impact on what types of signs are permitted and how signs are approved.

What is a Building Identification Sign?
Prior to the passage of this amendment, the Zoning Ordinance permitted three types of signs in business, office and industrial districts: free standing signs, which can be up to 30 square feet and 15 feet above the ground; projecting signs, which can be up to 13 square feet and 20 feet above the ground; and wall signs, which can be up to 60 square feet (or less for smaller buildings) and up to 20 feet above the ground.

The amendment adds Building Identification Signs, which can be bigger (up to 90 square feet for tall buildings) and higher (at the roof line) than previously permitted wall signs. These provisions are limited to signs that identify tenants in buildings of 100,000 square feet or more.  Further, the provisions are limited to buildings located in certain areas of the city – primarily East Cambridge and North Cambridge, and along major stretches of the Charles riverfront.

Why is sign height important?
Currently, the Zoning Ordinance specifies that the top of a wall sign may not be more than 20 feet above grade level.

For a Building Identification Sign, there is virtually no height limit: a sign can be located at any height below the roof of the building or on a mechanical equipment screening wall above the roof of a building.

The effect of this change is to alter the purpose and nature of permitted signs. Signs close to the street help pedestrians and vehicles locate buildings and businesses. A sign 50 or 100 or 200 feet above the street serves a very different purpose: it is an advertising device intended to proclaim the presence of a large corporation.

What is the General Waiver provision?
This part of the amendment provides a new – and much more permissive – mechanism for circumventing the limits on free standing, projecting, and wall signs. Suppose, for instance, that a building owner or tenant seeks to put up a projecting sign with neon illumination. Because the Zoning Ordinance does not automatically permit that sort of “internal illumination”, permission of the city is required. In the past, this permission would take the form of a zoning variance – something that the law intentionally makes hard to obtain and subject to a rigorous review process. In all likelihood, such a zoning variance request would be denied. Under the newly-enacted General Waiver provision, the situation is very different: the Planning Board can “waive” these restrictions and grant a special permit for a neon sign at its discretion.

The change is even more dramatic for size limitations. By way of a special permit, the Planning Board can authorize a single sign that is as large as the total amount of signage permitted on the building lot. An example will help make this clear. Suppose a 100’ x 200’ building is located on a corner lot. Under the Zoning Ordinance, such a building has 300 feet of “sign frontage” and can have a total of 450 square feet of free standing, projecting and wall signs on its lot. Under the General Waiver provision, all of this allotment could be used for one huge sign. The Planning Board could, at its discretion, authorize a single 300 square-foot wall sign – five times bigger than the previous limit – or a single 450-square- foot free standing sign.

What is the difference between a zoning variance and a special permit?
Under state law, a property owner can seek permission to exceed a zoning limitation by requesting a variance. The law sets a high bar for obtaining a variance, reflecting the fact that zoning rules reflect agreed-upon community standards that should be set aside only in cases of a genuine, special kind of hardship. These principles are echoed in the Cambridge Zoning Ordinance.

In some cases, the Zoning Ordinance enables a property owner to escape the provisions of one or more zoning rules by obtaining a special permit. In contrast to the specific criteria that are weighed in considering a variance, special permits are issued at the discretion of the special permit granting authority. (Under the recently passed amendment, that is the Planning Board.) Cambridge and other cities and towns traditionally have been cautious about where and how the special permit process can be used.

This amendment gives the Planning Board broad discretionary powers to allow sign illumination, height, size and number limitations and restrictions to be exceeded or waived, with only the most subjective of standards to guide the Board in determining whether a special permit should be granted or what sizes of signs to permit.