City Council to Overhaul Rules Restricting Signs

Eager to tighten loopholes in a much-debated ordinance, the Thousand Oaks City Council has agreed to overhaul the city code restricting size, color and placement of signs.

Recent public hearings about new sign proposals at The Oaks mall and PTS Home & Office Furniture disturbed several members of the council, who felt the sign ordinance was too vague to provide policy guidance. Both the shopping center and the furniture store, which sits on a frontage road overlooking the Ventura Freeway, received permission to increase the visibility of their signs after intense debate.

Although the business community has repeatedly complained that the sign ordinance is too restrictive, Mayor Judy Lazar said she would like the council to set forth regulations in even more detail.

“It’s unlikely we’ll ever have an ordinance that’s absolutely, 100% foolproof, but I’d like to get as close as possible,” Lazar said.

The council’s review, slated for early fall, will focus on three issues: permitting directory boards at the entrances to shopping plazas, limiting letter size on buildings facing the freeway and creating a uniform standard for Auto Mall signs.

In addition, the council will attempt to clarify general city standards, which have drawn criticism for being old-fashioned and outdated.

Councilwoman Elois Zeanah, long an advocate of stricter regulation, said she welcomed the proposed revisions.

“Any applicant that does not meet our standards would automatically be denied,” she said.