DRC 02-15-07
Design Review Committee
February 15,2007
Cupertino, CA 95014
(408) 777-3308
APPROVED MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE DESIGN REVIEW
COMMITTEE HELD ON February 15, 2007
ROLL CALL
Committee Members present:
Cary Chien, Chairperson
Lisa Giefer, Commissioner
Committee Members absent:
Gilbert Wong, Commissioner
Staff present:
Colin Jung
Staff absent:
none
APPROV AL OF MINUTES:
February 1, 2007
Minutes of the February 1, 2007 Design Review Committee meeting were approved by
Chairperson Chien at the meeting. Commissioner Wong has not yet approved these minutes.
WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS:
None
POSTPONEMENTSjREMOV AL FROM CALENDAR:
None
ORAL COMMUNICATION:
None
CONSENT CALENDAR:
None
PUBLIC HEARING:
1.
Application:
Applicant:
Location:
EXC-2007-01
Jonathan Hobbs (Square Peg Design for Symantec)
10200 S. De Anza Blvd.
Sign Exception to exceed the allowed height for a wall sign
Design Review Committee decision final unless appealed
Staff member Jung explained that staff prefers the interpretation using De Anza Boulevard to
determine the sign height which allows a sign height of 48" instead of 24". The company name
(Symantec) portion of the sign is within the sign height requirements, however, company's logo
is larger. It is the logo portion of the sign that they are requesting the exception for. The
applicant, Jonathan Hobbs, stated that to reduce the light impact of nearby neighbors, the
illumination of the sign has been addressed through halo lighting and a phase illumination. He
2 Design Review Committee
February 15,2007
stated that the sign is the front door of Symantec. They feel that the building overall has very
little signage, so this sign improves their corporate presence in the area. Staff member Jung
noted the other signs in Cupertino that also use halo illumination. Commissioner Giefer asked
about the height of the building and what type of illumination the sign used. The applicant
stated that the building was 55' high and that the sign will use LED and neon lighting.
Chairperson Chien asked about sign maintenance. Chairperson Chien asked for the actual
number of signs Symantec currently has. Staff member Jung stated that the number is within
current guidelines. A resident stated that she is interested in maintaining classic styling sign
design in Cupertino and likes the Symantec sign because it is elegant. She appreciated that the
applicant brought an illumination demonstration to the meeting. Commissioner Giefer agreed
that the De Anza Boulevard setback interpretation would be appropriate for the sign placement,
but she did not like the large size of the logo. She was comfortable with the size of the letters.
She felt that the logo size was too large and the colors were too much of a contrast for the
building and inconsistent with the sign ordinance. She would like to see the logo reduced to 5'
rather than the proposed 6'. She suggested that Symantec could keep the letters at the presented
size if they wanted to reduce the size of the logo. Jennifer Otto, Senior Brand Manager for
Symantec, responded by stating that Symantec maintains consistent proportioning with all of its
company signage in all different media formats. The proposed sign design is sized
proportionally along their corporate guidelines to maintain ratio consistency. Chairperson
Chien concurred with the 48" height interpretation ruling, however, he felt that the sign is fine
as it is proposed. He does not feel that the sign is detrimental to public safety, welfare or health
and with that, supports the application. Staff member Jung explained that since the
Commissioners are divided on their vote, the application would fail and will be considered
denied. The applicant will then have to appeal the decision to the Planning Commission for
another hearing. The applicant is willing to look at a redesign to see if they can come to a
compromise between the Committee recommendations and their corporate brand requirements.
MOTION: Commissioner Giefer moved to continue EXC-2007-01 to the next Design
Review Committee meeting, scheduled for March 1, 2007
SECOND: Chairperson Chien
ABSENT: none
ABSTAIN: none
VOTE: 1-1
OLD BUSINESS:
None
NEW BUSINESS:
None
Respectfully submitted:
~ ghb<~
Beth Ebben
Administrative Clerk
g:planning/DRC CommitteejMinutes021507