Board of Building Standards/Architectural Board of Review/Sign Review Board

Step 1: Prepare

In preparing your proposal, it is important to understand existing City guidelines (front porch, commercial districts, outdoor dining, etc.) and for sign proposals – what is permitted and not permitted under the City sign regulations (Chapter 1329).

As you prepare your proposal, click here to view the meeting calendar and anticipate the best month to submit your application once you have all the required documents to support review.

Architectural Review Proposals (New Construction/Renovation) should include the following:

• A Scaled Site Plan that details elements of the proposal and depicts adjacent properties/uses.
• Photos of Existing Conditions that documents the current state of the property/project area.
• Design documents including scaled elevations, sections, and perspectives of proposal.
• Intended Materials including example photos and/or material manufacturer’s cut sheets.

Sign Proposals should include the following:

• Scaled Site Plan that details elements of the proposal and depicts adjacent properties/uses.
• Photos of Existing Conditions that documents the current state of the property/project area.
• Design documents including dimensions of all proposed sign elements and building elevations that show the exact placement of each sign.
• Intended materials for each sign element including examples photos and/or material manufacturer’s cut sheets.
• Information on sign illumination (if proposed)

Step 2: Apply

Complete your application for review using our CitizenServe portal. All applications are submitted online.

Once in CitizenServe, click on the “apply to Architectural Board of Review” and complete the online application which includes attaching your supporting files (site plan, photos, design documents, and intended materials). If this is your first time using the portal, you’ll need to quickly register first.

Proposal Name and Address

Once you are on the application, provide a brief description/name for the proposal and the property address. Of note, property addresses within CitizenServe are those associated with the County parcel/property records. Sometimes, in order to enter an address for a storefront or other location that has multiple addresses within a single building, the applicant will need to use the County property website to locate the primary address associated with their building’s parcel.

Proposal Type

Once the address is entered, the applicant should be able to choose which category their application falls under:

• Commercial – Building
• Commercial – Sign
• Residential

For commercial building applications that also include signage, the applicant will need to submit two separate applications (one for ABR covering the building improvements and one for Sign Review).

To ensure your application is complete, please upload all required elements for the proposal before submitting the application.

Step 3: Present and Discuss

Once your application has been submitted, you will receive an email with information on the meeting dates/times and recommendations (if any) to help ensure your proposal is appropriately prepared for Board review.

Pre-Review Meeting (Not Required to Attend)

The Board conducts a pre-review meeting on the first Thursday of each month. Not every applicant is required to attend the pre-review meeting, which is typically reserved for more complex or larger scale/scope proposals.

Formal Review Meeting (Applicant Must Attend)

The formal review meeting is held the second Thursday of each month. Each applicant must plan on attending this meeting in person for the proposal to be heard/discussed.

For new construction and proposals of larger scale/scope, it may take more than one meeting for the Board to fully consider the proposal. Given their consideration of architectural principles and City guidelines/standards – the adjacent and neighboring buildings provide important context for applicants to understand and reference as part of their proposal (for the purpose of achieving harmonious and integrated development).

Applicants may be required to update and submit new plans. This enables a more efficient approval process and transition of the approved plan to the Building Department’s plan review/permitting process.

Step 4: Building Plan Review and Permit Acquisition

Once approval is obtained from the ABR/Sign Review Board, applicants can then complete the building code plan review and obtain construction and/or installation permits from the Department of Building and Housing.

If the proposal still requires a conditional use or variance approval, that also must be obtained before permits will be issued.