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4- BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF NORTH OLMSTED MINUTES OF AUGUST 6, 2009 ROLL CALL Mrs. Diver called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm in Council Chambers. Present: Maureen Diver, Nancy Sergi, Laura Bellido, Jennifer Rudolph, Alfredo Lopez Staff: Planning Director Kimberly Wenger, Assistant Law Director Bryan O'Malley, Assistant Building Commissioner Dale Mitchell, Clerk of Commissions Donna Rote REVIEW AND CORRECTION OF MINUTES Ms. Rudolph moved, seconded by Mrs. Bellido, to approve the July 2, 2009 Board of Zoning Appeals minutes which were unanimously, approved 5-0. NON-RESIDENTIAL APPEALS AND REQUESTS CMS09-05 WEA Great Northern Mall; 4954 Great Northern Mall: Representatives sworn in: Evan Vlaeminck, Westfield Development Director; Chris Barnett, Westfield Senior Vice President; Kurt Reddick, Westfield Great Northern General Manager; Michael Platt, Westfield Regional Director of Design; Robert Beaugrand, Regional Vice President Atwell-Hicks; John Slagter, Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs; Annie Dorsey Westfield Great Northern Marketing Director Mr. Vlaeminck described proposed improvements to Westfield Great Northern Mall. The food court will be moved to the north side of the building and will include a new mall entrance. The south elevation will be redeveloped for new Retail A and Retail B and the east elevation will include a new mall entrance. Mr. Reddick reviewed that the proposed enhancements would improve the pedestrian flow through the mall and allows the mall to stay competitive in the current market. Mr. Platt briefly reviewed the design and layout of the proposed food court and said existing mezzanine tenants would be offered new locations. The site is 80 acres and the building is 1.2 million square feet with 135 different shops and five anchor stores; Retail A introduces a sixth anchor. The enhancement includes a sign package for Westfield, Retail A, B and C. Ms. Rudolph questioned why wall sign recognition was needed after all these years. Mr. Vlaeminck said through experience, research and owning malls in other locations Westfield found having Westfield wall signs provides customers the assurance that the tenants within the mall are those they have come to rely on in Westfield malls. The enhanced sign package will allow the mall the opportunity to achieve a reasonable return and remain competitive within the changing market. Due to the volume of retail signs within the mall and the distance from the right -of-way the variances requested are not substantial. Granting the sign package provides the mall the opportunity to grow and remain competitive without affecting governmental services. The character of the abutting neighbors will not be affected as the neighborhood is retail in nature. There are no safety issues created by the sign package nor would it prohibit or affect the ability of the safety forces in accessing in or around the mall.