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Show Mi WtS i thirl uvictubHi'1, N Landlords consider Billboard firms fear for lawsuits by Milt Pollczer Enterprise Staff Writer Owners of the Lincoln School property at 1241 So. State are seriously considering suing Salt Lake Citys four city commissioners and the planning director since denial of a petition to rezone their lot. Well go ahead and sue wherever there is a cause of action, said R. Wagner Jones, who, through his Autonomy, Inc., owns 50 percent of the property. Joseph W. Healy, through Darjo, Inc. (dba Heartland Realty), owns the rest. The commission refused to rezone the middle 220 feet of the property from R-- 6 to C-- 3 to allow commercial use. At present, the first 150 feet east of State Street is C-- the next 220 feet, R-and the balance, consisting of approximately 300 feet of land behind the school building, R-3, 6, 2. R-- 6 would allow only multiple or smaller dwellings R-- 2 is (up to six units). limited to duplexes or single family dwellings. Allegations of fraud Among possible suits Jones attorney is researching are allegations of fraud against planning and zoning director Vernon Jorgensen for lying to Jones about the time of a planning and zoning commission hearing that allegedly resulted in his petition for a zone change being denied before he had a chance to get there. Jones said Jorgensen also lied to the city commission about the planning and zoning commission's recommendations on the matter. Jorgensen called the first a bunch of noncharge sense. He admits making a mistake in reporting the planning and zoning decision to the city commission July 14, when the request was finally denied, but explained he had been upset because he had failed to honor a promise to Healy to submit a letter to the city commission detailing the zoning commission denial of the request made at an earlier meeting in May. That letter would have cleared the way for a formal hearing earlier. Jorgensen said he had not wTitten the letter because (See LAWSUITS, page 12) Although proposed restrictive billboard regulations for Salt Lake City would not eliminate existing signs or affect advertising beyond the city limits, outdoor advertising companies fear the regulations could eventually put them out of business. Salt Lake City is a sort of bellwether for all the others," Kirk Brimley, president of the Utah Business Advertising Association, told the Enterprise last week. Once the city enacted such an ordinance, he laments, the county and the rest of the state would follow before mittee study of their potential impact. Until it is completed Sept. I, local outdoor advertising companies have agreed to a moratorium on permit applications for signs that would violate t. v signs in areas grade. Limit si2e to 15 feet by 50 feet. (neighborhood business),-C-resiProhibit billboards within 330 feet into (strip zones, backing C-it dential areas), and 2 (otherstripof any city, stated or federal historic X cal site, hc zones). Prohibit signs within 100 feet of Require 400 foot spacing between v'v residential zone district or any, signs ' Limit maximum height to 43 feet; building used for residential or except for freeway signs which office purposes haying windows that could be 25 feet above the freeway, would be obstructed by the signs. X zoned off-prem- ise B-- 3 1 1 ,'. ' . the signs immediately without buying them first, neither could they be replaced when worn nor removed due to new construction. Hatch estimates 20 percent of Galaxys billboards are within the city limits and should the ordinance become effective, hell be out of business in five or six years. The amendments presented to the Salt Lake City commission last week by planning and zoning director Vernon Jorgensen included restrictions on sign height, size, and location. (See table.) But commissioners postponed making a decision on the amendments com pending an industry-governme- Prohibit v .. ' of the signs The proposed ordinance amendments would mean in Salt Lake City, at least that 90 to 95 percent of existing off premise" signs (those away from the business they promote) would become nonconforming, said Jeffrey Hatch of Galaxy Outdoor Advertising, Inc. And although the city couldnt legally remove x : . " v. A. - r Index Bank Tax break in news.... Pago 8 New business Page 10 Mrtg. rates Page 15 energy costs constitute an unusually large part of their cost of goods produced will get a tax break from the Salt Lake City commission. to ance commissioner According Commentary Page 26 Stock Quotes Page 28 store Companies whose fin- Jen- nings Phillips, Jr., manufacturers whose energy costs account for 75 percent or more of their production costs chart Salt Lake Citys transformation into a major retail metropolis in plans for major shopping centers downtown, marketing experts wonder where the new businesses are going to get their customers. John Brereton of the Bureau of Economic and Business Research says plans for more than a million square feet of additional retail space in the city may spell disaster for developers and small retail businesses there. The new centers may have to wait a long time before they are absorbed into the economy! Brereton says. The population of the city is shrinking. In 1970, federal census reported 175,885 people living in Salt Lake Citv; by 1975, the number had dropped to As developers growth? , s by Sheri Poe Enterprise Staff Writer the city support new retail '"' .. nt Can the proposals. The sign companies and the Board of Governors of the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce proposed both the studv and the moratorium. (See BILLBOARD, page 15) Proposed billboard amendments would: long. Wipe out 90 their lives 167,917. Brereton says the majority of overkill in retail construction will occur in downtown Salt Lake City, where just under a million square feet of retail space has been proposed in l, Crossroads developments by c Associates, Sid Horman and Housing Corp. Also, the city has speculated building an officcretail complex in the block north of the Building. To this and massive plans for shopping Todd-Lignel- Multi-Ethni- City-Coun- ty will be exempt from the citys four percent utility franchise tax on cnergv bills. Portland Cement the only business Co. is Phillips knew of that will be affected. The eight percent cost advantage that competitors in other parts of the state have would have put Portland out of business without the exemption, he said. centers in the county, Mel Ingersoll plans to add 300,000 square feet of retail space when he opens the Brewery Mall at 200 S. 1100 W. Trouble for Auerbachs The largest proposed retail center is Crossroads Associates 600,000 square foot shopping complex on Main Street across from the ZCMI Center which will deflect patrons from the southern end of town, the economist said. This could mean financial trouble for Auerbach's and other businesses beyond 200 South. Auerbach's has already begun combatting competition from ZCMI and northern shops by offering free bus service from So. Temple to its store at State Street and Broadway. New owner Alvin Richer hopes to lure potential ZCMI customers from the north side of town to Auerbachs cash registers. The bus is costing Auerbachs $85 daily and will continue to run every 15 minutes until the fall, when the department store will evaluate its success. "Shopping patterns indicate patrons won't walk to other stores when a mall offers everything!' Brereton says. The bus may solve this problem for Auerbach's, but not for other retailers in the area. (See GROWTH, page 16) |