County works on ideas for signs to direct tourists

By Linda Bell
Correspondent

Representatives of the Larimer County Engineering Department came a step closer in March to establishing a countywide system of sanctioned, tourist-oriented directional signs along county roads.

A public hearing on the sign proposal is set for April 16 at 6 p.m. in the courthouse hearing room. Following that, the department will draw up a final resolution for commissioner consideration in May. Passage will get the ball moving for new directional signage along County Road 74E (Red Feather Lakes Road), where late last year most off-premise signs were removed to comply with county code.

Martina Wilkinson, county traffic engineer, said another step on April 16 will be approval of the Colorado Department of Transportation's implementation of TODS (tourist-oriented directional signs) on state highways in the county.

While the county has no control over the CDOT design of its program, Wilkinson said, the county has used those guidelines as a template for its own plan and contacted the same supplier, Colorado Logos. If passed by county commissioners, it will be the first time a Colorado county has initiated a TODS program for county roads, she said.

"The goal of the county program is to be similar to the state one, but more flexible, to accommodate rural destinations and businesses," Wilkinson said.

Because it will be funded by the businesses that request signs, the program would be cost neutral to the county except for staff time, she explained.

The proposed signs would cost a business an estimated flat fee of $250 per year for a name-specific panel plus one trailblazer sign if needed, with a one-time $100 fee for a logo if so desired, she said. Trailblazer arrows mark the way at further intersections. Seasonal closure notices or more than one trailblazer sign would cost $100 and $120 per year, respectively. The engineering department is working with Colorado Logos on the proposal because the company has expertise in setting up and maintaining such signs in Colorado already.

Commissioner Glenn Gibson suggested sign companies within Larimer County could probably do the same work and suggested the county put the contract out to bid. Mark Peterson, county engineer, replied that might be a good idea in the future, perhaps when the state contract is up for renewal, but at this point it would considerably delay getting the program in place. Some areas of the county need signs before the summer tourist season, he added.

Wilkinson said the county signs don't need to be as large as the state signs because speed limits on county roads are much slower than on state highways, making signs easier to read. Signs could be generic or business specific, she added.

Other qualifying criteria are that the businesses be located outside a growth management area and Estes Park, they be open to the general public, they can prove that 50 percent of revenues come from patrons more than 25 miles distant, they are located within 10 miles of an eligible mainline county road and they stay open at least 20 hours per week seasonally or year-round.

Wilkinson showed examples of how four individual informational panels could fit on a single directional sign and there could be up to two signs at each approach of an intersection.

If commissioners approve the TODS program for county roads on April 16, Wilkinson said interested parties should contact her at 498-5731 or by e-mail at mwilkinson@larimer.org. Following the hearing, there will be additional information on the county web site, www.larimer.org.

Commissioner Karen Wagner said the regulated signs would have the advantage of being not only attractive but consistent, so tourists would get used to looking to them for directional guidance.

Red Feather Lakes businessman Dennis McMillan said he wonders what will happen to older and existing off-premises signs along the Red Feather Lakes Road - signs that may be grandfathered or that don't meet the specifications set out by the TOD signs. He noted if those signs stay up, and are free to maintain, the result could be two parallel sets of rules in operation.

County officials said they expect off-premises signs will be removed voluntarily once standard signage becomes available.