Community identity chosen over neighborhood names in Afton

Talk about it

Afton has no room for development signs, according to the city’s Planning Commission.

Afton Planning Commission discussed the possibility of allowing monument signs within the city at its Feb. 6 meeting.

The topic of monument signs was raised last month by Afton City Council when it was learned that the Cedar Bluff Homestead had erected a monument sign depicting the development’s name.

Afton’s ordinances don’t allow for monument signs.

However, several Afton City Council members requested Planning Commission review the ordinances to see if monument signs are something the city wants to permit.

Afton City Council chose not to enforce its ordinances in relation to the Cedar Bluff sign until Planning Commission reached a decision.

No ‘sub-communities’

Afton currently has several subdivisions with monument signs; however those signs were erected prior to the ordinance’s development.

“I think we want to prohibit signage so not look like a Ring 1 suburb,” Commissioner Tom Nolz said. “We do not want to have little sub-communities in the city.”

Several other Planning Commissioners agreed with Nolz that Afton is not the place for monument signs establishing different communities.

“With those sub-communities, when people are asked where they live, they won’t say Afton,” Commissioner Dick Bend said. “We want Afton to have a consistent public face – we don’t want this to be a fractured community.”

Planning Commission will recommend to Afton City Council that no changes to the ordinance be made and that the city should require Cedar Bluff to remove its monument sign as it is in violation of the ordinance.

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