The Yucca Valley Planning Commission held a meeting last night to discuss an array of topics, with a focus on murals. Reporter Joshua King has the details…
After a review of Princeton Equine’s site plan, the Yucca Valley Planning Commission approved the timeline extension through October 13, 2021.
The Yucca Valley Planning Commission had a spirited discussion amongst the commissioners and with the public during its meeting last night about murals on buildings and regulations governing them. Current regulations state that ordinances concerning signs be “content neutral,” meaning that the commission does not influence the artistic direction of the signs but rather focuses on logistics such as sizing and placement. A commissioner voiced his concern that if the same regulations were applied to murals, they could become “distasteful to some,” and run the risk of introducing politicized or inflammatory artwork.
Residents and commissioners shared their opinions on the regulation of murals artistically, the desert/western theme ordinance, and how the legal language should define a mural. The owner of Old Town store The End, Kime Buzzeli, stated that her mural helps her business and its social media presence, and the same could be said for other small businesses.
Another topic of debate was what constitutes as “pop art” and what constitutes as advertisement, as the commission plans to define murals as art and not advertisements for products. The core example used in this discussion was the Maytag Man mural on Chet’s Appliances. Commissioners were hesitant to send the report on to the town council due to the absence of another commissioner, so they elected to receive and file the report. The item will be discussed further and sent to the Town Council for review in an upcoming meeting, granted all members of the commission are present.
Finally, the meeting concluded with the adoption of the five-year capital improvement program, a planning tool for the expenditure of resources for public infrastructure.
