WINDSOR, N.S. — Windsor’s downtown brewery is about to become much more visible to visitors as they enter town limits.
Following a brief public hearing, Windsor town council unanimously approved amending the municipal planning strategy to allow for Schoolhouse Brewery to install a ground sign at 40 Water Street.
The process began in November 2017, when brewery owner Cameron Hartley made the initial application.
Town planner Jeremy Banks said that this was a relatively fast process during the public hearing.
Banks added that future signage applications in the downtown area would likely be handled through a development agreement process with council, which he estimated would take between three to four months.
He said that no other businesses have applied to council for additional signage yet.
During the public hearing, Adrienne Wood, co-chairwomen of the Windsor Business Enhancement Society, spoke in favour of the application. There were no written or oral presentations against the amendment.
The amendment was passed unanimously by council. Mayor Anna Allen said “Yay, it’s on its way,” following the vote, thanking staff for their work.
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Business owner happy
The owner of Schoolhouse Brewery said he was happy with the decision but added that he’s hoping that the sign bylaw will be amended more broadly so that other businesses won’t have to go through the same process to get signage.
“I would like to see what they’ve done for me to be carried on to businesses that are on the Windsor waterfront and do not have road frontage,” Hartley said. “It will make things a lot more efficient and welcoming for business development in that area.”
Hartley said that there should be some regulation, to ensure tasteful signage in the downtown, but added that more can be done to support businesses.
“It’s an inconvenience to say the least for other businesses wanting to put signs up,” he said.
“But allowing me to put a sign shows that they would likely extend that to other businesses,” he said.
“I think they should have enough confidence in their signage bylaw that they could open this up to any business that doesn’t have road frontage,” he added.
With the approval, Hartley said he’s hoping to install the sign in the spring. The sign will be on the corner of the parking lot at 40 Water St., with an arm that sticks out so traffic travelling down Water Street can see where the brewery is located.
The bylaw amendment still needs to be approved by the province before it can become law, which usually takes a couple of weeks, staff said.
