41 Maroondah Highway, Croydon VIC 3136

Please make this subject to being switched off at close of business. It is nice to return to a calm, non illuminated, charged environment when the day is done.

Additionally, as a night shift worker, driving to and from work in the very early hours of the morning, it’s exhausting to be constantly blinded by fluorescent signs when the business doesn’t need to be displaying them.

For the environment sake too, we don’t need to be burning coal to light signs 24/7.

Please let’s have a mandatory off button, that is if these lights are absolutely essential in the first place…?

The display of signage illuminated at night is a matter that needs to be carefully considered regarding its necessity, response to context, heritage overlay, the Decision Guidelines, and the Clause 65 VPP matters.

I consider that the matters regarding needing a permit, and impacts upon amenity apply whether the signage is erected on a street or boundary wall, roof, inside a glazed area and that the defining element of it impacting upon community amenity and character is that if it is visible from the public realm, a road, and/or any surrounding site.

An illuminated sign may be erected very much within the site boundary but still have unacceptable impacts beyond the boundary because its actual effect as well as intent, is to be visible beyond the site and especially to the public realm and also any road.

The subject site is zoned for residential uses and the operation of illuminated signage is inappropriate at any time in my view.

Insufficient information is provided that if the business is a home based business, that it is being conducted by the businesses direct or ultimate benefical owner at a place that is also their principal residence. That the direct or beneficial owner "owns" a residential site is not in my view an exemption from the requirements of planning approval for matters pertinent to home-based businesses as that exemption is intended for sites which are the principal residence of the direct or ultimate beneficial owner.

The display of illuminated signage at this site at night, fails to respond appropriately to the context, heritage overlay and Clause 65 VPP.

The display of illuminated signage at this site at night, will dominate the surroundings and respond negatively to both the context and emerging character.

There is a real risk that illuminated signage may dominate the surroundings given the context of the surrounding uses. An excessive amount of illuminated signage may create excessive visual clutter impacting pedestrian and road user safety, and wayfinding by pedestrians particularly impaired persons.

The signage will be visible from the road reserve and motor vehicles travelling upon the Maroondah Highway

Maroondah Highway and its road reserve is zoned Transport Road Zone 2, and the responsible authority is the Head, Transport for Victoria, indeed their concurrence must be sought and obtained.

Considered optimistically and generously, business identification signage should only be allowed at this site when it pertinent to a genuine home-based business at the business owners principal residence, illuminated at night during the operating or trading hours of the business only if the nature of the enterprise is that customers other than by appointment, will regularly attend the premises at night, and not at any other times between sunset and sunrise.

I urge the responsible authority to refuse the application for a permit unless these conditions if imposed are acceptable to the applicant:

1 That the signage use be for business identification purposes only and not the promotion nor display of any other advertisement, images, trademarks, branding or insignia;
2 That the total area of any illuminated sign is to not exceed 0.5 square metre;
3 That the signage be only illuminated between the hours of 7:00 am and 7:00 pm on Monday through Friday inclusive, except at any times that the business premises is open for trade outside of these hours and then only during those times;
4 That the concurrence of the Head, Transport for Victoria and any other referral authority be sought and obtained;
5 That the signage not be erected upon the roof or at a height of more than 1.5m above natural ground level, if it is to be illuminated at any time between 7:00 pm and 7:00 am.