Peoria Standard

At its Dec. 20 meeting, the East Peoria City Council debated a special-use sign permit in the city.

Pleasant Valley Missionary Baptist Church has requested a special-use permit for a sign within the city for its food bank. The food bank is off the church's premises, however, it has permission from a property owner near the site of the food bank to put a sign up directing motorists.

Council was told the sign is needed because many people have said they are unable to find the food pantry. The pantry has averaged 191 families a month since it opened in 2009.

The zoning board gave permission for the special-use sign providing landscaping was added around the sign. The property owner though doesn't want additional landscaping. The church wants a waiver to put up the sign without the landscaping.

"What are our requirements? We have to be consistent because what we do for you and your church, we have to do for everybody else,"  Mayor John Kahl said. "So to me, if the council is going in the direction of waiving this requirement, then I'm just going to tell you, you're going to be held accountable moving forward to waive it for everyone else that comes before you.”

Council ultimately decided to amend the special-use permit and allow the church to put up a sign without any landscaping around it, although some commissioners were against making exceptions to the rules. The motion will lay on the table for at least a week for citizen discussion.

The council uploaded the livestream of its public meeting to the city’s Facebook page.

The council will meet again at 6 p.m. on Jan. 17 at the Civic Complex on 401 West Washington St.