Discussion of the U-Haul item at the Planning Commission meeting last night.

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• The McKinleyville U-Haul’s Request for 22 New Exterior Signs May Finally Be Decided Tonight

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Last night the Humboldt County Planning Commission, on a vote of 3 to 1, allowed the U-Haul mega-center in McKinleyville some of the controversial signage it’s been asking for, while at the same time scaling back other aspects of the proposed design.

In response to community input, the commission decided to deny several of the more decorative signs proposed at the U-Haul complex, which occupies both the old Ray’s Food Place and the old K-Mart in the Mill Creek Market complex at the south end of Central Avenue.

In addition, the commission asked staff to work with the business to reduce the size of some of the signs designed to provide directions to patrons of the U-Haul.

Planner Alice Vasterling, who opened the meeting with a short staff report, told commissioners that the planning department had received 19 letters or emails since the commission last talked about the matter in early September. Two of the letters were in favor of the signage and 17 were opposed, she said.

People who oppose the proposed signage — which would have gone beyond what is allowed by regular standards, thus requiring special approval — believe that it would impart an “industrial” feel to the town, and is out of scale with the surrounding neighborhood.

“McKinleyville needs businesses to serve the local community and create meaningful jobs for the community,” said McKinleyville resident Charles Perkins at last night’s meeting. “A self-service storage facility will not create significant number of jobs and more signs is not going to change that fact.”

Dale Huber, manager of the U-Haul location, made a brief case for the application as it stood, and particularly for the orange signs depicting roll-up gates, which some commissioners had questions about.

“Only about like six are where they have letters and stuff,” he said. “It’s our address that we’re trying to get on there. And the storage doors, we wouldn’t even, if we painted on them, we wouldn’t even need a permit. All I’m just trying to say is … we definitely need them.”

After a bit of discussion, the commission voted to approve U-Haul’s application, but only on condition that the orange roll-up gate signs be denied, and that some directional signs — such as the “Drive-In Storage” sign depicted above — be reduced in scale.

Commissioner Thomas Mulder — who had been supportive of U-Haul’s plans in past meetings, was the lone “no” vote on this compromise solution. After the vote was taken, he made sure that U-Haul knew that it had 10 days to appeal the decision to the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors.