Schaumburg relaxes rules for electronic message signs
Schaumburg's oldest house of worship might also be the first nongovernmental entity in the village allowed an electronic message sign.
At least that was the hope when the 176-year-old St. Peter Lutheran Church inquired about possible changes to a pair of prohibitions preventing it.
The first blocked any nongovernment agency from using potentially distracting signs, while the second pertained to the Olde Schaumburg Centre District that emphasized the preservation of historic architecture around the intersection of Schaumburg and Roselle roads.
Those prohibitions were struck down by the village board last week, clearing the way for noncommercial organizations to install electronic message signs. The ban remains in effect for commercial enterprises.
Under the change, electronic signs must be at least 850 feet apart and change their text no faster than every 10 seconds. The message cannot not flash or scroll and cannot be displayed from 10 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.
The changes come three months after the death of St. Peter Lutheran Church's director of operations, Mark Flasch, who initiated the idea.
Senior Pastor Jerry Hays on Wednesday recalled the commitment the 63-year-old Flasch made to getting the church an electronic message sign before he retired.
Though Flasch would have known how to proceed with the new permission from the village, others are now picking up where he left off, Hays said.
"Our plan is to get one in Mark Flasch's memory," he added. "My next step is to reach out to the village to find out where they got theirs."
Those eligible to pursue such signs include civic, educational and cultural institutions with stand-alone buildings and an existing right to a ground sign. Along with churches, private schools and civic organizations like the Trickster Cultural Center in Town Square and military veteran posts are eligible.
The electronic message portion of their signs can be no more than 30 square feet per side as well as no more than 30% of the sign's total surface area.