CCEDC searches for sign location Posted On: Tuesday, Oct. 27 2009 04:27 AM By Alicia Lacy
Killeen Daily Herald

COPPERAS COVE – The money has been approved, the sign has been created, but the location is still unclear.

The 10-by-20 digital LED sign that was planned to be erected on Fort Hood property on the north side of U.S. Highway 190 near the east entrance of Copperas Cove earlier this year has yet to find a permanent home.

Though the sign would have been located on Fort Hood property, the Copperas Cove Economic Development Corp., still had to receive approval from the Texas Department of Transportation for the permit for the sign. The permit was denied last week.

According to the CCEDC, the sign was not approved by TxDOT because a digital sign could not be "located outside of an incorporated city limits."

Dan Yancey, the CCEDC board of directors' chairman, updated the City Council about the sign at Monday's meeting. He said the CCEDC has three sites it's working on for placement of the digital sign: two primary locations and one alternate.

Yancey said one location the CCEDC is working on is a location near the Arby's that is owned by the Copperas Cove Industrial Foundation, which will only require rezoning for that particular tract of land.

The large $238,000 sign was part of an agreement with Cinergy Cinemas so the entertainment center would have exposure from the highway.

Half of the sign would be reserved for advertising for the theater and the other portions used for the promotion of city and community events, Amber Alerts and weather conditions or alerts with some advertising space.

In other business, after some discussion, the council decided to reject the $400,000 grant that was awarded by Texas Parks and Wildlife last January for a multi-purpose recreation center.

The project was contingent on voter approval during a bond election last November for $8.6 million to fund the project.

The proposition was narrowly defeated by the voters and left the city back at square one.

After correspondence between TPWD and the city, the council was given three options: proceed with the original project, reduce the scope of the original project, or decline the grant and return the money to TPWD.

Because the council made the decision to return the grant award, the city will be ineligible for any TWPD grants for two years, City Manager Andrea Gardner said.