General Regulations.
A. Notwithstanding anything else in this Article or the City Code, the following restrictions shall govern all Signs displayed in the City:
1. Code Compliance. Signs may only be displayed in accordance with this Article.
2. Maintained. All Signs shall be of sound structural quality, be maintained in good repair and condition, have a clean and neat appearance and, as appropriate, abide by all Building, Electrical and other Codes.
3. Permitted Signs. The following Signs are permitted in all Zoning Districts:
a. Government Signs.
b. Traffic control devices provided such complies with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Comment: The Federal Highway Administration has established uniform standards for Signs that regulate traffic or that are erected and maintained within road rights-of-way or adjacent Property. These uniform standards are intended to be used by owners of private Property that is open to the public to reduce confusion and limit the risk of accident. While these regulations are content specific, they serve an extraordinarily important public function.
c. Any Sign necessary for public safety Erected by utility companies within their respective easements.
d. Holiday Displays provided that said display does not traverse any Street or create any traffic problem, congestion, or safety hazard.
4. Location. No Flag or Sign shall be permitted or displayed:
a. In the public Street or other City property, except as expressly provided for by this Article or other City ordinance.
b. So that its location might obstruct the view of or be confused with any Street markers, traffic Signs or signals, other regulatory devices or warnings, or any other Signs Erected by any governmental body or agency.
c. So that it is located within a sight triangle or interferes with the view reasonably necessary for motorists to proceed safely through Streets and Intersections, or to enter or exit from Streets.
5. Temporary Signs. Unless otherwise provided for specific uses, Temporary Signs:
a. Shall not exceed three (3) feet in height.
b. Shall not be placed on any utility pole, streetlight pole, tree, fence, or similar object.
c. Shall not exceed the applicable size limits allowed for the use type.
d. Shall be secured or mounted as to not allow any motion.
e. Shall be securely attached and flush at all points when attached to a Facade.
6. Permanent Sign Materials. All Permanent Signs shall be constructed of durable, outdoor, and weather-resistant materials and shall not be primarily constructed with impermanent materials such as paper, cloth, canvas, plastic, plastic sheet, vinyl, cardboard, fiberboard, plywood, or other like materials.
7. Wall Signs. Wall Signs shall be attached firmly, parallel, and adjacent to the Facade in which the Wall Sign is attached.
8. Original Art Displays. Original Art Displays are allowed provided that they meet the following requirements:
a. Located in public or semi-public spaces in any Zoning District.
b. Shall not extend more than six (6) inches from the Facade upon which it is painted or to which it is affixed.
c. Shall be no more than sixty-four (64) square feet in size per Lot or Premises.
9. No Permit Required. The following Signs meeting the requirements of this Article shall not require a Sign permit:
a. Flags.
b. Holiday Displays.
c. Interior Window/Door Signs.
d. Temporary Signs.
e. Original Art Displays.
f. Government Sign.
g. Public Interest Signs.
Computations.
A. The following principles shall control the computation of Sign Face and Sign height:
1. Computation Of Sign Face Of Individual Signs. The area of a Sign Face shall be computed by measuring the area of the smallest circle, square, rectangle, triangle, or combination thereof that will encompass the extreme limits of the writing, representation, emblem, or other display, together with any material or color forming an integral part of the background of the Sign or used to differentiate the Sign from the back drop or Sign Structure against which it is placed, but not including the Sign Structure or Facade that is clearly incidental to the display itself.
2. Computation Of Multi-Face Signs.
a. A Double-Faced Sign with two (2) Sign Faces shall be considered one (1) Sign. Provided, however, to the extent a Double-Faced Temporary Sign has two (2) Sign Faces that are not identical, each Sign Face shall be considered a separate Sign and the area shall be computed by adding together the area of each non-identical Sign Face.
b. The Sign area for a Sign with more than two (2) Sign Faces shall be computed by adding together the area of all Sign Faces on the Sign.
3. Computation Of Height. The height of a Sign shall be computed as the distance from the base of the Sign Structure at normal grade to the top of the highest attached component of the Sign. Sign height of a Wall Sign shall be computed as the distance from the base of the Sign to the top of the Sign. Normal grade shall be construed to be the lowest of: (a) existing grade prior to construction or (b) the newly established grade, after construction, exclusive of any filling, berming, mounding, or excavating solely for the purpose of locating the Sign. In cases in which normal grade cannot reasonably be determined, Sign height shall be computed on the assumption that the elevation of the normal grade at the base of the Sign is equal to the elevation of the nearest point of the crown of a Street or the grade of the land at the principal entrance to the Principal Structure on the zoned Lot, whichever is lower.