All permanent signs shall comply with the following design standards:
(a) Overall Designs of Signs.
(i) Elements of the sign shall create an overall cohesive design, reflect simplicity, avoid visual clutter and insure legibility.
(ii) The message shall be easy to read from the intended vantage point, public street, public sidewalk, or public parking lot but not be out of scale with the building, site, or streetscape. The ratio of the message to the background shall permit easy recognition of the message. Lettering size shall be the size needed to ensure the sign can be seen from the intended distance. For awning signs, the sign graphics shall be located on a portion of the awning fabric that hangs perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the ground, below the awning’s support structures.
(b) Relationship to Building Architecture.
(i) Variety in the design of signs among different storefronts shall be encouraged when the architecture of the building(s) suggests variety.
(ii) Storefront with common architectural elements shall have signs that share continuity of design so that the placement and design of individual signs contribute to the cohesive appearance created by the common architectural elements. For example, a series of storefronts that, because of their architecture and design, have the appearance of a single building shall have occupant signs that share common elements.
(c) Placement of Signs on Buildings. All signs shall be reviewed for their impact on the overall building façade. The sign and associated lighting fixtures shall compliment the architecture of the building on which it is placed and shall be placed in an appropriate location on the building façade.
(d) Ground Signs. Ground signs shall be spaced or combined along the street frontage in a manner that ensures that one ground sign does not obscure the view of another ground sign.