The following principals shall control the computation of sign area and sign height:
(a) Determining Sign Area or Dimension. The area of a sign shall be determined using the following calculation methods.
(1) For a sign that is framed, outlined, painted or otherwise prepared and designed to include a background for a sign display, the sign area or dimensions shall include the entire portion within such background or frame.
(2) For a sign comprised of individual letters, figures, emblems, logos or elements on a wall, or an irregular shaped freestanding sign, the area of the sign shall encompass the smallest regular, or a combination of regular geometric shapes that form or approximate the perimeter of all the elements in the display. When separate elements are organized to form a single sign, but the elements are separated by open space, the area shall be calculated by determining one or more geometric forms that comprise the entire display area, including the space between the elements.
(3) The sign area shall include the frame but shall not include the pole or other structural support unless such structural support is illuminated or otherwise so designated to constitute a display device.
(4) The area for a sign with more than one face shall be computed by adding together the area of all sign faces visible from any one point. When two identical sign faces are placed back to back so that both faces cannot be viewed from any point at the same time, and when such sign faces are part of the same sign structure and are not more than 42 inches apart, the sign area shall be computed by the measurement of one of the faces.
(b) Determining Sign Height. The height of a freestanding sign shall be computed as the distance from the base of the sign at normal grade to the top of the highest attached component of the sign.
(1) Normal grade shall be construed to be the lower 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.
(2) In cases in which the 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 public street or the grade of the land at the principal entrance to the principal structure on the lot, whichever is higher.
(c) Determining Building Frontage and Building Unit. The building wall that faces the principal street or building wall that contains the main entrance to the uses therein shall be considered the building frontage.
(1) The building frontage shall be measured along the length of the front wall between the exterior faces of the exterior side walls.
(2) In the case of an irregular wall surface, a straight line extended between the exterior faces of the exterior side walls shall be used to measure the length.
(3) For lots fronting on two or more streets, or where the building has its main entrance on a wall other than the wall that faces the street, the property owner shall determine which wall shall be the primary building frontage and which wall(s) shall be the secondary building frontage. Only one outside wall of any business shall be considered its primary frontage.
(4) For multi-tenant buildings, the portion of a building that is owned or leased by a single tenant shall be considered a building unit. The building frontage for a building unit shall be measured from the centerline of the party walls defining the building unit.
(d) Determining Window Area. The window area of a building shall be the total glass area of windows on the first floor of the wall of the building frontage, provided that for the purpose of these regulations, the height of windows on the first floor shall be that portion of window (s) within 15 feet of grade.
(e) Architectural Features. Architectural features that are part of the building or part of a freestanding structure are not considered signs and are thus exempt from these regulations. An architectural feature is any construction attending to, but not an integral part of the sign, and which may consist of landscape or building or structural forms complementing the site in general.