(a) Signs Requiring a Permit. The following signs shall require a permit prior to the erection or alteration of the sign.
(1) The Zoning Administrator shall review and act on sign applications for the following signs according to the design and construction criteria set forth in Section 1173.04 and the review procedures for development plan review set forth in Chapter 1181. However, the Zoning Administrator may forward such application to the Planning Commission for their review and comment.
A. Business identification signs;
B. Institution identification signs;
C. Residential development identification signs;
D. Directional signs;
E. Temporary signs for uses other than single family and two-family dwellings (except for temporary window signs);
F. Instructional signs.
(b) Signs Not Requiring Permit. The erection of the following signs shall not require a permit provided that all applicable regulations of this Chapter are complied with:
(1) Building markers;
(2) Temporary signs for single-family and two-family dwellings;
(3) Nameplates;
(4) Temporary window signs;
(c) Exempt Signs. The following signs shall be exempt from regulation under the Planning and Zoning Code:
(1) Any public notice or warning required by a valid and applicable federal, state or local law, regulation or Planning and Zoning Code.
(2) Any sign inside a building, not attached to a window or door that is not legible from a distance of more than three feet beyond the building in which such sign is located.
(3) Works of art that do not include a commercial message.
(4) Religious and other holiday lights and decorations containing no commercial message when displayed during the appropriate time of the year.
(5) Flags of the United States, the state, foreign nations having diplomatic relations with the United States, and any other flag adopted or sanctioned by an elected legislative body of competent jurisdiction. These flags must be flown in accordance with protocol established by the Congress of the United States for the Stars and Stripes. Any flag not meeting these conditions shall be considered a sign and shall be subject to regulations as such.
(6) 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.
(d) Prohibited Signs. All signs not expressly permitted in this Chapter or exempt from regulation pursuant to subsection (c) above shall be prohibited in the City. Such signs include but are not limited to the following:
(1) Signs containing information or advertising for any product not sold or produced on the premises or for any use that does not occur on the premises.
(2) Animated, flasher, blinker, racer type, intermittent, rotating, moving or revolving signs, whirligig devices, inflatable signs and tethered balloons, pennants, ribbons, streamers, spinners, exposed light bulbs, and strings of lights not permanently mounted to a rigid background, except those exempt under the previous Section, and other similar types of attention-getting devices;
(3) Signs on temporarily placed vehicles;
(4) Signs containing any words or symbols that would cause confusion because of their resemblance to highway traffic control or direction signals.
(5) Merchandise, equipment, products, vehicles or other items not themselves for sale and placed for attention getting, identification or advertising purposes.
(6) Signs located in the public right-of-way or on utility poles, except as specifically permitted in Section 1173.06(e)(4) for the core area of the C-3 District.
(7) Roof signs shall be prohibited: No sign shall be located on the roof of any building.
(e) Sign Concept Plan. For multi-tenant buildings and development projects with multiple buildings in the C-1, C-2, M-U, I-1 or I-2 Districts, the Planning Commission may approve basic sign parameters that set forth the location, size and style of each tenant sign. Such sign parameters may be established when the Planning Commission reviews development plans for new buildings or at the time a specific sign application is made for an identification sign for an existing building. Whenever the Planning Commission has approved such sign parameters, the Zoning Administrator shall be authorized to review and approve any subsequent sign application submitted for a tenant of the development or building that complies with such sign parameters.
(f) Application Requirements. An application for a sign permit shall be made to the Zoning Administrator on the form provided. The application shall include one (1) copy depicting the actual colors of the building and sign, either drawing or photo, at eight and one half by eleven (8 ½ x 11") size and suitable for reproduction. The application shall present the sign in a manner which best illustrates how the sign shall be experienced by the public after it is erected on the site. Specifically, the application shall include:
(1) A complete site plan or photograph showing the location of the sign and its relationship to the building, the building setbacks and lot width, the locations and square footage areas of all existing signs on site, the adjacent parcels and parking lots, drives and sidewalks;
(2) Detailed drawings showing the design of the sign, including size, content, style of lettering, logo and other graphic features, colors of the applied lettering and background, materials of the sign and the frame or structure, and approximate weight of the sign; and
(3) Construction, erection or fastening details, including wattage of electric lamps or illuminating tubes, if applicable.
(4) A permit fee for each sign application, as established by City Council.
(5) A Completed Sign Permit Application. When any person other than the owner of the property submits a sign application, the owner of the property or a designated agent for the owner shall also sign such application.
(Ord. 62-2023. Passed 1-16-24.)