(a) A permit shall be secured for the establishment, major alteration or moving of any sign (except real estate signs) one and one-half square feet or more in area.
(b) No sign established before the effective date of this Zoning Code shall be, except when ordered by an authorized public officer as a safety measure, altered in any major respect or moved, unless it is made to conform to this Zoning Code.
(c) In any district, signs used to indicate the location or direction of a real estate development, limited to a maximum of 50 square feet in area, and not more than one such sign on each 500 feet of street frontage, may be erected for a period of six months upon the approval of the Building Code Official.
(d) Temporary signs of mechanics, painters and other artisans, not exceeding 12 square feet in area, may be erected and maintained during the period such persons are performing work on the premises on which such signs are erected, but shall be removed promptly upon completion of the work.
(e) Where a sign is permitted by any provision of this subchapter, such provision shall be construed to permit a double-face sign. Each face of a double-face sign may equal the maximum size for the particular type of sign permitted in this subchapter.
(f) No sign in an S, R, or H District shall be on the roof of a building, and no sign attached to the wall of a building shall extend above the roofline or project horizontally more than 12 inches from the building wall.
(g) The City Manager may authorize reasonable signs to be erected on public streets to aid motorists and pedestrians in locating such facilities as hospitals, schools, libraries, stadiums, information centers, and other public facilities. (Ord. 4807. Passed 7-22-98)
(h) Abandoned Signs. If a conforming use has been discontinued for a total of 12 months, then all signs that are related to that use-as well as any structures that support these signs-shall be known as "abandoned signs." Likewise, if a nonconforming use has been abandoned as described then all signs that are related to that use, as well as any structures that support these signs, shall be known as "abandoned signs." All abandoned signs shall be removed at the expense of the owner. If such a sign is not removed, the Building Code Official shall enforce the requirements of this section via the procedure given.
(i) Signs That are Exempt from the Requirements of this Subchapter. The following kinds of signs are exempt from the requirements of this subchapter:
(1) Any public notice or warning required by a valid and applicable federal, state, or local law, regulation, or ordinance;
(2) Any sign that is inside a building, not attached to a window or door, or not legible from a distance of more than three feet beyond the lot line of the involved lot or parcel;
(3) Works of art that do not include a commercial message;
(4) Signs on the scoreboard or outfield fence of an athletic field, within the structure;
(5) Holiday lights and decorations with no commercial message;
(6) Traffic control signs on private property such as "STOP," "YIELD," and similar signs, the face of which meet the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation standards and which contain no commercial message of any sort;
(7) Project identification signs are exempted from the requirements of this subchapter for the duration of the work for which permits have been issued if they comply with the following:
A. The sign shall not exceed four feet by eight feet in size.
B. The sign shall be secured so that it is not a hazard.
C. There shall be one such sign per project (any subsequent project signs must comply with all provisions of this subchapter).
(j) Prohibited Signs. All signs that are not expressly permitted under this chapter or exempted from its regulations by subsection (i) above, are prohibited by the City. Such signs include but are not limited to; electronic message display boards, beacons, pennants, strings of lights that are not permanently mounted to a rigid background, inflatable signs, and tethered balloons, and sexually suggestive signs containing advertisements. Merchandise displays, signs, or any other exhibit depicting adult entertainment activities or sexually oriented businesses placed within the interior of buildings or premises shall be arranged and screened to prevent public viewing from outside such buildings or premises. No sexually suggestive signs shall contain photographs, silhouettes, drawings or pictorial representations of any kind.
(k) Temporary Signs. Product signs of a temporary or portable nature shall only be permitted in a Commercial, Hospital, or Manufacturing District upon the granting of a permit. Such signs are allowed for a maximum of 30 consecutive days in any calendar year and are not to exceed 50 square feet in size.
(l) Perpendicular Signage. Signs which are installed perpendicular to the facade of a building which are an integral part of the architectural design of the building. The signs may project over and into public ways though must be erected as secured in such a manner as to preclude their becoming a safety hazard to the public.
(1) Minimum clearance for projecting signs (ground to bottom of sign) shall be seven feet;
(2) The standard maximum area for projecting signs shall take any shape within a 864 square-inch or a three-foot by two-foot area;
(3) The maximum sign area shall not include the space taken by any supporting brackets (which shall have no text, graphics, or images).
(m) Electronic Message Display (EMD) Center/Screen. A electronic message display sign, as described within Section 1260.011
, shall comply with the following regulations:
(1) An electronic message display shall be allowed as a permitted sign within C1, C2, Ml, M2, and M3 Districts.
(2) An electronic message display shall be prohibited at any location/site within the registered National Historic District(s).
(3) An electronic message display may only be used to advertise goods and/or services sold on the premises, public service announcements, meeting or event information, or the time, date, and temperature. A EMD shall not be permitted to display or promote "off-premise" advertisements.
(4) The addition of an electronic message display to any nonconforming sign is prohibited.
(5) It shall not-contain animation or any flashing, scrolling, or moving lights, text, graphics, any type of video, or visual dissolve or fading in/out.
(6) Each message displayed must be static or depicted for a minimum of eight seconds.
(7) Each complete message must fit onto one screen, i.e., no scrolling or incomplete messages shall be permitted.
(8) All electronic message display screens are required to have automatic brightness controls keyed to ambient light levels. The maximum luminance brightness limits are 5,000 nits during daytime and 500 at night.
(9) An electronic message display shall comply with all other applicable signage regulations and requirements applicable to the Zoning District it is located within.
(n) Projecting Sign. A projecting sign shall be allowed within the C3 Central Business District and is installed perpendicular to the facade of a building which is an integral part of the historical and/or architectural design of the building. The signs may project over and into public rights-of-way though must be erected as secured in such a manner as to preclude their becoming a safety hazard to the public.
(1) Minimum clearance for the sign over a public right-of-way shall have a vertical clearance often feet above ground level, and it shall not be nearer than four feet measured in horizontal distance from the curb line of the street.
(2) The sign may not extend above the top of the wall to which it is attached.
(3) The sign shall not exceed the maximum signage weight load as determined by either a professional structural engineer or City of Johnstown 3rd Party Building Code Inspection Agency.
(o) Projected Light Displays. A projected light display is any display that uses light to project any text, graphic, or image onto any surface of a property in a manner that would display a commercial message.
(1) Projected light displays shall be allowed as a permitted sign within C1, C2, C3. M1, M2, and M3 Districts as a permitted sign.
(2) Projected light displays shall be prohibited at any location/site within the registered National Historic District(s).
(3) Projected light displays may only be used lo advertise goods and/or services sold on the premises, public service announcements, meeting or event information, or the time, date, and temperature, projected light displays shall not be permitted to display or promote "off-premise" advertisements.
(4) The addition of a projected light displays to any nonconforming sign is prohibited.
(5) It shall not-contain animation or any flashing, scrolling, or moving lights, text, graphics, any type of video, or visual dissolve or fading in/out.
(6) Each message displayed must be static or depicted for a minimum of eight seconds.
(7) Each complete message must fit onto one screen, i.e., no scrolling or incomplete messages shall be permitted.
(8) All electronic message display screens are required to have automatic brightness controls keyed to ambient light levels. The maximum luminance brightness limits are 5,000 nits during daytime and 500 at night.
(9) An electronic message display shall comply with all other applicable signage regulations and requirements applicable to the Zoning District it is located within.
(Ord. 5139. Passed 11-27-13; Ord. 5191. Passed 12-9-15; Ord. 5317. Passed 8-11-21.)