The following regulations are applicable to all signs in all zoning districts.
(A) Sign structure and placement.
(1) Signs shall be constructed to withstand all wind and vibration forces which can normally be expected to occur.
(2) Signs shall not be placed in, upon or over any public right-of-way, alley, or other place, except as may be otherwise permitted by the Mt. Healthy City Manager or Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT).
(3) A light pole, utility pole, tree, fence or other supporting member shall not be used for the placement of any sign, except as may be specifically permitted by this chapter.
(4) A sign shall not be erected in any location where it may, by reason of its position, shape, color, lighting or other characteristics, interfere with, obstruct the view of, or be confused with any authorized traffic sign, signal, or device, or constitute a nuisance per se.
(5) No sign shall be placed in a manner as to obstruct any fire escape, any required exit, door or window or any ventilation system or other operational necessities of a building.
(6) A sign attached to a building shall not be placed in any location that would cause significant architectural features of a building to be covered, hidden or obscured.
(7) A wall sign shall not extend past the edge of the wall to which it is affixed and no wall sign shall extend above the roof line of a building.
(8) A sign and its supporting mechanism shall not extend beyond any lot lines of the property on which it is located.
(9) All signs shall be stationary and shall pertain only to the business or activity conducted on the premises, except for permitted community special event signs.
(10) One changeable message display may be permitted on either a permitted freestanding ground sign or wall sign on a parcel, within the maximum size limits permitted for the sign; provided the message is static and is not changed more than once in any 12 hour period.
(11) Any vehicle which, in the opinion of the Zoning Administrator, has the intended function of serving as a sign shall conform to the provisions of § 155.124(I).
(B) Measurement of sign area. No sign shall exceed the maximum sign area allowed for the district in which it is located. The sign area is to be expressed in square feet, computed to the nearest tenth of a square foot, and shall be calculated as follows:
(1) Area. The area of a sign shall be measured as the area within a single, continuous perimeter composed of any straight line geometric figure which encloses the extreme limits of writing, representation, emblem, logo or any other figure of similar character, together with any frame or other material or color forming an integral part of the display or used to differentiate the sign from the background against which it is placed, excluding only the structure necessary to support the sign.
(2) Double-faced sign. The area of a ground or projecting sign that has two or more faces shall be measured by including the area of all sign faces, except if two faces are placed back-to-back and are no more than two feet apart at any point, the area of one face shall be counted toward the maximum size requirement. If the two back-to-back faces are of unequal size, the larger of the two sign faces shall be counted as the one face.
(3) Wall sign. For a sign consisting of individual letters and/or a logo affixed directly onto a building, the area of the sign shall be computed by measuring the area of the envelope required to enclose the lettering and logo.
(4 ) Height. The height of a sign shall be measured as the vertical distance from the highest point of the sign to the finished grade of the ground immediately beneath the sign, excluding any artificially constructed earthen berms.
(5) Multi-tenant buildings. For buildings with multiple tenants, the sign area for wall, projecting, canopy or awning signs shall be determined by taking that portion of the front wall of the building applicable to each tenant and computing the sign requirements for that portion of the total wall.
(C) Illumination and movement.
(1) Unless otherwise provided, signs shall not be illuminated internally. The source of the light for externally illuminated signs shall be enclosed and directed to prevent light from shining directly onto traffic or neighboring property and shall be directed in a downward manner to prevent light pollution into the night sky.
(2) A sign shall not contain any moving or animated parts including lighting, nor have the appearance of having moving or animated parts, except for time and temperature signs, standard sized barber pole signs, scoreboards and gasoline price signs as otherwise permitted.
(3) Neon signs shall only be permitted within the E District, but not within 50 feet of a residential district unless the sign is not visible from adjacent property within the residential district.
(Res. 21-1165, passed 7-20-21)