(A) Access. No sign shall be erected or maintained so as to prevent or deter ingress or egress from any door, window, or fire escape. Signs shall not be attached to stand pipes, fire escapes, or fences.
(B) Building signs - location.
(1) In multi-tenant buildings, building signs shall be within the banded area. Where a banded area does not exist, a City Building Official shall determine an appropriate location.
(2) In flat-roofed buildings or hip-roofed buildings, the building sign shall not be above the front outside wall unless located within the banded area.
(3) Building signs shall be located along any side considered to be the front of the building, or in the alternative, along a side where the site directly abuts a public street.
(4) Roof signs are prohibited.
(5) Building signs may project up to 18 inches to accommodate mounting.
(C) Compliance with ordinance. No sign shall be erected, installed, constructed, or painted in the city except in compliance with this chapter.
(D) Double faced signs. Signs less than 30 degrees shall be considered as 1 sign. When the sign is constructed so that the faces are not back-to-back, the angle shall not exceed 30 degrees. If the angle is greater than 30 degrees, the total area of the full sign shall be added together when calculating the area of the sign.
(E) Enforcing officer. The City Building Official, Inspector, or any other city employee duly appointed by the City Administrator shall be the enforcing officer for this chapter.
(F) Interference. No sign shall be hazardous or unsafe, block the efficient movement of traffic, or use words which might be construed as traffic controls such as stop, caution, or warning. No sign nor guys shall interfere with utility equipment.
(G) Maintenance.
(1) All signs shall be maintained in good condition and areas around them kept free from debris, tall bushes, high weeds, and from anything else which would be a nuisance. In addition, all parts and supports shall be properly painted. Any sign or structure which has rotted, unsafe, deteriorated, defaced or otherwise altered shall be repainted, repaired or replaced by the licensee, owner, or agent of the owner upon written notice by the city.
(2) All business signs shall be removed from the building and property by the owner of such property within 30 days after the business or use is terminated. Framework that conforms to the ordinance and is expected to be used for a future business sign may be permitted to remain.
(3) All signs shall contain current information. Outdated signs or signs with outdated information shall be removed by the owner. The entire surrounding area shall be cleared of all debris and unsightly projections and protrusions.
(H) Preventing adverse effect on adjacent property. Exposed backs of all signs and the sign structure must be painted a neutral color and otherwise maintained so as not to have an adverse effect on the adjacent property.
(I) Projecting signs. Except as otherwise provided, no projecting signs shall extend more than 18 inches from the face of a building over a public right-of-way. Exceptions include canopy signs and certain signs in the Central Business District.
(J) Right-of-way. Except as permitted in the Central Business District, no sign shall be placed in the public right-of-way, attached to rocks, trees, utility poles, or fences. Signs located over public right-of-way or public or private accesses shall be a minimum of 8 feet above grade level.
(K) Temporary signs. The display of temporary signs is subject to the following:
(1) The display of any temporary sign shall be limited to 1 continuous 30-day period in any 4- month period.
(2) Not more than 3 temporary sign permits may be issued per year for any individual business.
(3) Temporary signs are limited to 24 square feet in size.
(4) The location of freestanding temporary signs is subject to setback regulations. No temporary sign is permitted in any public right-of-way.
(5) A temporary sign permit is good for 30 calendar days from date of issuance.
(6) At any time no more than 1 temporary sign shall be displayed per business.
(Ord. 90, passed 9-21-1987; Am. Ord. 30, 4th Series, passed 1-4-2010; Am. Ord. 63, 4th Series, passed 1-5-2015)