A. Findings. The City Council finds as follows:
1. Signs are a means of personal free expression;
2. The use and display of signs is a legitimate use of public and private property, and is an integral part of the business and marketing functions of the local economy and serves to promote and protect private investments in commerce and industry, and is a necessary component of a commercial environment;
3. Signs can promote the efficient transfer of information by providing messages and information needed and sought by the public, allowing businesses and services to identify themselves; and, ensuring that customers and other persons may locate a business or service;
4. Easily read and properly designed and placed signage can be valuable to the public by assisting with way-finding, orientation, and decision making and therefore contribute in a positive way to the health, safety, and welfare of the public;
5. In the absence of regulation, the number of signs tends to proliferate, with property owners' desiring ever increasing numbers and sizes of signs, leading to cluttered and aesthetically blighted property and thoroughfares, and escalation in the size of signs erected by competing businesses;
6. The competition among competing sign owners for visibility of their signs contributes to safety hazards for both vehicles and pedestrians, and undermines the sign owners' original purpose of presenting a clear message of its idea or identification of its premises;
7. Persons exposed to signs can be overwhelmed by the number of messages presented, and may not be able to exercise freedom of choice to observe or ignore said messages, according to the observer's purpose;
8. Regulations restricting the size, material, construction, location and number of signs can create a pleasing environment for the entire community and enhance public safety;
9. Signs erected by the City are, in part, erected for the purpose of maintaining the public safety either through direct control of traffic or through provision of such type of signage as street signs which enable the traveling public to know where they are located and to find where they are going. With the exception of signs identifying government buildings and signs providing information on government-sponsored community events, virtually all government signs are erected purely for public safety purposes. Moreover, their use in the public right-of-way is necessary to ensure their visibility to the motoring public;
10. Public utility signs are frequently of the same nature as those signs erected by governmental entities in that they provide necessary information to safeguard the public from downed power lines and from street excavations. Even where signs serve a propriety purpose, such as identifying markings on utility poles, those signs are marked primarily for the purpose of benefiting the public generally through identification of locations where there may be temporary losses of power and identifying potential hazards;
11. Some signage has a single targeted function and identification of such signage by description is impossible without referring to its function. For instance, address numerals are used for the sole purpose of locating addresses, which is of benefit to persons looking for those addresses and is essential to public safety personnel responding to emergencies. Subdivision signs at the entrances to subdivisions favor a similar purpose in enabling both the traveling public and emergency personnel to quickly locate subdivision entrances for the purpose of either visitation or responding to emergency calls. While such signage is often referenced based upon the function it serves within the context of this ordinance, whenever possible, it is the intent of this ordinance to refer to signs unrelated to the content of the message provided;
12. Driver distraction is a significant cause of motor vehicle accidents leading to property damage and personal injury;
13. Signs visible from motor vehicles being driven upon streets in the City have a visual impact upon the drivers of those vehicles;
14. Signs can overwhelm the public, unduly distract and confuse motorists by diverting attention away from the roadway, and result in safety threats to vehicular and pedestrian traffic;
15. Signs can create traffic hazards by confusing or distracting motorists and pedestrians, or by impairing the driver's ability to see pedestrians, obstacles, or other vehicles, or to read traffic signs;
16. Brightly lit signs, flashing electronic signs, and overly animated signs waste valuable energy, contribute to light pollution, produce hazardous glare, and create the potential for distracting or confusing motorists, thereby negatively impacting the health, safety, and welfare of the public;
17. Signs which are unregulated as to size, location and appearance can increase the level of distraction of motorists, interfere with early identification of traffic control devices, and hinder the smooth and safe movement of traffic;
18. Portable signs contribute to visual clutter and present distractions to drivers and pedestrian users of the public sidewalks, crosswalks and other pedestrian pathways;
19. Lightweight design and easy mobility of portable signs create a potential for extraordinary safety hazards. Portable signs are often placed in close proximity to public rights-of-way in order to optimally attract the attention of motorists. Such placement creates visual obstruction of oncoming pedestrian and vehicular traffic for motorist's ingressing or egressing from a place of business;
20. Portable signs also have a tendency to be blown about in strong winds causing and creating visual clutter, obstruction of pedestrian and vehicular passage, safety hazards, and damage to landscaping;
21. Portable signs with electrical connections and components, if improperly maintained, pose a serious public safety hazard;
22. Improperly constructed and poorly maintained signs may be safety hazards that constitute a public health risk;
23. Moving signs are intended to distract the attention of drivers and pedestrians to call attend to the message on the sign and create a greater distraction to drivers and pedestrians than stationary signs of similar size and appearance;
24. Signs can constitute aesthetic harm by cluttering the rural landscape and highway corridors and adversely affecting the naturally scenic views and native environment;
25. Signs may conceal or obstruct windows, doors, or significant architectural features or details of buildings;
26. Signs can create a hazard due to collapse, fire, collision, decay or abandonment;
27. Signs can obstruct firefighting or police surveillance;
28. Signs can arbitrarily deny the use of the lines of vision from the public right-of way;
29. Regulation of signs can protect the public welfare and enhance the appearance and economic value of the City and protect or increase property values;
30. The regulatory standards set forth in this Code are consistent with customary use in this City and will properly carry out the purposes of this Code.
B. Purpose: This Chapter establishes regulations governing the installation, alteration, relocation, maintenance, use, and removal of signs in the City in a manner that recognizes the importance of signage for the economic well-being of businesses within the City while promoting a quality visual environment and protecting our views and vistas. These regulations are further intended to balance the need to protect the public safety and welfare, the need for a well-maintained and attractive community, the need for adequate identification, communication and advertising; and, to protect free expression.
Specifically, this Chapter seeks to accomplish the following:
1. Encourage commercial communication which is responsive to the needs of the public in locating a business establishment by identification address, product, and/or service information; and
2. Promote the enhancement of business and residential properties and neighborhoods by fostering the erection of signs complementary to the buildings and uses to which they relate and which are harmonious with their surroundings; and
3. To protect and enhance the visual character and identity of the community by the thoughtful placement and design of signs; and
4. To reflect and support the desired character and development patterns of the various zones of the City by requiring that signs, adhere to section 13-6-7 of this title pertaining to the architectural design style for the City. Section 13-6-7 of this title states that these regulations are intended to implement and further the comprehensive plan of the City by ensuring that all development in the mixed use-town center and mixed use-town center north, and all commercial and public development within the City limits, is designed to be consistent with the adopted architectural theme of "turn of the century: western or Victorian"; and
5. Ensure that signs, including indoor signs visible from streets or ways open to the public, do not create obstructions to motorists by interfering with sight lines or directional traffic signs or in any other way endanger the safety, health, or welfare of citizens and visitors to the City; and
6. To ensure that signs are designed, constructed, installed and maintained according to minimum standards to safeguard life, health, property and public welfare; and
7. To ensure that the constitutionally guaranteed right of free speech is protected by regulating signs in a content-neutral manner; and
8. To improve pedestrian and traffic safety; and
9. Eliminate clutter and visual distraction by ensuring signs are appropriate in size and relationship to the subject property, street frontage and building size; and
10. Allow sufficient flexibility and incentive for creative and innovative sign designs; and
11. Safeguard and enhance property values, attract new residents, and encourage orderly City development; and
12. Allow for limited temporary commercial signage in the public right of way, to provide a flow of truthful and legitimate commercial information to consumers to enable them to make vital decisions, particularly as it relates to the purchase of a home, and to further the critical public goal of providing for equal access to housing; and
13. Ensure consistency with the goals and policies of the Comprehensive Plan.
(Ord. 2019-1041, 5-29-2019; amd. Ord. 2021-1081, 9-8-2021)