A. Off premises/billboard signs shall only be permitted in Office Park, Light Industrial, Industrial, and Commercial General Districts. Permits for signs meeting the requirements below may be issued by staff. However, the following additional requirements shall apply in Commercial General Districts:
1. Applicants for signs in Commercial General Districts must provide a mailing list of property owners and tenants within a five hundred foot (500') radius of the property line to whom notice of the application will be sent by the City;
2. A twenty one (21) day waiting period shall be required prior to sign construction or erection, during which time period any aggrieved person so notified may make a written protest to the Planning and Development Services Department for a hearing before the hearing examiner. A decision of the hearing examiner may be appealed to the City Council within fifteen (15) days of the date of the hearing examiner's decision;
3. No construction or erection of signs shall be allowed pending the outcome of either hearing;
4. The decision of the City Council shall be final;
5. The review criteria used by the City Council and the hearing examiner shall be as follows: The proposed sign must be designed to minimize adverse effects on adjoining land, and the proposed sign must be designed to be as compatible in appearance and layout with adjacent uses as is practical.
B. Any off premises sign which is moved or replaced must comply with current standards. All off premises signs shall meet the following standards:
1. Sign Face: The maximum area of a sign face shall not exceed three hundred (300) square feet including border and trim, but excluding base, supports, and other parts of the sign structure. Maximum height of the face shall be twelve feet (12') and maximum length shall be thirty six feet (36').
2. Height: Off premises signs shall be no more than thirty five feet (35') in height above ground level and have a minimum clearance of twenty feet (20'). Provided, however, that the staff of the Planning and Development Services Department is hereby authorized to grant variances up to five feet (5') for the minimum clearance and height requirements through the minor variance process as described in section 17.02.160 of this Code.
3. Cutouts: Cutout attachments securely affixed to off premises signs shall be permitted, but shall not be allowed to project more than five feet (5') above, one foot (1') below, and not more than two feet (2') on either side of the sign to which they are attached.
4. Placement: No portion of an off premises/billboard sign may extend into or over an area defined as a structural setback in the applicable zoning district standards.
5. Message: No permits are required to change the message of an off premises/billboard sign.
6. Permit Required: A new off premises sign permit is required to convert an existing billboard into a sign using trivision panels or electronically programmable changeable messages, and City staff shall evaluate electronic sign locations for potential impacts to traffic safety. If the sign is nonconforming in terms of placement or spacing requirements, the hearing examiner shall review the conversion of the sign using the following criteria:
a. The proposed sign must be designed to minimize adverse effects on adjoining land, and the proposed sign must be designed to be as compatible in appearance and layout with adjacent uses as is practical.
b. A public hearing regarding the conversion shall be held in front of the hearing examiner with notice sent to all property owners and occupants within a five hundred foot (500') radius of the property line.
7. Changing Messages: Message display for new off premises signs or conversions of existing off premises signs to those using electronic means to change messages such as LED technology or trivision panels shall comply with all applicable standards of section 15.20.250, "Electronic Message Displays (EMD)", of this chapter.
8. Spacing:
a. Off premises signs located on the same side of a roadway or street shall be spaced at least one thousand feet (1,000') apart. Additionally, off premises signs shall be spaced at least one hundred fifty feet (150') from any other such sign located on the opposite side of the roadway or street (measured in a straight line between 1 sign and another along the line of sight of the roadway or street common to each sign). Provided, however, that adjustments of up to ten percent (10%) of the required distance may be approved by the Planning and Development Services Department staff through the minor variance process as described in section 17.02.160 of this Code.
b. In no case shall off premises signs be located closer than two hundred fifty feet (250') to a residential zoning district, Residential/Commercial/Professional Zoning District, designated historic district, park, school, church, or cemetery measured in any direction from said signs.
9. Unipole Construction: All off premises signs constructed after the effective date hereof shall be of unipole (i.e., 1 support pole) construction.
10. Lighting: Off premises signs shall not be internally illuminated or backlit. (Ord. 3008, 2018: Ord. 2967, 2016: Ord. 2958, 2015: Ord. 2915, 2012: Ord. 2846 §§ 4, 5, 2008: Ord. 2813 § 4, 2007: Ord. 2501 §§ 1 - 5, 1995: Ord. 2349, 1991)