171.01 Purposes.
171.02 Compliance required; conflicts; exemptions.
171.03 Classifications and definitions.
171.04 Measurement standards.
171.05 Design standards.
171.06 Illumination.
171.07 Signs in Residential Districts.
171.08 Signs in Public Facilities Districts.
171.09 Signs in Business Districts generally.
171.10 Location and supplementary area regulations for signs in Business Districts.
171.11 Permits.
171.12 Maintenance.
171.13 Nonconforming signs.
171.14 Removal.
171.15 Prohibited signs.
171.16 Banners/pennants in Local and General Business Districts;permit; fee.
171.17 Review and approval by Planning Commission for signs in Business Districts.
171.18 Inspections.
171.19 Variances.
171.20 Sign permit fees.
171.21 Indemnification; insurance.
171.22 Permit revocation.
171.23 Violations.
171.99 Penalties.
CROSS REFERENCES
Erection of signs and billboards - see Ohio R.C. 715.27
Advertising - see GEN. OFF. Ch. 541.08
Zoning regulations - see P. & Z. 985.03
The sign regulations provided in this chapter, including provisions to control the type, design, size, location, motion, illumination and maintenance of signs, are established in order to achieve, among others, the following purposes:
(a) To maintain high value Residential Districts and promote attractive environmental, social, cultural and public facilities by permitting only nameplates, bulletin boards and signs related to the identification of properties in such Districts;
(b) To provide reasonable, yet appropriate, conditions for adequate business identification, advertising and communication for goods sold or services rendered in Business Districts by relating the size, type and design of signs to the type and size of establishments;
(c) To protect the safety and welfare of the community by eliminating conflicts between advertising signs and traffic control signs, which would be hazardous to motorists and pedestrians;
(d) To control the design of signs so that their appearance will be aesthetically harmonious with the adjacent surrounding area;
(e) To encourage renovation and proper maintenance of signs; and
(f) To cause every sign in violation of any provision of this chapter to eventually be removed, altered or replaced so as to conform to the intent and specifications of this chapter. (Ord. 48-2001. Passed 9-24-01.)
(a) Signs shall be designed, erected, altered, reconstructed, moved and maintained, in whole or in part, in accordance with the type, design, size, location, illumination and other provisions set forth in this chapter.
(b) The construction, erection, safety and maintenance of all signs shall be in accordance with the Building and Housing Code of the City. The provisions of this chapter shall not amend or in any way interfere with other codes, rules or regulations governing traffic signs within the City.
(c) Whenever there is a conflict between provisions of this chapter and other applicable ordinances or resolutions, the more restrictive provision shall govern.
(d) The following categories of signs are exempt from and shall not be governed by the provisions of this chapter:
(1) Display of official public notices;
(2) Flags of any nation or any temporary or permanent City flag;
(3) Emblems or insignia of an official governmental body;
(4) Safety signs for maintenance or repairs of streets, sidewalks or public utilities;
(5) Temporary signs in connection with a recognized school event, charity event or homecoming activity;
(6) Window displays, such as merchandise located in a window, provided that all window signs are not exempt from these regulations;
(7) Scoreboards on athletic fields;
(8) Religious symbols;
(9) Gravestones;
(l0) Commemorative plaques; and
(11) Any display or construction not classified or defined in this chapter as a sign. (Ord. 48-2001. Passed 9-24-01.)
(a) Sign Defined. The word "sign," as used in this chapter, means any object, device, display or structure, or part thereof, situated outdoors or indoors, which is used to advertise, identify, display, direct or attract attention to an object, person, institution, organization, business, product, service, event or location by any means, including words, letters, figures, designs, symbols, fixtures, colors, illumination or projected images.
(b) Classification by Use Types. Signs shall be classified by use type as follows:
(1) "Permanent sign" means a sign designed for use for an indefinite period of time and shall include the following:
A. "Bulletin board" means an announcement sign which directs attention to and is located on the lot of a public or semipublic institution.
B. "Directional sign" means a sign indicating only the direction of pedestrian and vehicular circulation routes on the lot on which the sign is located. No advertising shall be permitted on directional signs.
C. "Identification sign" means a sign indicating the name and address of a building, development, public or semipublic facility, business, office or industrial establishment. For business uses, such sign may also include the principal type of goods sold or services rendered. However, the listing of numerous goods or services, prices, and sale items shall not be permitted.
D. "Informational sign" means a sign which presents miscellaneous information to the public and does not promote a business, office, industry, product or issue. Typical informational signs present scheduled events, travel information, vehicle service, weather, time and historic and scenic data.
E. "Organizational sign" means a sign devoted exclusively to the identification of national, State and local service clubs and the location and meeting dates of such clubs. The number, location and design of organizational signs shall be approved by the Building Commissioner.
F. "Nameplate" means a sign indicating the name, address or profession of the person or persons occupying a building or unit of a building.
G. "Changeable copy sign" means a sign, or any portion thereof, where the message or graphics are not permanently affixed to the structure, framing or background and may be periodically replaced or covered over, manually or by electronic or mechanical devices.
(2) "Temporary sign" means a sign designed for use for a limited period of time to announce special events or sales and the sale, lease or rental of property. Temporary signs need not meet the structural type criteria listed in paragraph (c)(2)A. hereof, shall be no larger than thirty-two square feet and shall not be more than six feet high. The time limits for expiration of the approval or the criteria for extension of that time period (if necessary) shall be part of the approval by the Building Commissioner. Temporary signs shall include the following:
A. "Political sign" means a sign advocating action on a public issue and/or identifying a candidate for public office.
B. "Project sign" means a sign which directs attention to the promotion, development and construction of the property on which it is located and which identifies the owner, architect, engineer, contractor and other individual or firm involved with the construction.
C. "Real estate sign" means a sign advertising the sale, rental or lease of the premises or part of the premises on which the sign is displayed.
The expiration date of a temporary sign, as approved by the Building Commissioner, shall appear on each temporary sign.
(c) Classification by Structural Types. Signs shall be classified by structural type as follows (see also Illustration G):
(1) "Building sign" means the following:
A. "Canopy sign" means a sign attached to the soffit or fascia of a canopy, covered entrance or walkway, or to a permanent awning or marquee, and not projecting beyond the edges of the same.
B. "Projecting sign" means a sign attached to an outside building wall and which projects at a ninety-degree angle therefrom.
C. "Roof sign", no longer permitted, and considered to be nonconforming, means a sign which is mounted on the rooftop deck of a building or which is wholly dependent upon a building for support and which projects above the point of a building with a flat roof.
D. "Wall or panel sign" means a sign integral with the face of an exterior building wall or mansard roof (when used as an architectural feature, canopy or covered walkway) or attached to and parallel with the wall or roof.
E. "Window sign" means a sign painted, attached or affixed to the interior surface of windows or doors of a building.
(2) "Free-standing sign" means the following:
A. "Monument sign" means a sign not exceeding seven feet in height, which may have a supporting base as an integral part of the sign, resting totally on the ground or on two or more short poles or columns not exceeding twenty-five percent of the total sign height. The basic outline would be that the sign would be at least as wide as it is high and landscaped.
B. "Pole sign", no longer permitted, and considered to be nonconforming, is a sign which is supported by or suspended from a free-standing column or columns and more than seven feet high.
(3) "Portable sign" means a sign which is designed to be moved and is not permanently attached to any part of a building or to the ground.
(Ord. 48-2001. Passed 9-24-01.)
(a) Sign Area. That portion of a sign to be considered in determining its dimension shall be the area that is normally visible from any one direction. For example, a single-faced rectangular wall sign measuring four feet by six feet would have a sign area of twenty-four square feet. Free-standing signs may, however, have more than a single sign face. In such case, the maximum permitted sign face area for a single sign face shall apply to all sign faces. For example, if a sign face area of twenty-four square feet is permitted for a single sign face, a double-faced sign is permitted twenty-four square feet of sign face area for each sign face, or a total of forty-eight square feet. Frames and structural members not including advertising matter shall not be included in calculation of surface area. A logo, however, is to be considered part of the sign. The area shall be measured by the smallest square, rectangle or triangle, or any combination thereof, which will encompass the entire advertising device, including border, trim, cutout and extension.
(b) Building and Lot Frontages. Whenever the area of a sign is related to the size of the building or lot, the following shall apply:
(l) The frontage of a building shall be the width of the facade of the building (excluding any roof overhang or non-bearing decorative walls) which faces the principal street or contains the main entrance. If a building is divided into units, the building unit frontage shall be the width of the unit, as measured from the party wall centerlines, on the frontage of the building.
(2) The frontage of a lot not covered by a building shall be the number of linear feet the lot abuts on the principal street.
(c) Temporary Window Sign Coverage. In determining the percentage of window area covered by temporary signs, each facade or side of the building shall be considered separately. Window area shall be measured to include all windows and the glass portions of doors, but shall exclude all such area covered by permanent signs or other relatively permanent material.
(d) Sign Height. The height of free-standing signs shall be measured from the base of the sign at its point of attachment to the ground to its topmost element. However, if the support of a free-standing sign is attached to a wall or other man-made base, including a graded earth mound, the sign height shall be measured from the grade of the nearest street, drive or parking area, as determined by the Building Commissioner.
(e) Sign Location. In determining the location of signs in relation to lot lines, including zoning district and street right-of-way lines, distances shall be measured from the vertical projection of the lot line, zoning district line or street right-of-way line to the closest point on the sign.
(f) Corner Lots. Buildings, building units or lots with frontage on two public streets may be permitted additional signs along the secondary street, provided that such additional signs shall not exceed twenty percent of the area of the signs permitted along the main facade, and provided, further, that such signs shall not exceed the number of signs permitted for the principal facade and street.
In the case of building units within a building, an individual building unit must have direct frontage and customer entrances on both the principal street as well as the secondary street to be eligible for any additional signs under this subsection. All requests for signage shall include a site plan and be reviewed by the City Engineer.
(Ord. 48-2001. Passed 9-24-01.)
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