(A) Purpose and intent. The purposes of this section are as follows:
(1) To encourage effective use of signs as a means of communication;
(2) To maintain and enhance the aesthetic quality of the city and thereby make the city more attractive to sources of economic development and growth;
(3) To improved pedestrian and vehicular traffic safety;
(4) To minimize the possible adverse effect of signs on nearby public and private property; and
(5) To enable the fair and consistent enforcement of the sign regulations.
(B) Applicability. A sign may be erected, place, established, painted, created or maintained in the jurisdiction of the City of Seymour Plan Commission only in conformance with these regulations. In order to accomplish the purposes set forth in does the following:
(1) Allows certain signs to be displayed without permits;
(2) Prohibits certain signs; and
(3) Requires permits for all signs not specifically exempted.
(C) Definitions. For the purpose of this section the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ANIMATED SIGN. Any sign which moves or which appears to move by any mean, including fluttering or rotating. ANIMATED SIGNS shall include but are not limited to pennants, flags, balloons, ribbons, streamers, inflatable devices or propellers. For purposes of this section, this term does not refer to flashing or changing signs, all of which are separately defined.
BANNER. Any sign of lightweight fabric or similar material that contains a message or any kind. National flags, state or municipal flags, or the official flag on any institution or business shall not be considered BANNERS.
BEACON. Any light with one or more beams directed into the atmosphere or directed at one or more pints not on the same zone lot as the light source; also, any light with one or more beams that rotate or move.
BILLBOARD. A sign that advertises products or services not sold or distributed on the premises on which the sign is located.
BUILDING MARKER. Any sign indicating the name of a building and the date and incidental information about its construction, which sign is cut into a masonry surface or made of bronze or other permanent material.
BUILDING SIGN. Any sign attached to any part of a building, as contrasted to a freestanding sign.
CANOPY SIGN. Any sign that is part of or attached to an awning, canopy, or other fabric, plastic, or structural protective cover over a door, entrance, window, or outdoor service area. A marquee is not a canopy.
CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN (AUTOMATIC). A sign such as an electronically or electrically controlled display sign or reader board where different copy changes are shown on the same lamp bank. A sign on which the message changes more than eight times per day shall be considered an ELECTRONIC MESSAGE CENTER SIGN and not a CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN.
CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN (MANUAL). A sign on which copy is changed manually and the area of which shall be included within the allotted face of sign square footage.
COMMERCIAL MESSAGE. Any sign wording. Logo, or other representation that, directly or indirectly, names, advertises, or calls attention to a business product, service, or other commercial activity.
ELECTRONIC MESSAGE CENTER SIGN. A sign capable of displaying words, symbols, figures or images that can be electronically or mechanically changed by remote or automatic means.
FLAG. Any fabric, banner, or bunting containing distinctive colors, patterns, or symbols, used as a symbol of a government, political subdivision, or other entity.
FREESTANDING SIGN. Any sign supported by structures or supports that are placed on or anchored in the ground and that are independent from any building or other structure.
INCIDENTAL SIGN. A sign, generally informational, that has a purpose secondary to the zone lot on which it is located, such as "no parking," "loading only," and other similar directives. No sign with a commercial message legible from a position off the zone lot on which the sign is located shall be considered incidental.
MARQUEE. Any permanent roof-like structure projecting beyond a building or extending along and projecting beyond the wall of the building, generally designed and constructed to provide protection from the weather.
MARQUEE SIGN. Any sign attached in any manner to or made part of a marquee.
NAMEPLATE. A sign containing the name of the occupant or building and/or the address of the site.
NONCONFORMING SIGN. Any sign that does not conform to the requirements of this chapter.
PENNANT. Any lightweight plastic, fabric, or other material, whether or not containing a message of any kind, suspended from a rope, wire, or string, usually in series, designed to move in the wind.
PROJECTING SIGN. Any sign affixed to a building or wall in such a manner that its leading edge extends more than six inches beyond the surface of such building or wall, but not more than 18 inches from the building.
RESIDENTIAL SIGN. Any sign located in a district zoned for residential use, provided such sign contains no commercial message except where advertising for goods or services legally offered on the premises is permitted, and only if offering such service at such location conforms to all requirements of this chapter.
ROOF SIGN. Any sign erected and constructed wholly on and over the roof of a building, supported by the roof structure, and extending vertically above the highest portion of the roof.
ROOF SIGN, INTEGRAL. Any sign erected or constructed as an integral or essentially integral part of a normal roof structure of any design, such that no part of the sign extends vertically above the highest portion of the roof and such that no part of the sign is separated from the rest of the roof by a space of more than six inches.
SIGN. Any device, fixture, placard, or structure that uses any color, form, graphic, illumination, or writing to advertise, announce the purpose of a person or entity, or to communication information of any kind to the public.
SUSPENDED SIGN. A sign that is suspended from the under side of a horizontal plane surface and is supported by such surface.
TEMPORARY SIGN. Any sign that is used or designed or intended to be used only temporarily and is not permanently mounted.
WALL SIGN. Any sign attached parallel to, but within 18 inches of a wall, painted on the wall surface, or erected and confined within the limits of an outside wall of any building or structure, which is supported by such wall or building, and which displays only one sign surface.
WINDOW SIGN. Any sign, picture, symbol, or combination thereof, designed to communicate information about an activity, business, commodity, event, sale, or service, that is placed inside a window or upon the window panes or glass and is visible from the exterior of the window.
(D) General requirements.
(2) Permits. Unless specifically exempted by this chapter, each sign placed, constructed, erected, or modified on a zone lot requires a permit. The form and content of sign permit applications shall be in conformance with the Plan Commission Rules of Procedure.
(3) Exemptions. The following types of signs are exempt from regulation:
(a) Any public notice or warning required by a valid and applicable federal, state, or local law or regulation;
(b) Any sign inside a building, not attached to a window or door within the lot line of the zone lot or parcel and not designed or intended to be read from a public right-of-way;
(c) Works of art that do not include a commercial message;
(d) Holiday lights and decorations with no commercial message, but only between November 15 and January 15;
(e) Traffic control devices on private property, such as stop, yield, one-way, no parking, and similar signs, the face of which meet Indiana Department of Transportation standards and which do not contain any commercial message;
(f) Directional or informational signs of a public or quasi-public nature, not exceeding 8 square feet in area containing no commercial message for any of the following purposes:
1. Indicating the name and/or location of a place such as a town, village, hospital, community center, private school, college, religious facility, or official civic body; and
2. Indicating the name and/or location of a special event, such as a state or county fair, community festival, or concert;
(g) Real estate signs no larger than six square feet; and
(h) Political signs.
(4) Removal. Signs on any building or zone lot that is vacant or abandoned as defined in this chapter shall be removed. The owner of the property on which such sign is located shall be responsible for the removal.
(E) Specific standards.
(1) Signs shall comply with the standards set forth on the following tables within this subchapter.
Signs by Type and Zoning District
P = Allowed without permit S = Allowed with permit N = Not allowed district
Sign type | RS RS-1 | R-1 | R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | C-1, C-2 | C-3 | C-4 | C-5 | I-1 | I-2 | I-3 | Institutional park, open space |
Sign type | RS RS-1 | R-1 | R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | C-1, C-2 | C-3 | C-4 | C-5 | I-1 | I-2 | I-3 | Institutional park, open space |
Freestanding | |||||||||||||
Residential | S | S | S | S | S | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Business | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | N |
Incidental | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Temporary | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | N | N | N | N |
Building | |||||||||||||
Banner | N | N | N | N | N | S2 | S2 | S2 | S2 | S2 | S2 | N | S2 |
Building marker | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | N | P |
Canopy | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | N |
Identification | P | P | P | P | P | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | N |
Incidental 1 | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | N | P |
Marquee | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Protection | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Residential | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Roof | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Roof integral | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | N |
Flush mount | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Suspended | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Temporary | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Wall | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Window | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Miscellaneous | |||||||||||||
Banner | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | N | S |
Portable | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Billboard | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | S3 | S3 | N | N |
Electronic message center | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | S | N |
1 Permanently mounted
2 Permit required if larger than two square feet
3 Permited only along interstate highways, provided they are at least 1,500 feet apart
Maximum Sign Area Per Zone Lot (square feet)1
RS RS-1 | R-1 | R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | C-1 | C-2 | C-3 | C-4 | C-5 | I-1, I-3 | I-2
| |
Maximum each sign2 | NA | NA | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | See § 157.085 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
Maximum total area | NA | NA | 50 | 50 | 50 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 100 | 200 | 200 | 200 |
1 Building markers incidental and identification signs and flags are not included in the total square footage.
2 Window signs may not exceed 25% of the window area.
3 The maximum area (each sign and total area) shall be increased to 280 square feet for a billboard.
Number, Height, and Setback of Signs by Zoning District
Zoning districts
| ||||||||||||
RS-1, RS-2 | R-1 | R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | C-1 | C-2 | C-3 | C-4 | C-5 | I-1, I-3 | I-2 | |
Maximum height (feet) | NA | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 35 | 35 |
Mininimu m setback1 | NA | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Maximum number per zone lot | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
1 Sign height shall not exceed the sign setback from any adjacent lot zoning and/or used for residential purposes. Signs shall not interfere with intersection visibility and shall comply with the standards of § 157.093. In the C-4 district, awning, projecting and suspended signs may be within the public right-of-way provided that they do not interfere with pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
Number and Dimension of Signs by Type
Number allowed | Maximum sign area | Minimum vertical clearance | ||
From sidewalk private drive parking | From public street | |||
Number allowed | Maximum sign area | Minimum vertical clearance | ||
From sidewalk private drive parking | From public street | |||
Freestanding | ||||
Residential, other, incidental | See previous table | NA | NA | |
Building | ||||
Banner | NA | NA | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Building marker | 1/building | 4 square feet | NA | NA |
Canopy | 1/building | 25% of vertical surface | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Identification | 1/building | NA | NA | NA |
Incidental | NA | NA | NA | NA |
Marquee | 1/building | NA | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Projecting | 1/building | NA | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Residential | 1/Zone Lot | 40 square feet | NA | NA |
Roof | 1/principal building | NA | NA | NA |
Roof, integral | 1/principal building | NA | NA | NA |
Suspended | 1/entrance | NA | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Temporary | See § 157.056 | NA | NA | NA |
Wall | NA | NA | NA | NA |
Window | NA | 25% of window | NA | NA |
Miscellaneous | ||||
Banner | NA | NA | 9 feet | 12 feet |
Flag | 60 square feet | 9 feet | 12 feet | |
Portable | 1 where allowed | 20 square feet | NA | NA |
Temporary | See § 157.056 | |||
Permitted Sign Types by Zoning District
S = Allowed w/ permit N = Not allowed
RS-1, RS-2 | R-1 | R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | C-1 | C-2 | C-3 | C-4 | C-5 | I-1, I-3 | I-2 | |
Animated | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N | N |
Changeable copy | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | S |
Illumination, general | N | N | N | N | N | S1 | S1 | S1 | S1 | S1 | S | S |
Illumination external | N | S | S | S | S | S1 | S1 | S1 | S1 | S1 | S | S |
Illumination, exposed bulbs or neon | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | S |
Electronic message center | N | N | N | N | N | S | S | S | S | S | S | S |
1 No direct light or significant glare from the sign shall be cast onto any adjacent zone lot that is zoned or used for residential purposes.
(2) In the C-4 district, the following standards apply:
(a) The maximum area of all signs shall not exceed 75 square feet or one square feet of sign area for each two linear feet of building façade, whichever is smaller.
(b) No building sign shall exceed three feet in height.
(3) Location requirements for electronic message center signs:
(a) Setback from residential. The leading edge of an electronic message center sign shall be a minimum distance of 100 feet from an abutting residential use or residential zone boundary.
(b) Setback from other electronic message center signs. Electronic message center signs shall be separated from other electronic message center signs by a minimum of 100 feet.
(c) Orientation. When located within 500 feet of a residential use or a residentially-zoned parcel, the electronic message center sign shall be oriented so that no portion of the sign face is visible from an existing or permitted principal structure on that parcel.
(d) Location. The electronic message center sign shall be located on the parcel or lot of the use identified or advertised by the sign.
(e) No more than 50% of the facing surface of the sign may be comprised of a changeable electronic or digital display.
(4) Operational requirements for electronic message center signs:
(a) Dimmer control. All electronic message center signs shall be equipped with an automatic dimming photo-sensor control that automatically adjusts the sign’s brightness in correlation with real-time ambient light conditions.
(b) No electronic message center sign shall exceed an illumination level of 0.3 foot candles above ambient light as measured using a foot candle meter at a distance of 100 feet from the sign. This provision shall apply to both new and existing electronic message center signs within the jurisdictional limits of the city. As a prerequisite to the issuance of a permit for a new or replacement electronic message center sign, the manufacturer of the new or replacement sign shall certify in writing to the Building Commissioner that said sign meets or exceeds the operational requirements of this section. If an existing electronic message center sign is not capable of meeting this requirement, such sign shall be turned off between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. regardless of the parcel’s zoning classification.
(c) Audio and pyrotechnics. Audio speakers or any form of pyrotechnics are prohibited in association with electronic message center signs.
(d) If an electronic message center sign is located within 100 feet of a residential use or zone, it shall be turned off between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
(e) Timing of display changes. Electronic message center signs shall be restricted to a maximum of 30 display changes per minute between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. and restricted to a maximum of 15 display changes between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
(f) Electronic message center signs that were in place and operational prior to July 31, 2010 may continue in use provided that if the sign face is replaced or upgraded, the replacement or upgrade shall meet the operational standards of this section. Any change in use of the parcel on which an electronic message center sign existed prior to July 31, 2010 shall require that the sign shall meet the operational standards of this section.
(F) Temporary signs.
(1) Temporary sign permits shall allow the use of a temporary sign for a specified 30-day period.
(2) Permits for temporary private signs in the public right-of-way shall be for a maximum of ten days. No more than one permit for such temporary signs shall be issued to any applicant in any six-month period. Such permits are allowed only for signs containing no commercial message that are no larger than two square feet in area and are needed to indicate the time and/or location of an event of public interest.
(G) Design, construction, and maintenance.
(1) All signs shall comply with applicable provisions of the Indiana Building Code and the electrical code of the city at all times. Except for banners, flags, temporary signs, and window signs conforming in all respects with the requirements of this chapter, all signs shall be constructed of permanent materials and shall be permanently attached to the ground, a building or another structure by direct attachment to a rigid wall, frame, or structure.
(2) All signs shall be maintained in good structural condition, in compliance with all building and electrical codes and in conformance with this chapter at all times.
(H) Prohibited signs. In addition to signs shown on the tables as prohibited in certain districts, the following signs are prohibited within the jurisdiction of the Seymour Plan Commission:
(1) Signs that interfere with visibility for drivers or pedestrians or in any other way endanger public health or safety;
(2) Signs attached to public light poles, street signs, traffic control signs, or other public standards, utility poles, or trees, or other signs located in the public right-of-way, other than those specifically permitted by this chapter.
(I) Nonconforming signs. Signs that are nonconforming shall be subject to the provisions of § 157.134.
(1) Installing, creating, erecting, maintaining, or altering a sign without obtaining a required permit;
(2) Installing, creating, erecting, maintaining, or altering a sign in a way that is inconsistent with any plan or permit governing such sign; and
(3) Failing to remove any sign that is installed, created, erected, altered, or maintained in violation of this chapter.
(Ord. 17, 2006, passed 11-27-2006; Am. Ord. 20, 2010, passed 11-8-2010)