The purpose of this subchapter shall be to establish effective local regulation of outdoor advertising so as to promote the health, safety, and general welfare of those persons using and residing adjacent to public rights-of-way. The following regulations are intended to promote and preserve the natural aesthetics of the city while providing for the convenience of the traveling public, for the promotion of locally available facilities, goods, and services, and to minimize negative impacts on property adjacent to public rights-of-way. It is, therefore, the intent of these regulations to achieve the following:
(A) Safety. To promote the safety of persons and property by requiring that signs:
(1) Do not create a hazard due to collapse, fire, collision, decay or abandonment; and
(2) Do not create traffic hazards by distracting or confusing motorists, impairing a driver’s ability to see pedestrians, obstacles, or other vehicles or to see and interpret any official traffic sign, signal, or device.
(B) Communication. To promote the efficient transfer of information by providing that:
(1) Business and services may identify themselves;
(2) Customers and other persons may locate a business or service; and
(3) No business, service, person or group is arbitrarily denied the use of sight lines on a public right-of-way for communication purposes.
(C) Preservation of the natural landscape. To protect the public welfare and to maintain and enhance the appearance and economic value of the landscape by providing that signs:
(1) Do not create a nuisance to persons using the public right-of-way;
(2) Do not constitute a nuisance to the occupancy or use of adjacent property as a result of their size, height, brightness, or movement; and
(3) Are constructed and installed in a manner which is in harmony with buildings, neighborhoods, or other signs in the area.
(Ord. passed 2-3-2011, § 2.30.020)