§ 154.475 COMMERCIAL DISTRICT SIGNS.
   (A)   Permanent signs in the CBD zoning district shall be limited number, area, height and setback as set forth in Table B of § 154.486. The total display area for all permanent free-standing, wall/building mounted and window graphics signs on any parcel within this district shall not exceed 300 square feet.
   (B)   Permanent signs in the C-1 and C-5 zoning districts shall be limited number, area, height and setback as set forth in Table C of § 154.486. The total display area for all permanent free-standing and wall/building mounted and window graphics signs on any parcel within these districts shall not exceed 540 square feet.
   (C)   Permanent signs in the C-3 and C-4 zoning districts shall be limited number, area, height and setback as set forth in Table D of § 154.486. The total display area for all permanent free-standing and wall/building mounted and window graphics signs on any parcel within these districts shall not exceed 550 square feet.
   (D)   Supplemental standards for signs in commercial districts:
      (1)   Changeable copy signs. Permanent freestanding signs may have up to 40% of the permitted sign area as set forth in Tables C and D devoted to changeable copy, subject to the following restrictions:
         (a)   Changeable copy signs are not permitted to be part of a sign that is on a building or parcel that is used for any residential purposes.
         (b)   Electronic or mechanical changeable copy signs are conditionally-permitted uses and not allowed unless the Planning Commission has issued a conditional zoning certificate.
      (2)   Multi-occupant facilities. When a freestanding sign is permitted on a site that has more than one occupant, it is the property owner's responsibility to determine if the sign area shall be devoted to identification of the building(s), the anchor occupant, all occupants, or some combination thereof.
      (3)   Off premise signage. One off-premise, freestanding sign may be substituted in lieu of a "single-user" freestanding sign when all of the following conditions are met:
         (a)   The sign serves at least two businesses which are on adjoining properties but are part of planned commercial development that is interconnected via shared points of access and/or shared parking facilities, which has been approved and constructed under the provisions of a development agreement approved by the city.
         (b)   The parcel on which the off-premise sign is located contains a land area of at least five net acres.
         (c)   The display area of the off-premise sign shall not exceed two square feet for each linear foot of building frontage on a principal street up to a maximum of 75 square feet. The sign height shall not exceed 15 feet.
      (4)   Instructional signs as defined in § 154.473(D) shall be permitted provided such signs comply with the following:
         (a)   Signs shall not be larger than necessary to serve the intended instructional purpose, but in no event shall any sign exceed a display area of two square feet;
         (b)   The number of instructional signs located on the site are the minimum needed to serve the intended instructional purpose;
         (c)   The signs are not located or designed to be legible or serve to attract attention beyond the perimeter of the site.
         (d)   The signs may not be affixed to the base or display area of an approved freestanding sign.
      (5)   Sign illumination.  
         (a)   Allowances for sign illumination in the commercial district are as noted in Tables B, C & D.
         (b)   Freestanding signs adjacent to a residential district shall only be externally illuminated.
   (E)   Historic Main Street Wadsworth Design Review District.
      (1)   Signage on properties located in the Historic Main Street Design Review District shall demonstrate compliance with the Historic Main Street Wadsworth Design Review Guidelines before such signage may be approved by the Architectural Design Committee.
      (2)   All properties located in the Historic Main Street Design Review District shall be subject to the sign allocations for the CBD District, as noted in § 154.486 Table B.
(Ord. 07-045, passed 7-17-07; Am. Ord. 13-066, passed 11-19-13; Am. Ord. 20-032, passed 7-21- 20) Penalty, see § 154.999