(A) Principles for computing sign area and sign height are contained in § 156.079.
(B) For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning. Words and phrases not defined in this section but defined elsewhere in this chapter shall be given the meanings set forth in that section. All other words and phrases shall be given their common, ordinary meaning, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
ANIMATED SIGN. Any sign which includes action, motion, the optical illusion of action or motion or color changes of all or any part of the sign facing, requiring electrical energy or set in motion by movement of the atmosphere or a sign made up of a series of sections that turn and stop to show two or more pictures or messages in the copy area, except time and temperature signs. ANIMATED SIGNS shall include electronic reader boards and any sign that uses movement or change of lighting to depict action or create a special effect or scene.
AWNING. A roof-like protective cover constructed of metal, wood, or other rigid material extending from all or a portion of a building such as a door, entrance, window or outdoor service area. For the purposes of this chapter, a sign on an awning shall be considered to be a wall sign.
BANNER. Any sign of lightweight fabric or similar material that is permanently mounted to a pole or a building by a permanent frame at one or more edges. National flags, state or municipal flags, or the official flag of any institution or business shall not be considered BANNERS.
BEACON. Any light with one or more beams of illumination directed into the atmosphere or directed at one or more points not on the same zone lot as the light source; also, any light with one or more beams that rotate or move.
BENCH SIGN. Any sign attached to or painted upon a bench or seat which is located outside a building or structure.
BUILDING MARKER. Any sign indicating the name of a building and date and incidental information about its construction, which sign is cut into a masonry surface or applied to the building facade. Marker construction, not original to the building, to be made of bronze or other acceptable material.
BUILDING SIGN. Any sign attached to any part of a building, as contrasted to a FREESTANDING SIGN.
CANOPY SIGN. Any sign that is a part of or attached to an awning, canopy, or other fabric, or structural protective cover over a door, entrance, window, or outdoor service area. A marquee is not a canopy.
CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN. A sign or portion thereof with characters, letters, or illustrations that can be changed or rearranged without altering the face or the surface of the sign. A sign on which the message changes more than six times per day shall be considered an ANIMATED SIGN and not a CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN for the purposes of this chapter. A sign on which the only copy that changes is an electronic or mechanical indication of time and/or temperature shall be considered a time and temperature portion of a sign and not a CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN for purposes of this chapter.
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.
FLAG. Any fabric, banner, or bunting containing distinctive colors, patterns, or symbols, used as a symbol of a government, political subdivision, business 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.
HEIGHT OF SIGN. The greatest vertical distance measured from the finished grade to the top of the sign, including any accompanying architectural features of the sign.
ILLUMINATED SIGN. A sign designed to give forth artificial light or reflect the light from an artificial light source.
INCIDENTAL SIGN. A sign, generally informational, that has a purpose secondary to the use of the zone lot on which it is located, such as "No Parking", "Entrance", "Visitor Entry", "No Smoking", "Loading Area" and other similar directives, including text and symbol depictions. No sign with a commercial message legible from a position off the zone lot on which the sign is located shall be considered INCIDENTAL.
LOT. Any piece or parcel of land or a portion of a subdivision, the boundaries of which have been established by some legal instrument of record, that is recognized and intended as a unit for the purpose of transfer of ownership and publicly recorded.
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 to, in any manner, or made a part of a marquee.
MONUMENT SIGN. A type of freestanding sign which has a low profile with a continuous base resting on the ground and incorporating the design and building materials complementary to the architectural theme of the building on the same property.
NAMEPLATE. Any sign which displays only the name and address of the occupant.
NONCONFORMING SIGN. Any sign that does not conform to the requirements of this chapter.
NON-ILLUMINATED SIGN. A sign which is not designed to give forth artificial light or reflect the light from an artificial light source.
OFF-PREMISE SIGN: BILLBOARD, POSTERBOARD, PANEL. Any single or double faced structure permanently affixed to the surface of the land or to any building, tower, or other structure, designed, arranged, used, or intended to be used for outdoor advertising, or where display space is purchased or rendered for general advertising purposes, and not associated with the establishment located on the same zone lot as the sign. For the purposes of this chapter, a political sign shall not be considered as an OFF-PREMISE SIGN, and the location of political signs is regulated by § 156.099 of this code.
PENNANT. Any lightweight, 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. A PENNANT sign is a temporary sign.
PERMANENT SIGN. Any sign not intended for temporary display.
PERSON. Any association, company, corporation, entity, firm, organization, or partnership,
singular or plural, of any kind.
POLE SIGN. A type of freestanding sign which is permanently supported by one or more poles or uprights.
PORTABLE SIGN. Any sign not permanently attached to the ground or other permanent structure, or a sign designed to be transported, including but not limited to signs designed to be transported by means of wheels, signs converted to A or T frames, menu and sandwich board signs, balloons used as signs, umbrellas used for advertising, and signs attached to or painted on vehicles parked and visible from the public right-of-way, unless that vehicle is used in the normal day to day operations of the business.
PRINCIPAL BUILDING. The building in which is conducted the principal use of the zone lot in which it is located. Zone lots with multiple principal uses may have multiple PRINCIPAL BUILDINGS, but storage buildings, garages, and other clearly accessory uses shall not be considered PRINCIPAL BUILDINGS.
PROJECTING SIGN. Any sign affixed to a building or wall in a manner so that its leading edge extends more than 12 inches beyond the surface of that building or wall.
PUBLIC SIGN. Any sign, either permanent or temporary, which is authorized and erected by public officials of the state, town, or township for the public safety, health, and welfare, including traffic signs, other municipal signs, railroad crossing signs, and danger and other non-advertising signs.
RESIDENTIAL SIGN. Any sign located in a district zoned for residential use that contains no commercial message except advertising for goods or services legally offered on the premises where the sign is located, if offering that service at that location conforms with all requirements of this zoning chapter.
ROOF SIGN. Any sign erected and constructed wholly on and above the roof of a building, supported by the roof structure, and extending vertically above the roof plane.
ROOF SIGN, INTEGRAL. Any sign erected or constructed as an integral or essentially integral part of a normal roof structure of any design, so that no part of the sign extends vertically above the highest portion of the roof and so that no part of the sign is separated from the rest of the roof by a space of more than six inches.
SETBACK. The distance from the property line to the nearest part of the applicable building, structure, or sign, measured perpendicularly to the property line.
SIGN. Any device, fixture, placard, or structure that uses any color, form, graphic, illumination, symbol, or writing to advertise, announce the purpose of, or identify the purpose of a person or entity, or to communicate information of any kind to the public.
STREET. A strip of land or right-of-way subject to vehicular traffic (as well as pedestrian traffic) that provides direct or indirect access to property, including but not limited to alleys, avenues, boulevards, courts, drives, highways, lanes, places, roads, terraces, trails, or other thoroughfares.
STREET FRONTAGE. The distance for which a lot line of a zone lot adjoins a public street, from one lot line intersecting the street to the furthest distant lot line intersecting the same street.
SUSPENDED SIGN. A sign that is suspended from the underside of a horizontal plane surface and is supported by that surface.
TEMPORARY SIGN. Any sign that is used only temporarily and is not permanently mounted.
WALL SIGN. Any sign attached parallel to, but projecting not more than four inches from a wall, painted on the wall surface of, or erected and confined within the limits of, an outside wall of any building or structure, which is supported by that wall or building, and which displays only one sign surface.
WINDOW SIGN. Any sign, pictures, symbols, 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.
ZONING LOT. A parcel of land in single ownership that is of sufficient size to meet minimum zoning requirements for area, coverage, and use, and that can provide yards and other open spaces as required by the zoning regulations.
(Ord. 23, § 2.50.40, passed 3-19-1997; Am. Ord. 45, passed 4-15-1998; Am. Ord. 2003-109A, passed 10-8-2004; Am. Ord. 210-A, passed 12-10-2015)