§ 16.72.030. General regulations

A. No sign governed by the provisions of this chapter shall be erected, structurally altered or relocated without first receiving a sign permit from the city. Where ODOT jurisdiction applies, ODOT regulations supersede this chapter.

B. All signs shall comply with the following requirements and those specified by zoning district:

1. Construction shall satisfy the requirements of current version of the Uniform Sign Code.

2. Electrical requirements for signs shall be governed by the current version of the National Electrical Code and Oregon Electrical Specialty Code Amendments.

3. Except for exempt signs and approved daily display signs, all signs shall be securely attached to a building or the ground.

4. All signs shall conform to all vision clearance requirements.

5. All signs, together with their supports, braces, and guys shall be maintained in a safe and secure manner.

6. All illuminated signs shall be internally or indirectly illuminated.

7. Unless otherwise permitted, all signs shall be erected and maintained entirely on private property with the consent of the occupant of the premises. No signs shall be erected or maintained on utility poles or upon trees, rocks or other natural features. Signs shall not be placed in the public right-of-way or vision clearance areas.

C. The following signs shall be exempt from the application, permit and fee requirements of this title.

1. Impermanent construction and subdivision signs not exceeding thirty-two (32) square feet in area; such signs shall be removed within thirty (30) days of project completion;

2. Directional, warning or information signs or structures required or authorized by law, or by federal, state, county or city authority;

3. Historical site plaques;

4. Incidental signs;

5. Official and legal notices issued by any court, public body, person or officer in performance of a public duty or in giving any legal notice;

6. Official flags of the United States of America, counties, municipalities, official flags of foreign nations, and flags of internationally and nationally recognized organizations;

7. On-premises signs not readable from the public right-of-way, i.e., menu boards, etc;

8. Political signs, provided such signs shall not exceed four square feet in area in residential or commercial/industrial zones respectively or be posted more than sixty (60) days before the election to which they relate and are removed within fifteen (15) days following the election;

9. Real estate signs not exceeding four square feet in area in residential districts or thirty-two (32) square feet in commercial or industrial districts;

10. Residential identification signs not exceeding two square feet;

11. Structures intended for a separate use such as phone booths, Goodwill containers, etc;

12. Temporary signs not exceeding four square feet;

13. Window signs.

D. The following signs are prohibited;

1. Flashing and moving signs;

2. Portable signs, except as allowed under provisions for daily display signs;

3. Signs attached to utility, streetlights, or traffic control standard poles or otherwise located in the public right-of-way without a permit;

4. Signs in a dilapidated or hazardous condition;

5. Signs on doors, windows, or fire escapes that restrict free ingress or egress;

6. Signs which purport to be, are an imitation of, or resemble an official traffic sign or signal, could cause confusion with any official sign, or which obstruct the visibility of any traffic sign or signal;

7. Swinging signs;

8. Billboards.

E. All freestanding signs shall comply with the following provisions:

1. One freestanding sign shall be permitted along each street frontage, or each three hundred (300) feet of street front, with one additional freestanding sign allowed on the property.

2. A freestanding sign shall be placed behind the property line and no closer than ten (10) feet to any adjacent private property line.

3. Freestanding signs may project over the public property line, provided they conform to the standards established for projecting signs.

F. All projecting signs shall comply with the following provisions:

1. No projecting sign shall extend above the highest structural component of the building to which it is attached.

2. Signs over the public right-of-way, including freestanding signs, shall conform to the following standards:

Clearance	Maximum Projection
Less than 8 feet	Not permitted
8 feet	1 foot
9 feet and above	2 feet for every foot above 8 feet in height but no more than 9 feet

 

3. No sign shall project within two feet of the curb line.

G. All roof signs shall comply with the following provisions:

1. All roof signs shall be installed or erected in such a manner that no support structure is visible from any abutting public right-of-way.

2. Roof signs may be erected so as to appear from all sides as a wall sign applied to an existing penthouse which appears to be a part of the building itself.

3. Roof signs shall not exceed the highest point of the building or structure. On flat roofs, the roof sign shall not exceed eight feet above the highest point of the building. In no case shall a sign exceed the maximum allowable height of the building within the zone in which it is located.

H. All wall signs shall conform to the following provisions:

1. Wall signs may be attached flat to, or pinned away from the wall, but shall not project more than twelve (12) inches from the wall.

2. Wall signs shall not extend above the height of the wall to which it is attached.

I. Daily Display Signs in Public Right-of-Way/Off-Premises.

1. In zoning districts that permit daily display signs, a daily display sign may be allowed within the public right-of-way in front of the premises with which it is associated; provided, all of the following conditions are met:

a. A city sign permit is obtained that shows location of daily display sign in the right-of-way. This permit shall be revocable in case of condition of noncompliance.

b. The sign is to be set back behind the curb so as not to interfere with on-street parking, or a minimum of ten (10) feet from the edge of the nearest street travel lane where curbs are not in place.

c. The sign is to be placed so as to allow at least five feet of unimpeded pedestrian sidewalk maneuvering space, such maneuvering space being located as close as possible to the building frontage.

d. The sign meets vision clearance requirements.

e. The sign is properly maintained as required by subsection B. of this section.

f. The applicant shall assume all liability for incidents involving the sign, and execute a document satisfactory to city, releasing and indemnifying city for all liability arising from claims pertaining to the sign.

g. Sign dimension shall not exceed a maximum width of two feet or a maximum above-ground level height of four and one-half feet.

h. One sign per business is allowed.

2. Daily display signs may be allowed off the premises, or within the public right-of-way in front of a business with which the sign is not associated, subject to the following conditions:

a. All applicable standards of subsection I.1. of this section.

b. Both the sign owner and owner of the business where the sign is placed must sign a city liability exemption document as provided in subsection I.1.f. of this section.

c. The off-premises daily display sign will take the place of the daily display sign allowance for both the business site where it is placed and the business placing the sign.

d. The off-premises daily display sign will count towards the square footage requirements for both the business where it is placed and the business placing the sign.

J. Applying for a Sign Permit. A property owner or his authorized agent shall apply to the city for a sign permit by filing an application with the city using forms prescribed for the purpose. A site plan and construction drawing shall accompany the application. The city may require other drawings or information necessary to determine compliance with the sign ordinance. The applicant shall pay a fee as established by resolution or ordinance of the city council in effect at the time the application is filed. Prior to being issued a permit, the applicant shall pay, in addition to the fee established by the city council, any costs incurred by the building official/engineer in reviewing the proposed sign.

K. Any sign which is not in compliance is an unlawful sign and declared to be a public nuisance.

1. The city may order the removal of any sign erected or maintained in violation of this chapter. It shall give twenty-four (24) hours' notice in writing to the owner of such sign, or of the building structure, or premises on which the sign is located, to remove the sign or bring it into compliance.

2. The city may remove a sign immediately and without notice if, in its opinion, the condition of the sign is such as to present an immediate threat to the safety of the public, and is authorized to take such steps as may be necessary to remove the sign. Neither the city nor any of its agents shall be liable for any damage to the sign.

3. The violation of or failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter or the erection, use or display or the allowing of, the permitting of, or the suffering erection, use or display of any sign not in compliance with all the provisions of this title is unlawful and upon conviction, the violator may be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) and shall be required to remove such sign or to take such other action as shall be determined by the court to be necessary to bring such sign into full compliance with the provisions of this chapter.

4. The remedies provided in this chapter for violations of or failure to comply with provisions of this ordinance shall be cumulative and shall be in addition to any other remedy provided by law.

(Ord. No. 2008-007, § 1, 2-9-2009)