A permit shall be required prior to the erection, alteration
or reconstruction of any sign and all requirements of this subsection
shall be met unless otherwise exempted by this chapter. Alteration
and reconstruction shall be considered any activity that changes the
size or location of the sign. Signs that are part of any proposal
requiring site plan approval and/or a special use permit shall be
reviewed and approved of as part of such applications.
An overlay zone is hereby established to allow for billboard
signs. Such overlay district shall be only within a portion of the
Business District located along Route 50, from Brookline Road to Mourningkill
Drive.
A. A billboard may be externally illuminated, provided
that all light sources shall be LED style, designed, shielded, arranged
and installed to confine or direct all illumination to the surface
of the billboard and away from adjoining properties. Light sources
shall not be visible from any street or any adjoining properties.
Billboards may contain or include such public service information
as time, date, temperature, weather, or similar information.
B. No billboard shall be erected on or attached to any
building.
C. No billboard or part thereof shall contain or consist
of banners, posters, pennants, ribbons, streamers, spinners, or other
similar moving, fluttering or revolving devices.
D. No billboard shall exceed 700 square feet total for
both faces.
E. No billboard shall be in excess of 30 feet in height
above the average existing grade level at the billboard.
F. A billboard and its structure shall be maintained,
including the change of the advertising message, the repairing and
replacing of component parts and the performance of other acts as
incident to the upkeep of the billboard.
G. No billboards shall display advertising matter of an
indecent or obscene nature.
H. No billboard shall confuse, mislead or resemble any
government billboard.
I. Billboards shall be separated from each other by a
distance of at least 300 feet, except that two such billboards may
be arranged on an angle or back-to-back.
J. Only two billboard faces shall be permitted on any
one structure or support.
K. All sign applications shall be allowable only by special
use permit within the overlay zone. Application shall be made to the
Planning Board for site plan review.
L. No billboard shall be erected within 25 feet of any
building.
M. No billboards shall have internal light-emitting diodes
(LEDs).
All electrical work shall be in accordance with Underwriter's
Laboratories, Inc. (UL) standards.
The Superintendent of the Building Department shall revoke such
billboard permit 14 days after written notice has been given to the
owner on record of said billboard for any of the following conditions,
provided that said condition has not been corrected within the fourteen-day
period:
A. Failure to obtain permission from the Superintendent
of the Building Department to structurally alter the billboard.
B. Failure to maintain any billboard in accordance with
the judgment of the Superintendent of the Building Department. This
would include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1)
That the structure be free from all hazards,
such as faulty wiring, loose fastening or supports, etc.
(2)
That the structure remain safe, secure and in
no way a menace to the public.
(3)
That the structure be maintained in a clean,
neat condition.
Signs contained wholly on the interior of a building and intended
for exterior viewing shall not require a permit. Such signs shall
be exempt from all other provisions of this chapter.
Signs shall be allowed as an accessory structure as follows:
A. Rural District.
(1) One customary professional and major home occupation
sign not exceeding two square feet in area shall be permitted.
(2) One real estate sign not larger than 12 square feet
in area is permitted when placed on the properties for sale, rent
or lease.
(3) One sign for identifying each use permitted in this district by Article
VII of this chapter, not larger than 20 square feet in area, is permitted.
B. Light Industrial District. Signs permissible include
those permissible for rural districts, plus those advertising a business
or activity being conducted on the premises. A maximum of two signs,
one of which may be freestanding, shall be permitted. No sign shall
exceed 40 square feet in area and all signs shall be located on the
premises.
C. Ballston Lake Residential District. All signs allowed
in a rural district shall be permitted, provided that the property
use is permissible in a residential district in accordance with the
currently effective law.
D. Business District and Rural Highway Transition District.
(1) Permitted signs:
(d)
Permanent changeable message signs.
(e)
Temporary portable roadside changeable message
sign (two-weeks maximum).
(2) Two principal site business identification signs (i.e.,
one freestanding sign with a maximum of two display faces, and one
wall sign) may be displayed on the same lot as the business with which
they are associated.
(3) The total area of all signage (except special sales
signs) associated with any one business or on any one site shall not
exceed an area equal to 0.65 square foot per linear foot of building
frontage or 400 square feet, whichever is less.
(4) Two permanent freestanding signs are allowed if the
parcel has two curb cuts on separate streets and they are separated
by a minimum of 100 feet on each street.
(5) Size, freestanding.
(a)
Height shall be a maximum of 12 feet.
(b)
Total area of a freestanding sign (counting one
sign face) shall be 32 square feet.
(6) Size, wall sign.
(a)
The total sign display area of the wall sign
shall not exceed an area equal to one square foot of sign area for
each linear foot of building frontage, or 300 square feet, whichever
is the lesser. In no instance shall any one sign exceed 150 square
feet.
(7) Window signs.
(a)
A total number of four window signs are permitted.
(b)
Maximum sign display area for a window sign shall
not exceed 30% of the contiguous window area for each window sign.
(c)
The aggregate total display area of all window
signs does not exceed an area equal to 0.5 square foot per linear
foot of building frontage.
(8) Sign lighting. Signs may be internally or externally
illuminated. Illumination of signs shall not be of intermittent or
varying intensity or produce direct glare beyond the limit, of the
side property line. Red, green, and amber lights of such shape and
hue that may be confused with official traffic lights and signals
shall be prohibited. All light sources shall be shielded and mounted
to avoid glare. Top-mounted lighting fixtures are preferred. No signs
with a reflecting surface that can cause glare shall be allowed. No
illuminated sign shall be placed or directed to cause beams of light
to be cast on any public highway, sidewalk, or adjacent premises or
to cause glare or reflection that will be a traffic hazard or nuisance.
The Planning Board may require an illuminated sign to be turned off
two hours after the close of business.
E. Burnt Hill Commercial, Mixed-Use Ballston Lake, and
Mixed Use Route 50/67 Districts.
(1) Permitted signs:
(d)
Permanent changeable message signs.
(2) Two principal site business identification signs (i.e.,
one freestanding sign with a maximum of two display faces, and one
wall sign) may be displayed on the same lot as the business with which
they are associated.
(3) The total area of all signage (except special sales
signs) associated with any one business or on any one site shall not
exceed 150 square feet.
(4) Size, freestanding.
(a)
Height shall be a maximum of eight feet.
(b)
Total area of a freestanding sign (counting one
sign face) shall be 32 square feet.
(5) Size, wall sign.
(a)
The total sign display area shall not exceed
an area equal to 1.5 square feet of sign area for each linear foot
of building frontage, or 10% of the total area of the one building
facade upon which the sign is located, or 100 square feet, whichever
is the lesser. In no instance shall any one sign exceed 50 square
feet.
(6) Window sign.
(a)
A total number of four window signs are permitted.
(b)
Maximum display area shall not exceed 30% of
the contiguous window area for each window sign.
(c)
The aggregate total display area of all window
signs does not exceed an area equal to 0.5 square foot per linear
foot of building frontage.
(7) Sign lighting. Signs may be internally or externally
illuminated. Illumination of signs shall not be of intermittent or
varying intensity or produce direct glare beyond the limit, of the
side property line. Red, green, and amber lights of such shape and
hue that may be confused with official traffic lights and signals
shall be prohibited. All light sources shall be shielded and mounted
to avoid glare. Top-mounted lighting fixtures are preferred. No signs
with a reflecting surface that can cause glare shall be allowed. No
illuminated sign shall be placed or directed to cause beams of light
to be cast on any public highway, sidewalk, or adjacent premises or
to cause glare or reflection that will be a traffic hazard or nuisance.
The Planning Board may require an illuminated sign to be turned off
two hours after the close of business.
When any provision of this article conflicts with the provisions
in other sections of this chapter, the provisions of this article
shall apply.
LED signs may be permitted only with a special use permit and
only in the Business District and the Light Industrial District. When
approved, LED signs shall meet the following standards:
A. The message displayed on the digital off-premises sign
shall be static and nonanimated and shall remain fixed for a minimum
of 10 seconds;
B. The sign shall not display any message that moves,
appears to move, scrolls, or changes in intensity during the fixed
display period;
C. The transition time between changes in the sign face
or message shall be less than one second;
D. The sign must be equipped with brightness controls
which shall be used to reduce the intensity of the light based on
outside light levels; and
E. The digital LED display shall not have lighting that
would compete with or distract from traffic signal lighting.