As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS SIGN
A sign advertising the seasonal, temporary sale of agricultural
products produced on the premises or the seasonal sale of Christmas
trees.
BUILDING FACE
The area of each side of a building, but not including, the
area of any slanted roof.
CHARITABLE EVENT SIGN
A sign advertising a special event held a maximum of seven
days in any calendar year that primarily is held to benefit a U.S.
Internal Revenue Service recognized charitable nonprofit organization.
CONTRACTORS SIGN
A sign advertising that a contractor or other building tradesperson
is conducting work on a particular lot that is not the tradesperson's
place of business.
DIGITAL SIGN
An off-premises advertising sign or billboard that utilizes
digital or video light-emitting diodes (LEDs) or similar electronic
methods to create a changeable image display area.
[Added 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 09-07]
DIRECTIONAL SIGN
An informational sign indicating traffic direction, entry
or exit, loading or service area, fire lanes, parking or closely similar
information incidental to the primary use and not itself advertising
any use.
ELECTRONICALLY CHANGING MESSAGE SIGN
A sign or portion thereof designed to accommodate frequent
message changes composed of characters or letters, and that can be
changed or rearranged electronically without altering the face or
surface of such sign.
[Added 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 09-07]
FREESTANDING SIGN
A sign which is self-supporting upon the ground or which
is supported by means of poles, pylons or standards in the ground.
A freestanding sign is not attached to a building except by secondary
supports such as guy wires.
HEIGHT OF SIGN
The vertical distance measured from the average ground level
immediately below a sign to the highest point of the sign and its
supporting structure.
IDENTIFICATION SIGN
A sign that only identifies the name and the nonresidential
use of a property but that has no advertising.
ILLUMINATED SIGN, EXTERNALLY
A sign which is designed to be illuminated by artificial
light from a source adjacent to, or outside of, the sign in such a
manner that the source of the light is not directly visible from the
street or any other intended vantage point of the sign.
ILLUMINATED SIGN, INTERNALLY
A sign which is designed to be illuminated by light from
within the sign rather than a source adjacent to or outside of the
sign.
MOVABLE SIGN
A sign which is not secured or attached to a structure or
to the ground.
NAMEPLATE SIGN
A sign indicating only the name and/or address of persons
or person residing on the premises.
OFFICIAL SIGN
A sign erected by the state, county, Township or other legally
constituted governmental body, or specifically authorized by a Township
ordinance or resolution that exists for governmental and not commercial
purposes.
POLITICAL SIGN
A sign which indicates the name, cause or affiliation of
a person seeking public or other elected office or on which reference
is made to an issue for which a public election or referendum is scheduled
to be held. Political signs that are larger than allowed under "exempt
signs" shall be regulated as "off-premises signs."
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT SIGN
A sign that announces a proposed subdivision or land development
for which a plan has been submitted to the Township, and which involves
more than one acre of industrial, commercial or institutional uses
or more than five acres of residential uses.
PUBLIC SERVICES SIGN
A sign which advertises availability of rest rooms, telephone,
meeting times of service organizations or other similar public convenience.
REAL ESTATE SIGN
A sign which advertises the availability of the property
on which the sign is located for sale, rent or lease.
SIGN ON MOBILE STANDS
A freestanding sign that is attached to a chassis that allows it to be towed from one location to another and that has no permanent foundation. See §
275-163B.
SPECIAL SALE SIGN
One or more promotional banners, balloons, floodlights, lasers
projecting into the sky or flags or banners used by a business to
attract special attention.
TEMPORARY SIGN
A sign constructed of paper, cloth, canvas, wood, metal or
any lightweight material intended to be displayed for a short period
of time, normally less than 30 days.
VEHICULAR SIGN
A sign affixed or painted on a vehicle, trailer or similar
device.
WALL SIGN
A sign posted on, painted on, suspended from or otherwise
affixed to a wall or vertical surface of a building which does not
project more than 12 inches from the wall or vertical surface to which
it is attached.
WINDOW SIGN
A sign which is readily visible and can be at least partially
read from an exterior lot line and which is attached to a window or
transparent door or that can be read through a window or transparent
door.
Every permanent sign permitted in this section
must be constructed of durable materials and must be kept in good
condition and repair. Any sign which is allowed to become dilapidated
may be repaired or removed by the Township at the expense of the owner
or lessee of the property on which it is located.
Signs advertising a use no longer in existence
or a product no longer available shall be removed or changed to advertise
the new use or product or the sale or lease of the property within
90 days of the cessation of the original use.
The location for signs shall be governed by
the following location requirements:
A. Setback from streets. No sign except official signs,
nameplate signs, public service signs and directional signs shall
be erected within five feet of or project over any existing and/or
future street right-of-way.
B. Sight distance. No sign shall be so located or arranged that it interferes with the sight distance requirements of §
275-171C.
C. On-premises. No signs except permitted off-premises,
official, political or public service signs shall be erected on a
property to which it does not relate.
D. Setbacks. No sign shall be located within a required
side or rear setback for an accessory structure, except along lot
lines that abut a commercially or industrially used or zoned lot (other
than a street right-of-way). A sign may be located within a required
front yard, provided that the "setback from streets" in this section
are complied with.
E. Permission of owner. No sign shall be posted on any property or sign pole or public utility pole, unless permission has been received by the owner, except within §
275-157 for temporary open house or garage sale signs.
F. Right-of-way. The Zoning Officer or his/her designee
shall have the authority to remove unauthorized signs from property
of Bethlehem Township or within the right-of-way of a public street
or that represent a hazard to public safety because of an obstruction
of sight distances.
Any vehicle or structure to which a sign is
affixed in such a manner that the carrying of such sign or signs no
longer is incidental to the primary purpose of the vehicle or structure
but becomes a primary purpose in itself, shall be considered a freestanding
sign and as such be subject to the provisions regarding freestanding
signs in the district in which such vehicle or structure is located.
The following type of signs, as defined by §
275-150, do not require a permit under this article and shall meet the following restrictions:
A. Official signs. These are not regulated in any form
by this article.
B. Nameplate signs: not to exceed two square feet; maximum
of one per lot.
C. Identification signs: not to exceed two square feet;
maximum of one per lot.
D. Directional signs: not to exceed four square feet.
E. Memorial or historic markers when approved by the
Board of Commissioners or the Planning Commission or a state or federal
government agency.
F. Public service signs: not to exceed two square feet;
maximum of two per lot.
H. Trespassing signs or signs indicating the private
nature of a road, driveway or premises and signs prohibiting or controlling
hunting and fishing upon the premises not to exceed two square feet.
Such signs shall not be posted closer than 25 feet to each other within
a lot.
I. Signs physically carried by a person, which are not
regulated in any way by this chapter.
J. Home occupation signs. Not to exceed two square feet
and are limited to one per lot or use, whichever is less. Such signs
may be illuminated only by use of lighting customarily found in a
residential neighborhood, which shall not include use of high-intensity
flood lighting nor internal illumination of the sign.
K. Signs not visible. Signs that are not visible from
a public street or any exterior property line are exempt from the
permit and size requirements.
L. Officially required signs. Signs that include only
such information as is specifically required to be posted out of doors
by a government agency.
M. Very small signs. Signs of less than one square foot
in area that cannot be read by a person of normal eyesight from a
public street or any property line are exempt from the permit requirements.
N. Window signs. Window signs that are not of a permanent
nature, provided that they meet the other requirements of this article.
O. Decorations. Decorations for a Township, county, state
or federal government-recognized holiday provided they are posted
not more than 20 days (except 60 days prior to Christmas) prior to
the event and removed within 10 days after the event.
P. Flags. Flags of any nation or level of government.
Also, up to two additional cloth flags per lot of up to 10 square
feet each.
Q. Signs within right-of-way. Signs within the existing
right-of-way of a public street when officially authorized by the
Board of Commissioners or PennDOT, as appropriate.
The following signs are prohibited in all zoning
districts:
A. Banners, flags, spinners, pennants or any moving object used for a commercial advertising purpose whether containing a message or not, except as is exempted by §
275-157.
B. Flashing, electronically changing message, blinking, twinkling, animated or moving signs of any type, except those portions of signs which indicate only time and temperature changes. This restriction specifically includes window signs and signs on mobile stands. This shall not prohibit Christmas lighting or displays, within §
275-157O. This shall not prohibit digital signs and electronically changing message signs as permitted in §
275-166E.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 09-07]
C. Signs which emit smoke, visible vapors or particles,
sound or odor.
D. Signs which contain information that states or implies
that a property may be used for any purpose not permitted under the
provisions of this chapter in the zoning district in which the property
to which the sign relates is located.
E. Signs that are of such character, form, shape or color
that they imitate or resemble any official traffic sign, signal or
device or that have any characteristics which are likely to confuse
or distract the operator of a motor vehicle on a public street.
F. The outlining of the rooflines, doors, windows or
wall edges by illuminated neon light tubing for advertising purposes.
G. Signs that use reflective materials to give the appearance of flashing, blinking, twinkling or electronically changing messages. This shall not prohibit digital signs and electronically changing message signs as permitted in §
275-166E.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 09-07]
H. Signs or displays that include words or images that
are obscene, pornographic or highly offensive to public decency.
I. Balloons of greater than five cubic feet that are
tethered to the ground or a structure and are primarily intended for
advertising purposes, except as provided as a "special sale sign."
J. Any sign on a mobile stand other than as provided for by §
275-163B.
K. Floodlights and lasers. These are only permitted as
a special sale sign.
The following regulations shall be used in computing
the area of signs:
A. The area of a sign shall be construed to include all
lettering, wording and accompanying designs and symbols, together
with the background, whether open or enclosed, on which they are displayed.
B. The sign area shall not include any structurally supporting
framework and bracing, nor wooden framing if such area does not include
any display, lettering or sign and if such area is clearly incidental
to the display itself.
C. Where the sign consists of individual letters or symbols
attached to or painted on a surface, building, wall or window, the
area shall be considered to be that of the smallest rectangle or other
regular shape, including the sign background, which encompasses all
of the letters and symbols.
D. In computing square foot area of a double-face sign,
only one side shall be considered, provided both faces are identical
in size. If the interior angle formed by the two faces of the double-faced
sign is greater than 60°, than both sides of such sign shall be
considered in calculating the sign area.
E. Unless otherwise specified, all square footages are
maximum sizes.
The following types of signs are permitted in
the following industrial and business districts, including LI, LI(P),
GI and OB:
C. Signs identifying major developments in §
275-159.
D. Wall sign. Up to two shall be permitted for each establishment.
Each sign shall have a total sign area of no greater than 10% of the
total area of the building face on which each is visible, or a total
maximum of 200 square feet, whichever is less.
E. Freestanding sign. Not to exceed one structure per
street frontage. The total area of each freestanding sign shall not
exceed 50 square feet.
F. Signs on mobile stands are specifically prohibited.
Any of the signs in §§
275-152 through and including 275-164 that are to be associated with a proposed conditional or special exception use shall be reviewed and either be approved or denied at the same time that the conditional or special exception use is being reviewed. A condition of such approval shall be compatibility with adjacent land uses.