In expansion of the declaration of legislative intent and statement of community development objectives found in Article
I of this chapter, it is the specific intent of this article to:
A. Recognize that signs perform an important function in identifying
properties, businesses, services, residences, events, and other matters
of interest to the public.
B. Set standards and provide controls that permit reasonable use of
signs while restricting the potential adverse visual effects of signs
on the character of the community.
C. Control the size, number, location, and illumination of signs to
reduce potential hazards caused by glare or obstruction of visibility
and to reduce visual clutter which results from competition among
signs.
D. Encourage signs which are attractively designed in order to enhance
the economic value as well as the visual character of the various
parts of the community.
E. Establish criteria to encourage signs that are compatible with their
surroundings, appropriate to the type of activity to which they pertain,
complementary to the architecture of the buildings involved, expressive
of the identity of individual proprietors or of an integrated development's
identity, and which are easily readable in the circumstances in which
they are seen.
In the R-1 Low Density Residential, R-2 Medium Density Residential,
R-3 Medium-High Density Residential, R-4 High Density Residential,
and IN Institutional Districts, the following signs and no others
shall be permitted:
A. Nameplates and identification signs:
(1)
Signs indicating the name and/or address of the occupant, provided
they shall be no larger than two square feet in area. Only one such
sign per dwelling unit shall be permitted.
(2)
For buildings other than single-family detached dwellings, only
a single identification sign not exceeding 15 square feet in area
and indicating only the name and address of the building and the name
of the management may be displayed.
(3)
These signs shall be placed a minimum of two feet inside the
front lot line and two feet from any side lot line.
B. Sale or rental signs: signs advertising the proposed sale or rental
of the premises upon which erected by the owner or broker interested
in such sale or rental of such premises, provided:
(1)
The size of any such sign shall not exceed six square feet.
(2)
The number of such signs shall not exceed one per street frontage,
although a double-sided sign may be used.
C. Institutional signs. Institutional uses shall be permitted to have
the following signs:
(1)
Sign for a school, church, hospital, sanitarium, or other institutional
use, on the same lot therewith, for the purpose of displaying the
name of the institution and its activities or services, provided that
the area on any one side of such sign shall not exceed 15 square feet,
and further provided that not more than one such sign shall be erected
on any one street frontage.
(2)
Trespassing signs and signs indicating private ownership of
roadways or other property, provided that the total area on any one
side of such sign shall not exceed one square foot and such signs
shall be spaced at intervals of not less than 75 feet of street frontage.
(3)
Each building shall be permitted to have a sign identifying
the name, use or purpose of said building, provided that the total
area of any one side of such sign shall not exceed 10 square feet.
D. Artisan sign: sign of a contractor, painter, or artisan, only while
such person is actually performing work on the premises, provided
that the size of any such sign shall not exceed six square feet and
that it is removed promptly upon completion of the work.
E. Any sign required by law, including street and traffic signs.
F. A sign indicating private ownership of the property upon which it
is erected, provided the total sign area for every 50 feet of each
street frontage shall not exceed two square feet.
In all districts, the following general sign regulations shall
apply:
A. No sign shall be erected so as to endanger highway users by obscuring
a clear view or by causing confusion with official street signs or
signals due to its color or location. In addition, no sign shall be
placed on utility poles.
[Amended 10-2-2000 by Ord. No. 6-00]
B. No sign, other than official street signs, shall be erected or maintained
within the right-of-way of any public road.
C. No sign shall project over a public walkway, except for a projecting sign that meets the requirements of §
110-1502B(8)(b).
[Amended 12-1-2006 by Ord. No. 8-06; 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 5-07]
D. No sign shall be permitted to swing freely, except for a projecting sign that meets the requirements of §
110-1502B(8)(b).
[Amended 12-1-2006 by Ord. No. 8-06; 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 5-07]
E. Every sign shall be constructed of durable materials, using noncorrosive
fastenings, shall be structurally safe and erected or installed in
strict accordance with the Borough Building Code and shall be maintained
in a safe condition and good repair at all times.
F. Every sign affixed to a building wall shall have its entire inner surface flush with the building wall, and no part of the sign shall project beyond the building line more than 18 inches. Where a building has a canopy or marquee constructed as an integral part of said building, for the purpose of administering this section, the front line of said canopy or marquee shall be interpreted as being the face of the building. This section shall not apply to a projecting sign that meets the requirements of §
110-1502B(8)(b).
[Amended 12-1-2006 by Ord. No. 8-06; 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 5-07]
G. Permitted signs may be illuminated by interior lighting or lighting
directed toward the sign; however, it is unlawful to erect or maintain
any illuminated sign where the light source moves or is not of constant
intensity and color, or where the light bulb can shine directly into
the eyes of any occupant of any vehicle traveling upon any highway,
driveway, or parking area, or into or upon any portion of an adjacent
residential or institutional district, or where the illumination interferes
with the visibility or readability of any traffic sign or device.
H. External floodlighting of any property must be so shielded that the
source of light shall not be visible from any point off the lot on
which the sign, building, structure or area being illuminated is situated
and so that only the sign, building, structure, or area is illuminated
thereby.
I. No sign shall have flashing, intermittent, animated or revolving
illumination.
J. Signs accessory to parking areas. Signs designating entrances or
exits to or from a parking area shall be limited to one sign for each
such exit or entrance with a maximum size of four square feet for
each sign. One sign per parking area designating the conditions of
use or identity of such parking area and limited to a maximum size
of six square feet shall be permitted, provided that, on a corner
lot, two such signs shall be permitted, one facing each street.
K. Development signs. Signs advertising the sale or development of the
premises upon which they are erected, when erected in connection with
the development of the premises by a builder, contractor, developer,
or other persons interested in such sale or development, may be erected
and maintained, provided:
(1)
The size of any sign is not in excess of 15 square feet.
(2)
Not more than one sign is placed upon any property, unless such
property fronts more than one street, in which event one such sign
may be erected on each frontage.
(3)
Any such sign shall be removed by the developer within 30 days
of the final sale of the property.
L. Directional signs. Signs indicating the location and direction of
a premises available for or in the process of development, but not
erected upon such premises, and having inscribed thereon the name
of the owner, developer, builder, or agent, may be erected or maintained,
provided that:
(1)
The size of any such sign is not in excess of six square feet.
(2)
Not more than one such sign is erected on each street frontage.
M. Private driveways/trespassing. Signs indicating the private nature
of a driveway, or trespassing signs, shall be permitted, provided
that the size of any such sign shall not exceed one square foot.
N. Nonconforming signs.
(1)
It is intended to eliminate nonconforming signs, except as otherwise
specifically set forth in this section, as rapidly as the police power
of the Borough permits. Any lawfully erected sign, the maintenance
of which is made unlawful by this chapter, may continue to be maintained
exactly as such existed at the time when the maintenance thereof became
otherwise unlawful under the provisions of this chapter.
(2)
No nonconforming sign:
(a)
Shall be changed to another nonconforming sign.
(b)
Shall have any changes made in the words or symbols used or the message displayed on the sign unless the sign is an off-premises advertising sign (as regulated in §
110-1507 herein) or a bulletin board, or substantially similar type of sign, specifically designed for a periodic change of message.
(c)
Shall be structurally altered so as to prolong the life of the
sign or so as to change the shape, size, type, or design of the sign.
(d)
Shall be reestablished after the activity, business, or use
to which it relates has been discontinued for 30 days or longer.
(e)
Shall be reestablished after damage or destruction if the estimated
expense of reconstruction exceed 50% of the reproduction cost.
(3)
The Zoning Hearing Board may permit variances from the requirements of Subsection
N(2) of this section or variances permitting the maintenance of a nonconforming sign only in accordance with the provisions of Article
XVIII of this chapter, and upon a finding that the grant of a variance will reduce the degree of nonconformance of an existing sign or will result in the removal of one or more lawfully nonconforming signs and replacement by a sign or signs more in keeping with the spirit, purpose, and provisions of this chapter.
O. Obsolete signs. It is unlawful to maintain for more than 30 days any sign which has become obsolete because of discontinuance of the business, service, or activity which it advertises, removal from the location to which it directs, or for any other reason. The only exception shall be for off-premises signs, which shall follow the provisions of §
110-1507 herein. The fact that an obsolete sign is nonconforming shall not be construed as modifying any of the requirements of this section.
P. Permission of owner or occupant. It is unlawful to erect or maintain
any sign on any property, public or private, without the consent of
the owner or occupant thereof.
Q. Political signs. Political signs shall be permitted in all districts,
provided they meet the regulations set forth in this chapter. Such
political signs shall be nonilluminated and shall not exceed four
square feet in area or four feet in height. If the sign relates to
election of political candidates, such sign shall not be erected or
displayed earlier than 30 days prior to the election and shall be
removed within three days after the election.
[Added 10-2-2000 by Ord. No. 6-00]
R. All wall signs, projecting signs, and sidewalk signs shall comply
with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act for projecting
objects.
[Added 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 5-07]
S. Temporary, nonilluminated signs less than two square feet in size
each may be placed inside windows.
[Added 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 5-07]
The following regulations govern all signs that are not permanently
affixed to a building wall or to a permanent foundation for a freestanding
sign:
A. Temporary signs shall be permitted for any business use permitted in the RC Residential-Commercial, SC Shopping Center, and LI Limited Industrial Districts, in addition to the permanent sign or signs permitted under §
110-1502 herein.
B. The total sign area for all temporary signs for each individual business shall not exceed the aggregate or total sign area permitted as permanent signs for each business under §
110-1502 herein.
[Amended 11-20-2012 by Ord. No. 1-2012]
C. Temporary signs may be permitted in the form of posters affixed to
the inside of store windows, a banner attached to the front or side
of the business for which the sign is permitted, or a freestanding
sign not affixed to a permanent foundation. Any freestanding temporary
sign shall be constructed, anchored, and/or weighted in such a manner
as to prevent collapse or unwanted movement of any kind.
D. Freestanding temporary signs in the RC Residential-Commercial and LI Limited Industrial Districts shall be subject to the permitted size of sign and setback standards contained in §
110-1502 herein, except that each individual freestanding temporary sign shall not exceed six square feet.
[Amended 11-20-2012 by Ord. No. 1-2012]
E. Freestanding temporary signs in the SC Shopping Center District shall
be permitted to be located within the landscaped area along the center's
street frontage, provided that they are set back a minimum of 25 feet
from the street's curbline and a minimum of 50 feet from the curbline
or pavement edge of the shopping center's access driveways and driveways
on adjacent properties. Spacing between temporary freestanding signs
within the landscaped area shall be a minimum of 100 feet.
F. Freestanding temporary signs in the SC Shopping Center District may
be placed on the sidewalk in front of the individual business, provided
that the sign does not exceed 25% of the width of the sidewalk.
G. Two freestanding temporary signs shall be allowed for each property or business without obtaining a sign permit from the Borough. A sign permit shall be required for all freestanding temporary signs where three or more signs are placed on a business or property in compliance with §
110-1504, Application to erect a sign; fees; inspections, herein.
[Amended 11-20-2012 by Ord. No. 1-2012]
H. Use of temporary signs shall be limited as follows:
(1)
Any one individual business may use a temporary sign not more
than three times in one calendar year.
(2)
A temporary sign may be erected not more than seven days prior
to the beginning of the event advertised and shall be removed not
more than three days following the end of the event advertised. The
maximum period of time from when the sign is erected to when it is
removed shall not exceed 25 days for each event.
(3)
The minimum period of time between the removal of a temporary
sign for one event and the erection of a temporary sign for another
event by the same business shall be 14 days.
I. All temporary signs shall comply with the requirements of §
110-1502B(8) with respect to the Sign Overlay District. In the event of a conflict between this section and §
110-1502B(8), the requirements of §
110-1502B(8) shall control.
[Added 11-20-2012 by Ord. No. 1-2012]
The following regulations govern all changeable-copy signs,
which are those signs that are designed so that characters, letters,
or illustrations can be changed or rearranged manually or electronically
without altering the size, face, or surface of the sign.
A. Any sign permitted by the regulations of this chapter may be used
as a changeable-copy sign.
B. Any change in size, type styles, content, color, position, or intensity
shall be considered a change for the purposes of this chapter. The
permitted frequency of change for any one sign shall not exceed one
time per hour.
C. Signs which alternate between a display of time and temperature are
changeable-copy signs that are exempted from the frequency limitations
of this section.
[Amended 10-2-2000 by Ord. No. 6-00]
Off-premises advertising signs (those signs which advertise products, services, activities or uses not located on the same properties as the signs) shall be permitted by conditional use only in the LI Limited Industrial District and the RC Residential-Commercial Zoning District, in compliance with §
110-328 of this chapter and with the following:
A. Each sign may be double-faced with two advertising surfaces. Each
surface shall have a maximum area of 100 square feet, a maximum length
of 20 feet, and a maximum height of 15 feet.
B. Minimum setbacks for signs:
(1)
Twenty five feet from any road ultimate right-of-way.
(2)
Forty feet from any property line.
(3)
Twenty-five feet from any building.
(4)
One hundred feet from any other off-premises sign.
C. No sign may be attached to a building. No portion of the supporting
structure shall be visible above the sign display area. The sign shall
be erected on permanent footings or support structures that meet all
applicable Borough codes.
D. The applicant for an off-premises sign permit shall submit a statement,
written by the property owner and duly notarized, that the applicant
has the authority to erect and maintain a sign on that property.
(1)
The applicant shall remove any sign that meets any of the following
criteria:
(a)
The sign is no longer in use.
(b)
The sign remains without bona fide advertisement for a period
of 90 days or more. An advertisement to rent the space on that sign
does not constitute a bona fide advertisement.
(c)
The applicant's authority to erect and maintain a sign on the
property has expired.
(2)
If the sign applicant is unable to remove the sign, the property
owner shall be responsible for removing the sign.
E. Each sign shall meet all applicable regulations of the Borough, the
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), and the Pennsylvania
Assembly.