[Added 9-19-2012 by Ord. No. 237]
The purpose of these regulations is to provide an area for the
placement of billboards in the Township. The goals of these regulations
are to:
A.
Provide clear guidelines and regulations for the placement of billboards.
B.
Provide standards for construction of billboards.
C.
Provide for the location of billboards so that such signs are not
detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of the public, or to
the rural and historic character of Worcester Township.
A.
Signs permitted. Billboards may be permitted by conditional use in
the billboard Overlay District subject to the requirements contained
in this section.
B.
Size of sign face. A billboard sign face may not exceed 300 square
feet per side in area, with a maximum length of 20 feet and a maximum
width (i.e., height of sign face only) of 15 feet.
C.
Height. Billboards (including the supporting structure) shall not
exceed 25 feet in height. The height shall be measured from the grade
of the immediately adjoining street, road, highway or alley to which
the sign is oriented, to the highest part of the sign, including any
lighting or portion of the support structure.
D.
Location of sign. Billboards shall be located no closer than 20 feet
to any property line, and shall not be located closer than 25 feet
to, nor further than 75 feet from, any street or road to which the
billboard is oriented, measured from the ultimate right-of-way of
such street or road. Billboards may not be closer than 800 feet to
another billboard measured linearly on the same side of the street
or road to which the billboard is oriented; and shall not be closer
to another billboard than 500 feet if the billboards are on opposite
sides of the street or road to which the billboards are oriented.
No billboard shall be located within 500 feet of any right-of-way
of any interchange, measured along the interstate or limited access
primary highway from the beginning or ending of pavement widening
at the exit from or entrance to the main-traveled way. No billboard
shall be located within 800 feet of the edge of any street or road
(other than the street or road to which the billboard is oriented)
measured linearly on the same side of the street or road to which
the billboard is oriented. No billboard shall be erected within a
three-hundred-foot circumference of the nearest property line of any
of the following: historic site, school, church or other religious
institution, retirement or nursing home, cemetery, government building,
community center or public park, playground or recreational area.
No billboard shall be located within 500 feet of any existing residential
dwelling or residential zoning district on the same side of the street
or road to which the billboard is oriented.
E.
Number of signs per lot. More than one billboard shall be permitted
per tax parcel, but such signs shall be no less than 800 feet apart.
F.
Content. No billboard shall advertise any adult or sexually oriented
businesses or materials, contain any obscene or profane language,
emit any verbal announcement, sound, music or noises of any kind,
or otherwise display any content prohibited by 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5903.
G.
Lighting. Illumination of billboards shall be solely by external,
down-facing, shielded fixtures of white light at a constant intensity.
All external illumination shall be shielded as necessary to direct
light onto the sign without spillover on any side of the sign. Any
resulting light trespass generated by a billboard shall not exceed
1/8 footcandle, as measured on the ground at the curbline or shoulder
of any street, road or highway in the immediate vicinity of the sign,
so as not to impair the vision of any motor vehicle driver or otherwise
interfere with a driver's operation of his or her motor vehicle. A
billboard or its structure shall be illuminated only from dusk until
10:00 p.m.
(1)
The external illumination of billboards shall not exceed 1.75
watts per square foot of board face.
(2)
Changing, animated, flashing, revolving, scrolling, rotating,
oscillating, or intermittently illuminated style signs shall be prohibited.
Billboards shall not use reflective elements or materials of any kind.
H.
Lot size. The minimum lot size for a property on which a billboard
may be located shall be 10 acres.
I.
Maintenance of sign. All billboards shall be structurally sound and
maintained in good condition. If the signs are not structurally sound
or maintained in good condition, the signs shall be immediately repaired
or removed at the sole cost and expense of the owner of the sign.
If a billboard is determined by the Township to be structurally unsound
or in poor condition, the Township shall notify the owner of the property
on which the sign is located and provide the owner 60 days' written
notice via certified mail, sent to the owner's last known address,
to repair or remove the sign. If the billboard is not repaired or
removed within 60 days of the date of the notice, the Township may
remove the sign, and the cost thereof shall be paid by the owner of
the property on which the billboard is erected. The Township may file
a lien against the property or take any action permitted by law to
collect the cost of removal if it is not paid by the owner of the
property.
J.
Sign arrangement. When two sign faces are used in a back-to-back
arrangement on a billboard, they shall be parallel, directly aligned
with each other and not more than five feet apart. When a V-type sign
arrangement is used for two sign faces of any billboard, the sign
faces shall not be located more than 15 feet apart at the furthest
point nor shall the interior angle be greater than 45°. The rear
side of any single-face billboard shall be of one neutral color which
shall be specified in the order of the Board of Supervisors.
K.
Agreement of property owner. No part of the face or of any foundation
or support of any billboard shall be placed on, in or over any private
property without the written agreement of the property owner. Such
agreement shall be presented as part of the application for said sign
permit, but the consideration bargained between the private parties
may be redacted.
L.
Landscaping. Trees greater than four inches in diameter removed for
access to or the construction of a billboard shall be replaced on
site at a ratio of one replacement tree for each removed tree using
native species no less than three inches in diameter. A continuous
landscaped buffer shall be planted along every side of the supporting
structure of the billboard and extending a minimum of 10 feet from
the supporting structure in all directions. Plantings shall consist
of at least seventy-five-percent evergreen materials and shall provide
an immediate visual screen of 50% or greater 10 feet from the ground
or at the base of the billboard, whichever is higher. All landscaping
shall be maintained in good condition. If any approved landscaping
is found by the Township to be in poor condition, the Township shall
notify the owner of the property on which the billboard and landscaping
are located and provide the owner 60 days' written notice via certified
mail, sent to the owner's last known address, to correct to the condition
of the landscaping to the satisfaction of the Township. If the condition
of the landscaping is not corrected within 60 days of the date of
the notice, the Township may perform such work as is necessary to
bring the landscaping into good condition in accordance with the conditional
use approval, and the cost thereof shall be paid by the owner of the
property on which the billboard and landscaping are located. The Township
may file a lien against the property or take any action permitted
by law to collect the cost of any corrective action taken by the Township
if it is not paid by the owner of the property.
M.
Owner identification. All billboards shall be identified on the structure
with the name and address of the owner of each sign. Any billboard
located within an area that is regulated by Chapter 445 of the Pennsylvania
Code shall further be identified with a permit number or tag issued
by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
N.
Discontinued sign. A billboard shall be considered a discontinued
sign if it has carried no message for a period of 180 consecutive
days, or if such billboard no longer identifies a bona fide business,
commodity, service, entertainment or facility, or if more than 50%
of the message on such billboard has deteriorated to the point that
it is not clearly discernable from the road or street to which it
is oriented. A billboard that has been discontinued shall be presumed
to be abandoned and shall constitute an illegal sign. Any period of
time for which the discontinued use of a billboard is proved to be
caused by government actions, labor strikes, material shortages or
acts of God, and without any contributing fault of the owner of the
sign or user of the sign, shall not be calculated toward the number
of days of discontinued use. Any discontinued billboard shall be removed
at the expense of the owner of the sign. In the event that the owner
of the sign cannot be ascertained after the Township's reasonable
inquiry, the discontinued sign and structure shall be removed at the
expense of the owner of the property on which the sign is erected.
O.
Additional regulations. In addition to the requirements contained
in this section, all billboards shall comply with any and all applicable
zoning regulations not specifically established herein and any and
all Township, state and/or federal regulations, including, but not
limited to, the Worcester Township building code and all applicable
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation regulations.
