[Amended 8-7-2019 by Ord. No. 18-2019]
A. 
The purpose of these sign regulations is to establish minimum standards; to encourage the effective use of signs as a means of communication in the City; to maintain and enhance the aesthetic environment and the City's ability to attract sources of economic development and growth; to improve pedestrian and traffic safety; to minimize the possible adverse effects of signs on nearby public and private property; and to enable the fair and consistent enforcement of these sign regulations.
B. 
The sign ordinance codified in this article is adopted under the authority of the City.
This article shall be binding upon the owner of any property upon which a sign is placed, upon any lessee of such property and upon any person who constructs or maintains signs within the City. This article governs all signs currently in use and those hereinafter installed in the City.
A. 
A sign may be erected, placed, established, painted, created or maintained in the City only in conformity with the standards, procedures, exemptions and other requirements of this article.
B. 
The effect of this article as more specifically set forth is to:
(1) 
Establish a permanent system to allow a variety of types of signs in commercial and industrial zones and a limited variety of signs in residential zones, subject to the standards and permit procedures of this article.
(2) 
Allow signs that are small, unobtrusive and incidental to the principal use of respective lots on which they are located, subject to the substantive requirements of this article but without the requirements for a permit.
(3) 
Provide for small, temporary signs without commercial messages in limited circumstances in the public right-of-way.
(4) 
Prohibit all signs not expressly permitted by this article.
(5) 
Establish reasonable fees.
(6) 
Provide for the enforcement of the provisions of this article.
C. 
Permit required. A sign permit is required prior to the improvement, erection, construction, enlargement, alteration or repair of any sign unless exempt by this article.
A. 
Words and phrases used in this article shall have the meaning set forth in § 450-67C. Words and phrases not defined in this article but defined in other ordinances of the City shall be given the meaning set forth in such ordinances. All other words and phrases shall be given their common, ordinary meaning, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
B. 
Article and section headings and captions are for reference purposes only and shall not be used in the interpretation of this article.
C. 
Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meaning given in this subsection:
ABANDONED SIGN
Any sign and/or its supporting sign structure which remains without a message or whose display surface remains blank for a period of six months or more, or any sign which pertains to a time, event or purpose which no longer applies, shall be deemed to have been abandoned. Signs applicable to a business temporarily suspended because of a change in ownership or management of such business shall not be deemed abandoned unless the property remains vacant for a period of six months or more. Any sign remaining after demolition of a principal structure shall be deemed to be abandoned. Signs which are present because of being legally established nonconforming signs or signs which have required a conditional use permit or a variance shall also be subject to the definition of "abandoned sign."
ANIMATED SIGN
Any sign that uses movement or change of lighting, either natural or artificial, to depict action or create a special effect or scene. For the purposes of this article, a sign which consists of an electronic or mechanical indication of time or temperature shall be considered a time and temperature sign and not an animated sign. For purposes of this article, a sign which consists of an electronic or mechanical written message, including such messages as copy, art, graphics, time, date, temperature, weather or information concerning civic or charitable events or the advertising of products or services for sale on the premises, shall be considered an electronic message unit sign and not an animated sign.
BANNER
Any sign of lightweight fabric or similar material that is mounted to a pole or a building at one or more edges. National flags, state or municipal flags or the official flag of any institution or business shall not be considered a banner.
BUILDING INSPECTOR
An agent of the City of Amery authorized to inspect construction within the City.
BUILDING MARKER
Any sign indicating the name of a building and date and incidental information about its construction, which sign is cut into a masonry surface or made of bronze or other permanent material.
CANOPY SIGN
Any sign that is a part of or attached to an awning, canopy or other fabric, plastic or structural protective cover over a door entrance, window or outdoor service area. A marquee is not a canopy.
CHANGEABLE-COPY SIGN/READER BOARD
A sign or portion thereof with characters, letters or illustrations that can be changed or rearranged without altering the face or the surface of the sign. A sign on which the message changes more than eight times per day shall be considered an animated sign and not a changeable-copy sign for purposes of this article.
COMMERCIAL SPEECH
Any sign wording, logo or other representation that, directly or indirectly, names, advertises or calls attention to a business, product, service, sale or sales event or other commercial activity.
CONSTRUCTION SIGN
Any sign which alerts persons of construction or demolition activities for a project or which describes the project or the contractors involved.
DIRECTIONAL SIGN
A sign of a noncommercial nature which directs the reader to the location of public or educational institutions or to the location of historical structures or areas or to the location of public parks or buildings.
DISPLAY SURFACE AREA
The net geometric area enclosed by the display surface of the sign, including the outer extremities of all letters, characters and delineations; provided, however, that display surface area shall not include the structural supports for freestanding signs.
DISTRICT or ZONING DISTRICT
A section or sections of the incorporated area of the City of Amery for which the then-effective zoning ordinance governing the use of buildings and land is uniform for each class of use permitted therein.
ERECT
To build, construct, attach, hang, place, suspend or affix.
FLAG
Any fabric, banner or bunting containing distinctive colors, patterns or symbols, used as a symbol of government, political subdivision or other entity.
FLASHING SIGN
An illuminated sign on which artificial or reflected light is not maintained stationary and constant in intensity and color at all times when in use.
FREESTANDING SIGN
A sign which is attached to or a part of a completely self-supporting structure. The supporting structure shall be set firmly in or below the ground surface and shall not be attached to any building or any other structure, whether portable or stationary.
GARAGE/YARD SALE SIGN
Any sign which advertises a private sale of personal property used to dispose of personal household possessions, not for the use of any commercial venture.
IDENTIFICATION AND INFORMATION SIGN
A sign of an identification or informational nature bearing no advertising.
ILLUMINATED SIGN
Any sign which has characters, letters, figures, designs or outline illuminated directly or indirectly by electric lights or luminous tube.
INCIDENTAL SIGN
A sign, generally informational, that has a purpose secondary to the use of the lot on which it is located, such as "no parking," "entrance," "loading only," "telephone" and other similar directives. No sign with a commercial message legible from a position off the lot on which the sign is located shall be considered incidental.
JOINT IDENTIFICATION SIGN
A sign which serves as common or collective identification for a group of persons or businesses operating on the same zone lot (e.g., shopping center, office complex, etc.). Such sign may name the persons or businesses included but carry no other advertising matter.
LEASE
An agreement by which a property owner conveys, usually for a specified rent, to other persons permission to erect and maintain an advertising sign upon his or her property.
LEGALLY ESTABLISHED NONCONFORMING SIGN
Any sign and its support structure lawfully erected prior to the effective date of this article which fails to conform to the requirements of this article. A sign which was erected in accordance with a previous edition of this article or a sign erected in accordance with a variance granted prior to the adoption of this article and which does not comply with this article shall be deemed to be a legal nonconforming sign. A sign which was unlawfully erected shall be deemed to be an illegal sign.
LOT
Any piece or parcel of land or a portion of a subdivision, the boundaries of which have been established by some legal instrument of record that is recognized and intended as a unit for the purpose of transfer of ownership.
LOW-SLOPE ROOF
Any roof with a pitch less than three inches rise per 12 inches horizontal.
MANSARD ROOF
Any roof that has an angle greater than 45° and which derives part of its support from the building wall and is attached to (but not necessarily a part of) a low-slope roof and which extends along the full length of the front building wall or 3/4 of the length of a side building wall.
NONCOMMERCIAL SPEECH
Dissemination of messages not classified as "commercial speech" which include, but are not limited to, messages concerning political, religious, social, ideological, public service and informational topics.
NONCONFORMING SIGN
A sign existing at the effective date of the adoption of the ordinance codified in this article which could not be built under the terms of this article.
PENNANT
Any lightweight plastic, fabric or other material designed to move in the wind, whether containing a message or not.
PERSON
Includes any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization, singular or plural, of any kind.
PORTABLE SIGN
Any sign not permanently attached to the ground or other permanent structure and designed to be or used in a way that is movable from one location to another, including, but not limited to, signs designed to be transported by means of wheels; signs converted to A- or T-frames; balloons used as signs; umbrellas used for advertising.
PRINCIPAL BUILDING
The building in which is conducted the principal use of the zone lot on which it is located. Zone lots with multiple principal uses may have multiple principal buildings, but storage buildings, garages and other clearly accessory uses shall not be considered principal buildings.
PROJECTING SIGN
Any sign that shall be affixed at an angle or perpendicular to the wall of any building in such a manner to read perpendicularly or at an angle to the wall on which it is mounted.
PUBLIC EVENT
Any event that is authorized by the City of Amery, whether funded in part, total or not at all.
REAL ESTATE SIGN
A temporary sign placed upon property for the purpose of advertising to the public the sale or lease of said property.
RESIDENTIAL SIGN
Any sign located in a district zoned for residential uses that contains no commercial message except advertising for goods or services legally offered on the premises where the sign is located, if offering such service at such location conforms to the requirements of the City of Amery.
ROOF SIGN
Any sign erected and constructed wholly on and over the roof of a building, supported by the roof structure and extending vertically above the highest portion of the roof.
ROOF SIGN, INTEGRAL
Any sign erected and constructed as an integral or essentially integral part of a normal roof structure of any design, such that no part of the sign extends vertically above the highest portion of the roof and such that no part of the sign is separated from the rest of the roof by a space of more than six inches.
SETBACK
The distance from the property line to the nearest part of the applicable building, structure or sign, measured perpendicularly to the property line.
SHOPPING CENTER
A cohesive unit of stores or other commercial businesses arranged and constructed according to a plan and contained within a separate parcel of land.
SIGN
Includes every device, frame, letter, figure, character, mark, plane, point, design, picture, logo, stroke, stripe, trademark or reading matter which is used or intended to be used to attract attention or convey information, when the same is placed out of doors in view of the general public, and, in addition, any of the above which is not placed out of doors but which is illuminated with artificial or reflected light, and also the above when near the inside surface of a window in such a way as to be in view of the general public and used or intended to be used to attract attention or convey information to motorists.
SPOTLIGHT ILLUMINATION
Illumination which comes from lamps, lenses or devices designed to focus or concentrate the light rays of the source.
STREET and SIDEWALK
A strip of land or accessway subject to vehicular traffic and/or pedestrian traffic that provides direct or indirect access to property, including but not limited to alleys, avenues, boulevards, courts, drives, highways, lanes, places, roads, sidewalks, terraces, trails or other thoroughfares.
STREET FRONTAGE
The distance for which a lot line of a zone lot adjoins a public street, from one lot line intersecting said street to the furthest distant lot line intersecting the same street.
SUSPENDED SIGN
A sign that is suspended from the underside of a horizontal plane surface and is supported by such surface.
TEMPORARY SIGN
Any sign intended to be displayed for a period of not more than 60 days in a twelve-month period or until construction or sale of property is completed, including real estate, political or construction site signs and banners, decorative-type displays or anything similar to the aforementioned.
WALL SIGN
Any sign that shall be affixed parallel to the wall or printed on the wall of any building in such a manner as to read parallel to the wall on which it is mounted; provided, however, that said wall sign shall not project above the top of the wall or beyond the end of the building. For the purpose of this article, any sign display surface that is affixed flat against the sloping surface of a mansard roof shall be considered a wall sign. Any sign that is affixed to the building marquee, building awning or a building canopy shall be considered a wall sign.
WINDOW SIGN
Any sign, pictures, symbol or combination thereof designed to communicate information about an activity, business, commodity, event, sale or service that is placed inside a window or upon the window.
YARD CARD
Any sign, pictures, symbol or combination thereof designed to be temporarily placed in a residential or commercial lot for purposes of commemorating a personal event, such as a birthday, graduation or anniversary.
ZONE LOT
A parcel of land in single ownership that is of sufficient size to meet minimum zoning requirements for area, coverage and use and that can provide such yards and other open spaces as required by the zoning regulations.
ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
An employee of the City of Amery authorized to permit, inspect, approve or deny construction within the City.
The Zoning Administrator shall have the following powers and duties. The Police Department shall assist the Zoning Administrator in matters of noncompliance. The Zoning Administrator shall:
A. 
Interpret this article with guidance and policy direction from the City Council.
B. 
Issue or deny permits.
C. 
Assist persons desiring such assistance with permit application, interpretation and compliance.
D. 
Receive and file all applications for variances or appeals.
E. 
Maintain records relevant to this article.
F. 
Issue notices of noncompliance with this article.
G. 
Remove dangerous or abandoned signs in accordance with this article.
H. 
Enforce this article.
The following signs shall not be permitted:
A. 
Signs painted on, attached to or supported by a tree, stone, cliff or other natural object.
B. 
Spotlights or beacons.
C. 
Signs placed upon metal light poles, stop signs or traffic signs.
D. 
Flashing, blinking or animated signs.
E. 
Signs in the public right-of-way, except signs erected by a governmental agency, a franchise public utility company or a contractor doing authorized or permitted work within the public right-of-way and banners for nonprofit organizations which are approved by the City Council, subject to limitations on the type of material, the minimum height and any other restrictions the Council shall impose.
F. 
Revolving, rotating or otherwise moving signs.
G. 
Illuminated signs and spotlights which are directed at motorists or adjacent properties.
It shall be unlawful to use a vehicle or trailer as a sign in circumvention of this article.
The following signs are exempt from the provisions of this article and require no sign permit:
A. 
Traffic signs or signals, street signs or railroad signs or any other safety-related signs placed by a utility or any unit of government.
B. 
Christmas or other seasonal decorations on residential lots and with no commercial message.
C. 
Any public notice or warning required by a valid and applicable federal, state or local law, regulation or ordinance.
D. 
Any sign inside a building, not attached to a window or door, which is not legible from a distance of more than three feet beyond the lot line of the zone lot or parcel on which the sign is located.
E. 
Works of art that do not include any commercial message.
The following signs shall require no sign permit but must otherwise comply with the provisions of this article:
A. 
Address number.
B. 
Residential nameplates.
C. 
On-premises commemorative, historical or similar types of signs.
D. 
Convenience signs: enter, exit, parking, restrooms or directional, provided that no advertising other than a logo or the name of the business is placed upon the sign. Such signs shall not exceed six square feet in area.
E. 
Political signs or posters, provided that they are not posted political signs. Political message, public election or referenda signs during an election campaign period as defined in § 12.04(1) to (4), Wis. Stats., are limited to one per premises per candidate or referenda question. Political signs must be removed within seven days after said election or referendum. Said sign shall be a maximum of 16 square feet. Such signs shall not be placed in a right-of-way or upon public lands or property.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
F. 
Real estate signs advertising a property for sale, rent or auction. Such signs shall be unlighted and shall not exceed nine square feet for single- and two-family residence and 32 square feet for multifamily residences and nonresidences and shall be removed not more than 10 days after a transaction is complete.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
G. 
Construction signs. Such signs shall be unlighted and shall not exceed 16 square feet for residential lots or 32 square feet for nonresidential lots and shall be removed not more than 10 days after final inspection by the Zoning Administrator.
H. 
Private garage/yard sale signs. Such signs shall be subject to the requirements of § 234-2, Garage sales, of the City Code.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
I. 
Banners used for seasonal events, sales and special events, provided that such signs are displayed for a maximum period of the event and are removed within three days following the event or sale.
J. 
The flag, pennant or insignia of any government or any religious or fraternal organization. Such flag, pennant or insignia shall not exceed 24 square feet with flagpole not to exceed 15 feet in height.
K. 
Temporary open house signs. Such signs shall be in strict compliance with § 450-79D of this article.
L. 
Yard cards, provided that such signs are displayed for a maximum period of five days and only one such sign is displayed no greater than 60 days in any twelve-month period.
M. 
Copy change. Change copy or message on a sign which is designed to have changeable copy, provided there are no changes to the physical structure or area of the sign (e.g., gas station price signs).
N. 
Signs for charitable, educational, governmental, public, or religious facilities. Bulletin boards or ground signs or wall signs for pubic, charitable, or religious institutions not to exceed 32 square feet in area located on the premises. Such signs shall meet the setback requirements and illumination provisions of the district in which they are located.
A sign shall be removed by the owner or lessee of the premises upon which the sign is located when a business which it advertises has not been conducted for a period of six months or when, in the judgment of the inspector, such sign is old and dilapidated or has become so out of repair as to be dangerous or unsafe, whichever occurs first. The Zoning Administrator shall give the owner and/or lessee written notice specifying the location of the sign and the reason(s) requiring removal and allowing the owner a period of 30 days in which to remove it. The Zoning Administrator may remove the sign at the cost of the owner and assess the costs of such removal against the property.
All signs shall be properly secured, supported and braced and shall be kept in reasonable structural condition and shall be kept clean and well painted at all times. Bolts or screws shall not be fastened to window frames. Every sign and its framework, braces, anchors and other supports shall be constructed of such material and with such workmanship as to meet standard engineering practice and be safe and satisfactory to the City Building Inspector.
All wiring, fittings and materials used in the construction, connection and operation of electric signs shall conform to the National Electric Code as adopted by City ordinance.
A. 
Without regard to the zoning district in which they are located, charitable, educational, fraternal, governmental, public, or religious facilities are permitted signs as follows:
(1) 
Ground-mounted sign. One on-premises, ground-mounted sign is permitted for each street frontage where the linear street frontage on corner lots exceeds 175 feet.
(a) 
Area: not to exceed 32 square feet per face.
(b) 
Height: not to exceed six feet.
(2) 
Wall sign. One wall sign is permitted not to exceed 24 square feet. On a multibuilding campus, one wall sign is permitted per building.
(3) 
Illumination. Signs shall comply with the provisions relating to illumination in the zoning district which they are located.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Sec. 13-01-112B of the 2004 Code of Ordinances, regarding permitting in the Public Institution District of signs totaling 32 or more square feet, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
No signs are permitted in the triangle formed by the point at the corner of an intersection and points 25 feet from the corner along each street.
A. 
Any sign located in the City on the date of adoption of this article, or located in an area annexed to the City hereafter, which does not conform to the provisions of this article is a nonconforming sign and may be continued, except as provided below:
(1) 
The sign is structurally altered in any way except for normal maintenance and repair;
(2) 
The sign is structurally altered for purposes of maintenance and repair in such a way that the sign will be less in compliance with the requirements of this article than it was before alteration;
(3) 
The sign is relocated;
(4) 
The sign is replaced;
(5) 
The sign fails to conform to the code regarding maintenance and repair, construction standards or dangerous and abandoned signs; or
(6) 
There is a change in use or occupancy.
B. 
On the date of the occurrence of any of the above, the sign shall be brought immediately into compliance with this article and a new permit secured or the sign shall be removed.
C. 
The City Administrator/Clerk-Treasurer shall maintain a record of and notify the owner or lessee of the property on which a nonconforming sign is located, in writing, of the following:
(1) 
Whether the sign is nonconforming or is prohibited;
(2) 
The reasons such sign is nonconforming or prohibited; and
(3) 
The remedies for such nonconforming or prohibited status.
A. 
Illumination. Directly illuminated signs are prohibited within areas zoned residential.
B. 
Permitted signs. In residential areas, only the following signs may be permitted:
(1) 
Address numbers.
(2) 
Residential nameplates.
(3) 
Political signs or posters.
(4) 
Temporary open house signs.
(5) 
Real estate signs.
(6) 
Constructions signs.
(7) 
Convenience signs under § 450-72D.
(8) 
Home occupation signs.
(9) 
Any signs exempt from the provisions of this article under § 450-71.
(10) 
On-premises commemorative, historical or similar types of signs.
(11) 
Private garage/yard sale signs.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
(12) 
The flag or insignia of any government, religious or fraternal organization.
(13) 
Yard cards.
(14) 
Multifamily unit signs.
(15) 
Charitable, educational, fraternal, governmental, public, or religious facilities.
C. 
Election signs. Political signs are permitted to be placed on private property, subject to § 450-72E and the following conditions:[1]
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
(1) 
The owner of the property on which the sign is placed shall be responsible for its removal.
(2) 
Signs shall be freestanding.
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Sec. 13-01-114C(1) of the 2004 Code of Ordinances, regarding political signs and posters, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
D. 
Temporary open house signs.
(1) 
Such signs shall not be illuminated and shall not exceed six square feet. Such signs may be placed at a rate of one intersection per company and shall only be displayed for a period from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on the day of the open house. No more than four directional open house signs may be placed within the City limits for any one house.
(2) 
The principal broker of the real estate company shall be responsible for compliance with Subsection D. Failure to comply with this Subsection D may be subject to fine or suspension of privileges in accordance with § 450-86.
E. 
Subdivision signs. In any subdivision, one subdivision identification sign, not illuminated, not to exceed 32 square feet, may be erected at any principal entrance. (A subdivision shall not have more than two principal entrances for purposes of this article only.)
F. 
Multifamily unit signs. Multifamily units may be allowed one on-premises freestanding sign for each street frontage where the linear street frontage on corner lots exceeds 175 feet, subject to the following conditions:
(1) 
The sign may not exceed 24 square feet.
(2) 
The sign may not exceed six feet in height.
(3) 
The sign must be set back at least 10 feet from any street right-of-way line.
(4) 
The sign may not be placed in the vision clearance triangle.
A. 
Permitted signs. In agricultural transition zones, only the following signs may be permitted:
(1) 
Signs permissible for residential zones under § 450-79B of this article.
(2) 
Two signs not to exceed eight square feet per sign and advertising only products produced on the premises.
B. 
Illumination. Directly illuminated signs are prohibited within areas zoned agricultural transition.
A. 
Applicability. The rules set out in this section shall apply within all commercial and industrial districts.
B. 
Prohibited signs. In commercial and industrial districts, the following signs are prohibited; all signs prohibited by §§ 450-69 and 450-70 of this article.
C. 
Height and setback requirements. Height and setback requirements shall be as follows:
District
Height
(feet)
Side
(feet)
Rear
(feet)
Front
(feet)
C-1
45
None
None
None
C-2
45
20
20
50
I-1 and I-2
45
25
25
25
(1) 
Signs within the C-1 District shall not exceed the height of the building on which the sign is located or which the sign districts attention to.
(2) 
Signs may be permitted within the setback area with approval of the Zoning Administrator if:
(a) 
The sign is less than three feet in height; or
(b) 
The sign is pole-mounted and is placed at a height greater than 10 feet and the pole diameter is less than or equal to 12 inches and neither the pole nor the sign interferes with reasonable vision clearance.
D. 
Wall signs. No wall sign shall extend beyond the building more than 18 inches. No wall sign shall extend above the second-story windowsill or extend above the roofline, whichever is lower.
E. 
Mansard roof signs. Mansard roof signs are permitted, provided that no wall sign is located on the facade. No mansard roof sign shall extend above the highest point of the roof.
F. 
Canopies and awnings. No canopy or awning shall extend more than 60 inches from the face of the building or closer to the curb than 24 inches. No canopy or awning shall be less than eight feet or an average of 10 feet in height from the sidewalk. No sign shall be installed above or below the canopy. Any lettering or other signage placed on the face of an awning or canopy shall be counted against the maximum signage area for the parcel on which it is located.
G. 
Column-mounted and multiple-column-mounted signs.
(1) 
Number. One-column-mounted or one multiple-column-mounted sign shall be allowed for each parcel of frontage, provided that no projecting sign or ground-mounted sign is on the parcel frontage.
(2) 
Clearance from ground. There shall be a clear, open area of 10 feet from the ground to the bottommost part of the sign.
H. 
Projecting signs.
(1) 
Number. One projecting sign may be permitted for each parcel, provided that no ground sign is located on the property.
(2) 
Projection from face of building. No part of any projecting sign shall extend further than 60 inches from the face of the building or closer to the curb than 24 inches.
(3) 
Maximum signage area. No projecting sign shall exceed nine square feet in area.
(4) 
Illumination. Projecting signs shall not be directly illuminated.
(5) 
Minimum clearance. No part of any projecting sign shall be less than 10 feet from the grade underneath.
(6) 
Extension. No projecting sign shall extend above the second-story windowsill or extend above the roofline, whichever is lower.
I. 
Application of maximum signage area. The display surface area of any permitted sign shall be counted against the maximum signage area for the parcel on which it is located.
J. 
Joint occupancy or multiple-use building. A joint occupancy or multiple-use building shall be a building occupied by a single occupant who engages in more than one activity within the building or which contains two or more activities engaged in by different occupants. Each such building shall be allowed one column-mounted sign per parcel and no more. All other restrictions with regard to multiple-column-mounted, column-mounted, ground-mounted, wall or projecting signs shall apply as if dealing with a single structure.
A. 
Total signage area. The total signage area for a parcel in the C-1 District shall not exceed in area, in square feet, three times the linear front footage of the building the sign is attached to or directs attention to.
B. 
Corner lots. Corner establishments are permitted an additional 25% of signage area, provided that this additional 25% of signage area is not to be located on the front facade of the building.
A. 
Total signage area.
(1) 
Total signage area in the C-2 District shall not exceed in area, in square feet, three times the linear front footage of the building the sign is attached to.
(2) 
Corner establishments are permitted an additional 25% of this total signage area, provided that such additional 25% (this 25% may be based on linear footage of building side) of the total signage area is not located on the front facade of the building.
B. 
Column-mounted signs and ground-mounted signs. In addition to the total signage area above, an establishment not located in the shopping center in the C-2 District may have one column-mounted or one ground-mounted sign not to exceed a maximum of 60 square feet of display surface area for a column-mounted sign or 32 square feet of display surface area for a ground-mounted sign.
C. 
Shopping center signs. In addition to the general provisions of this article, the following regulations shall apply to shopping centers:
(1) 
A shopping center is permitted one column-mounted or ground-mounted sign for each street for which the center has frontage which bears the name of the shopping center only and which may be erected on the lands occupied by the center. The maximum square footage of each such sign may not exceed 150 square feet for a single-faced sign or 150 square feet per face of a double-faced sign.
(2) 
Each shopping center shall be allowed one column- or ground-mounted sign for each street for which the center has frontage which bears the name of the business located within the center. Such sign shall have a maximum square footage of 150 square feet for a single-faced sign or 150 square feet per face for a double-faced sign.
A. 
Total signage area.
(1) 
Total signage area in the industrial districts shall not exceed in area, in square feet, three times the linear front footage of the building the sign is attached to or directs attention to.
(2) 
Corner establishments are permitted an additional 25% of this total signage area, provided that such signage is not located on the front facade of the building.
B. 
Column-mounted or ground-mounted signs. In addition to the total signage area above, establishments within the industrial districts may have one column-mounted or one ground-mounted sign, provided that a column-mounted sign shall have a maximum display area of 150 square feet and any ground-mounted sign shall have a maximum display area of 100 square feet.
A. 
Permits required. No persons shall erect, relocate or reconstruct, or cause the aforementioned, within the City of Amery, any signs without first having obtained and having in force and effect a permit therefor from the Zoning Administrator.
B. 
Permit application and fees. No permit shall be granted until an application has been filed with the Zoning Administrator to assure compliance.
(1) 
The permit fee shall be as follows: the fee shall be established in the City of Amery Fee Schedule.
(2) 
The Zoning Administrator may require that the application be accompanied by a plan or design of the sign showing its weight, dimensions, electrical or gas equipment and details of its position relative to the building and to all property lines.
C. 
Inspection. The applicant shall, upon completion of the installation, relocation or alteration of the sign, notify the Zoning Administrator, who will assure that the sign complies with the regulations of this article.
D. 
Revocation of permit. The Zoning Administrator may at any time revoke a permit for a violation of this article. The holder of a revoked permit shall be entitled to an appeal before the Zoning Board of Appeals.
E. 
Exceptions. Permits are not required for signs within the exemptions of §§ 450-71 and 450-72 of this article.
A. 
Written notice of violation of the provisions of this article will be given to the person, firm or corporation held in violation. If within 30 days of such notification the violation(s) is (are) not corrected, the violator shall be subject to a fine of $25 per day for each separate violation of the provisions of this article until such violation(s) is (are) corrected. If the condition(s) of violation still persists after the aforementioned 30 days of written notice, the City may correct the violation at the owner's expense.
B. 
Repeated refusal to comply with the provisions of this article shall subject the violator to suspension of the privileges of this article.
C. 
Violation deemed to be a safety hazard may have the correction period shortened from § 450-86A.
A. 
Variances. Variances or exceptions to this article may be granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
B. 
Appeals. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall hear appeals from decisions of the Zoning Administrator.