The purpose of this regulation is to establish minimum standards
to safeguard life and property and promote public welfare and community
aesthetics by regulating the appearance, construction, location and
maintenance of all signs and billboards. The provisions herein shall
be binding upon every owner of a building, every lessee and every
person in charge or responsible for who causes the construction, repair,
relocation or alteration of any outdoor sign and other advertising
structures in the Town with the exception of painting, posting and
general maintenance. The following definitions apply to this regulation:
ABANDONED SIGN
A sign that no longer identifies or advertises an ongoing
business, product, location, service, idea or activity conducted on
the premises on which the sign is located.
ALTERATION
Any modification in the size, shape, height, dimensions,
location or mounting of a sign for any reason other than routine maintenance.
ANIMATED SIGN
A sign employing actual motion, the illusion of motion, or
light and/or color changes achieved through mechanical, electric,
or electronic means.
BILLBOARD
An off-premises sign that is larger than 32 square feet in
area.
DIRECTIONAL SIGN, OFF-PREMISES
A sign intended solely for the purpose of directing people
to a specific use and not located on the lot which contains the use
for which directions are being provided.
DIRECTIONAL SIGN, ON-PREMISES
A sign intended solely for the purpose of directing people
to a specific business, department, use area, or destination within
a development or lot and which is located on the same lot which contains
the business, department, use area, or destination for which the directions
are being provided.
GROUND SIGN
A sign which is supported by two or more columns, poles,
uprights, or braces placed in or upon the ground, or set within a
foundation, and is not part of a building.
MURAL
A painting or pictorial representation applied to or incorporated
into a structure or wall, that can be viewed from public places, alleys,
or rights-of-way.
NONCONFORMING USE
A continued and lawful use of a sign lawfully installed in
accordance with laws and ordinances prevailing at the time of installation.
OFF-PREMISES SIGN
A sign not larger than 32 square feet that is not located
on the lot on which the individual, firm, association, corporation,
profession, business, commodity, or product promoted on the sign is
located.
ON-PREMISES SIGN
A sign located on the same lot on which the individual, firm,
association, corporation, profession, business, commodity, or product
promoted on the sign is located.
PORTABLE SIGN
A sign that is not permanently affixed to a building, structure,
or the ground, is not designed to be permanently affixed to a building,
structure, or the ground, and is designed to be moved from one location
to another.
PROJECTING SIGN
A sign, generally oriented perpendicular to the face of a
building wall, which is attached to a building and which extends more
that six inches from a building wall, typically having two viewable
sides.
SIGN
Any device visible from a public place which operates and
is designed to convey either commercial or noncommercial messages
by means of graphic presentation of alphabetic or pictorial symbols
or representations.
TEMPORARY SIGN
Any sign that is erected or displayed for a limited period
of time. For purposes of this chapter, a portable sign is not a temporary
sign.
WALL SIGN
A sign mounted flat against and projection less than 15 inches
from a building or structure with the exposed face of the sign in
a plane parallel to the face of the wall. This does not include window
signs or murals.
WINDOW SIGN
A sign affixed to the surface of a window with a message
intended to be visible to the exterior environment.
[Amended 7-8-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-03]
No sign, unless listed in §
285-66, shall be located, erected, moved, reconstructed, extended, enlarged, converted or otherwise altered without a sign permit and without being in conformity of the provisions of this chapter. An application for a sign permit must be submitted to the Zoning Administrator and contain the sign dimensions, display surface, materials, illumination, wiring, height above grade, distance from lot lines, and the person, firm or corporation erecting or altering the sign. A permit is not required for a copy change when no change in the existing sign dimension is involved. A permit fee shall be determined by the Town Board and shall be paid to the Town Clerk for each sign application. If a sign is not installed within six months following the issuance of a sign permit, the permit is void.
The following signs do not require a permit, provided that they
are not located in a public road right-of-way or in, on, or over public
water or erected or maintained at the intersection of the streets
in such a manner as to obstruct a clear vision of the intersection.
A. Warning signs not to exceed four square feet located on the premises.
B. Signs erected by the Town or any government agency or utility, including
traffic control, parking restrictions, utility, safety, railroad crossings,
legal notices and identification signs for public facilities and events.
C. Temporary signs in residential districts including, but not limited
to, signs advertising for rummage or garage sales, real estate signs
that advertise the sale, rental, or lease of the premises upon which
the sign is temporarily located, contractor signs during the time
in which a contractor is performing work on a structure or building
located on the premises upon which the sign is temporarily located,
political signs and the like. Temporary signs in residential districts
must not exceed 32 square feet in total area. One sign may be displayed
per 30 feet of frontage at any one time on a lot located in a residential
zoning district. All signs must be removed within 10 days after the
applicable event, such as the sale, lease, contracted work, or election
has concluded.
D. Temporary signs in nonresidential zoning districts including, but
not limited to, on-premises or off-premises signs advertising special
events or sales, real estate signs that advertise the sale, rental
or lease of the premises or business upon which the sign is temporarily
located, contractor signs during the time in which a contractor is
performing work on a structure or building upon which the sign is
temporarily located, and political signs. Temporary signs in nonresidential
zoning districts must not to exceed 32 square feet in total area.
Two signs may be displayed per 30 feet of frontage at any one time
on a lot located in a nonresidential zoning district. All signs must
be removed within 10 days after the applicable event, such as the
sale, lease, contracted work, or election, has concluded.
E. Flags and insignia up to 15 square feet in area.
The following signs are prohibited:
B. Animated or blinking signs, signs having moving parts, or signs which
may be mistaken for traffic signal devices.
C. Signs that have any flashing, rotating or brilliant intermittent
parts or lights or bare reflecting-type bulbs, other than reader or
message boards displaying time, temperature, and other community messages,
reviewed by the Zoning Administrator.
D. Signs that create a hazard to vehicular traffic or a nuisance to
adjoining residential property.
E. Signs on public rights-of-way, except for public entity signs for
traffic control, parking and directional signs as authorized by this
chapter.
All signs shall be removed or rebuilt by the owner or lessee
of the premises upon which the sign is located if in the judgment
of the Town such sign is so old, dilapidated or has become so out
of repair as to be dangerous or unsafe. If the owner or lessee fails
to remove it, the Town may remove the sign at the cost of the owner,
following adequate notice. The cost to remove the sign may be placed
on the owner's tax bill as a special charge.
Portable signs shall be limited in use to 15 days at a time
subject to approval by the Town; provided, however, that such signs
shall not be displayed more frequently than four to six times per
calendar year at any one location and not more than 60 total days
per year. The maximum size of a portable sign shall be 32 square feet
on each face, back-to-back. Portable signs shall not be located in
any public rights-of-way.
The placement of a temporary sign on a parcel may not exceed
28 consecutive days unless the sign is displayed only during regular
business hours and removed for storage at other times. A temporary
sign shall not exceed nine square feet in area.
A sign loses its nonconforming status if one or more of the
following occurs:
A. When a sign or sign structure is removed or intentionally destroyed,
replacement signs and sign structures must comply with the current
standards. However:
(1) Repair and maintenance. A nonconforming sign or sign structure may
be removed temporarily to perform sign maintenance or sign repair.
(2) Unintentional destruction. When a sign or sign structure that has
nonconforming elements is partially or totally damaged by fire or
other causes beyond the control of the owner, the sign and sign structure
may be rebuilt to the same size and height using the same materials.
B. The sign fails to conform to the Town requirements regarding maintenance
and repair, abandonment or dangerous or defective signs.
C. Nothing in this chapter shall relieve the owner or lessee of a legal
nonconforming sign from the provisions of this chapter regarding safety,
maintenance and repair of signs.
If any word, sentence, section, or portion of this chapter is
invalidated by any court or competent jurisdiction, the remaining
words, sentences, sections, or portions will not be affected and will
continue in full force and effect.