The following regulations shall apply to all permitted sign uses:
206.1. Permit required.
1. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no sign may be constructed, erected, moved, enlarged, illuminated or substantially altered except in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and in accordance with a sign permit issued by the Zoning Officer. Repainting or changing the message of a sign shall not, in and of itself, be considered a substantial alteration.
2. Sign permit applications and sign permits shall be governed by the same provisions of this chapter applicable to zoning permits.
3. Any permit issued by the Zoning Officer for the erection, alteration, replacement or relocation of any sign shall expire automatically within 180 days of the date of issuance if work authorized by the permit has not been initiated and diligently pursued.
206.2. Exempt signs.
1. A sign permit is not required for:
a. Signs erected by a government body or required by law.
b. Flags up to 16 square feet in size, provided that the freestanding pole shall have a minimum setback distance equal to the height of the pole and shall not be located within five feet of the public right-of-way.
c. Temporary signs as follows:
i. One sign for more than 16 square feet in area, located on property where a building permit is active.
ii. On any property for sale or rent in the A Agricultural District or R-1 Rural Residence District: not more than one sign with a total area of up to 12 square feet and a maximum height of six feet.
iii. On any property for sale or rent in the B-1 Business District: not more than one sign with a total area of up to 32 square feet and a maximum height of six feet.
iv. Signs or notices placed or displayed by or under the direction of any public or court officer in the performance of his or her official or directed duties, provided that all such signs be removed no more than 10 days after their purpose has been accomplished.
v. Temporary signs associated with an event, provided that they are removed within seven days after the event ceases.
d. Window signs not exceeding 50% of the total area of the window or door they occupy.
e. Minor signs not visible from the public right-of-way and/or adjoining property.
206.3. Prohibited signs.
1. No sign shall be placed in such a position that it will cause danger to vehicular or pedestrian traffic on a street by obscuring the view.
2. No sign shall be permitted that looks similar to traffic control devices.
3. No sign shall be located in such a position that it will cause a hazard by obstructing visibility for traffic on a street or obscuring a traffic signal or other traffic control device. No sign, other than official traffic signs and off-premises directional signs, shall hang over or be erected within the right-of-way of any street. No sign shall be located within the clear sight triangle defined by Article
9 of this chapter.
4. No sign shall contain or use flashing, intermittent or rotating illumination, except official traffic control signs and as permitted on electronic message center signs and on digital signs.
5. No objectionable glare should result from any illuminated signs. Such signs shall comply with all lighting regulations set forth in Article
9 of this chapter.
6. No freestanding sign shall be higher than 25 feet unless otherwise permitted by this article, and no sign which is attached to a building shall be higher than the height limit of the permitted principal uses in the district in which the sign is located; provided, however, that if other provisions of this article establish lower height restrictions for certain types of signs, the lower height limit shall control.
7. No sign shall be erected or located so as to prevent ingress or egress from any window, door or fire escape.
8. No sign shall be permitted which is pasted, stapled or otherwise attached to public utility poles, except any posted by a government body or required by law.
9. No signs shall be pasted, stapled or otherwise attached to any trees within the public right-of-way.
10. No sign shall be permitted that is determined to be obscene as defined by 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5903.
11. No sign shall be placed on an automobile, truck or other vehicle if that vehicle is used primarily for displaying such sign.
12. No sign shall emit smoke, visible vapors, particles, sound or odor.
13. Temporary signs shall not be displayed more than 30 days except as otherwise permitted in this chapter.
206.4. Area of a sign.
1. 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 but shall not include any supporting framework or bracing incidental to the display itself.
2. Where the sign consists of individual letters or symbols attached to a building, wall or window, the area of the sign shall be considered to be that of the smallest rectangle or other geometric shape which encompasses all of the letters and symbols.
3. If a sign includes two attached sides of the same size, then only one side shall be considered for the purposes of determining compliance with the maximum sign area. However, if the interior angle of two attached sides of a sign is greater than 45°, or if a sign includes three or more sides, then the maximum sign area limit shall apply to the aggregate total of all of the sign faces.
206.5. Maintenance and inspection.
1. All signs shall be constructed of durable materials and shall be kept in good condition and repair. No sign shall be allowed to become dilapidated and in such a state of disrepair as to have the appearance of complete neglect, which is rotting or falling down, which is illegible or has loose parts separated from original fastenings.
2. Whenever a sign becomes structurally unsafe or endangers the safety of the building or premises, or endangers the public safety, the Zoning Officer shall give written notice to the owner of the premises on which the sign is located that such sign be made safe or removed within five days. Upon failure of the owner to comply, the Zoning Officer shall remove the sign at the owner's expense.
206.6. Removal of signs.
1. In the event that a business or enterprise has ceased operations for a period of 180 days or more, signage pertaining to that establishment that will not be reused by the next owner, tenant or lessee shall be removed, or the faces of such signs to be reused by the next owner, tenant or lessee shall be rendered blank, until such time as the new owner, tenant or lessee commences operation. Blanking of the sign may be accomplished by installing new blank sign faces or temporary coverings, as long as such coverings are maintained in good condition and are free from holes, tears, shredding, etc.
2. The owner of the sign, the property on which the sign is located and the proprietor of the business to which the sign refers shall be jointly and severally responsible for compliance with the requirements of this subsection. The municipality may lien the property for the cost of removing the sign and all legal fees and costs incurred with filing and enforcing the lien.
206.7. Other general requirements.
1. Placement. Except as otherwise permitted, all freestanding signs shall be set back 10 feet from any property line.
2. Illumination. All permitted signs may be backlit, internally lighted or indirectly lighted unless such lighting is specifically prohibited in this section.
a. In the case of indirect lighting, the source shall be so shielded that it illuminates only the face of the sign. Indirect lighting shall consist of full-cutoff or directionally shielded lighting fixtures that are aimed and controlled so that the directed light shall be substantially confined to the sign to minimize glare, sky glow, and light trespass. The beam width shall not be wider than that needed to light the sign.
b. Internal illumination shall be limited to illumination standards in this chapter for parking lot lighting. No sign shall be permitted to have an illumination spread of more than 0.05 footcandle at the lot line, shine into oncoming traffic, affect highway safety or shine directly into a residence.
c. In no event shall the illumination of any sign resulting from any internal or external artificial light source adversely affect surrounding properties, cause offensive glare or create a traffic hazard.
3. Each message or image on an electronic message sign shall remain fixed and unchanged for a minimum period of five seconds. There shall be no appearance of flashing, blinking, movement, scrolling, dissolving or fading in which images or messages "move" or in which part of one message or image appears simultaneously with any part of a second or subsequent one. The illumination intensity, contrast or coloration of the message text or image shall remain constant for each display period. The intensity/brightness of such sign, as measured by the difference between the off and solid-message measurements, shall not exceed the industry standard recommended 0.3 footcandle above ambient light. Such signs shall be equipped with technology that automatically dims the electronic message illumination intensity commensurate with ambient light conditions (i.e., illumination intensity lower in low-light and nighttime conditions than in daylight).
4. Substitution. Whenever this section permits a sign with commercial content, noncommercial content is also permitted subject to the same requirements of size, color, illumination, movement, materials, location, height and construction.
5. Off-site signs for noncommercial use. With a permit, a noncommercial organization may erect up to two off-premises signs on properties with the consent of the persons in charge of such properties. Each sign shall be no more than 16 square feet in area and eight feet in height. The area of the sign counts against the maximum sign area permitted on that lot. No more than one off-premises sign may be displayed per lot.