In order to protect the rights of political candidates and those wishing to support or oppose candidates or ballot measures (and those wishing to announce community events), while protecting the public from traffic safety hazards, structural sign hazards, aesthetic blight, litter and loss of meaning of the message of such signs, the regulations provided in this chapter are adopted.
(Prior code § 2-9.60)
No permit shall be required of any political campaign sign or community event sign which does not exceed the size limitations provided in this chapter so long as such signs are placed on private property. Political campaign signs and community event signs which are within the size and placement requirements of this chapter shall be exempt from the requirements of Chapter 18.96 of this title.
(Prior code § 2-9.61)
Unless it appears from the context that a different meaning is intended, the following words shall have the meanings given them in this chapter:
"City"
means the city of Pleasanton, a municipal corporation in the state of California.
"Community event sign"
means any signs, banners or displays of a patriotic, civic or community nature.
"Person"
means any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, committee for support or opposition of candidates or ballot measures or organizations of any kind.
"Political campaign sign"
means any sign urging the election or defeat of any candidate seeking any political office, or urging the passage or defeat of any ballot measure but does not mean or include any billboard owned or maintained by a commercial firm or advertising company.
"Public property"
means all property owned by the city or other public agency within city boundaries, including but not limited to any building owned, operated or leased by a public agency; any street, bicycle or pedestrian right-of-way owned or controlled by the city; and public park recreation area, parkway, planter strip or other public grounds owned or operated by the city or other public agency; any traffic-control device or sign or the support pole of the device or sign; or any street tree or flagpole.
"Sign"
means and includes any bill, poster, placard, handbill, flyer, painting, sign or other similar object in any form whatsoever which contains printed or written matter in words, symbols or pictures, or in any combination thereof.
"Utility structure"
means any utility pole, supporting structure or guy wire owned by a public or private utility company.
"Religious holiday banner"
means any banner announcing a special religious holiday service for a religious group belonging to any religious institution.
(Prior code § 2-9.62; Ord. 1574 § 1, 1992)
A. 
Maximum Size of Signs. No person shall post or cause to be posted on private property political campaign signs in an R district in excess of six square feet. No person shall post or cause to be posted on private property campaign signs in any other zoning district in excess of 16 square feet.
B. 
Maximum Area per Site. No person shall post or cause to be posted political campaign signs on an individual parcel of private property in an R district which in the aggregate exceeds 24 square feet. No person shall post or cause to be posted political campaign signs on an individual parcel of private property in any other zoning district which in the aggregate exceeds 64 square feet.
C. 
Maximum Size, Number and Duration of Religious Holiday Banners. No person shall post or cause to be posted on private property on sites exceeding 10,000 square feet in any zoning district, religious holiday banners in excess of 36 square feet. No person shall post or cause to be posted on private property, on sites 10,000 square feet or less in any zoning district, religious holiday banners in excess of six square feet. There shall be no more than one banner posted on the site of any religious institution during a special religious holiday. Religious holiday banners may be posted for a maximum of eight days during any special religious occasion not exceeding four such religious holidays each year.
D. 
Permission to Post. No person shall post or cause to be posted on private property political campaign signs, community event signs or religious holiday banners without first receiving permission from the property owner or any other person authorized by property owner to give permission to post such signs.
(Prior code § 2-9.63; Ord. 1574 § 2, 1992)
It is unlawful for any person to post, place or affix a political campaign sign or cause to do the same, on or to any public property or utility structure. It is also unlawful for any person to post, place or affix a political campaign sign or cause to do the same, on private property in a manner which poses a hazard to motorists, pedestrians or cyclists using the public rights-of-way, by blocking the view of traffic-control signs, devices or cross traffic or by protruding into the public right-of-way.
(Prior code § 2-9.64)
It is unlawful for any person to fail to remove a political campaign sign within five days after the election for which the sign was posted.
(Prior code § 2-9.65; Ord. 1496 § 1, 1991)
No person shall post or cause to be posted community event signs on private property, other than the property on which the event is to take place, more than 30 days prior to the event or fail to remove such sign within five days after the event. Size limits for community event signs shall be the same as those set forth in subsections A and B of Section 18.100.040 of this chapter for political campaign signs. Public agencies when posting community event signs on property owned by that agency are exempt from the limitation of this section.
(Prior code § 2-9.66)
The city manager or his or her authorized agents shall remove any sign found posted within the corporate limits of the city which is in violation of Sections 18.100.040, 18.100.050, 18.100.060 and 18.100.070 of this chapter.
(Prior code § 2-9.67)
For the purposes of removing illegal signs, the city manager or his or her authorized agents are empowered to enter upon the property where the signs are posted, and the city manager is further authorized to enlist the aid or assistance of any other department of the city and to secure legal process to the end that all such signs shall be expeditiously removed from any property where posted.
(Prior code § 2-9.68)
When the city manager or his or her agent finds that a sign has been posted in violation of Sections 18.100.040, 18.100.050, 18.100.060 and 18.100.070 of this chapter, he or she shall document the nature of the violation and the location of the sign and shall remove said sign and store it in a safe location. If, after reasonable diligence, the city manager is unable to contact the candidate, committee or person responsible for the sign, he or she may dispense with the notice requirement and remove the sign, storing it in a safe location. Any sign posted six days after the election or event shall be deemed abandoned and the city manager may dispense with notice requirements.
(Prior code § 2-9.69; Ord. 2120 § 1, 2015)
If the city manager or his or her agents removes any sign, he or she shall keep a record of the location from which the sign was removed. He or she shall store the sign in a safe location for at least 20 days and shall notify the candidate, committee or person responsible for the posting of the sign, indicating the fact of removal and the location where it may be retrieved. If the city manager is unable to make telephone contact, he or she shall provide written notice, if the address of the candidate, committee or person is known or can reasonably be ascertained. The city manager shall return any political campaign sign upon the payment of a fee to cover the costs of removal, notice and storage.
(Prior code § 2-9.70)
The city shall be entitled to receive a fee for every sign removed by the city manager, to cover the expense of removal, notice and storage not to exceed $5.00 per sign. Where unusual effort is needed to remove a sign, such as the cutting or removal of supporting structures, use of aerial devices, towing of "trailer signs", or other unusual situations, the city shall collect from the person responsible a sum sufficient to cover the costs of equipment and hourly wages of employees so utilized. Where no return of the stored sign is requested, the city manager shall bill the person responsible for the sign.
(Prior code § 2-9.71)
In a campaign for political office, the candidate for such office shall be deemed the person responsible for the posting of political campaign signs, unless he or she first notifies the city clerk and the city manager of another person who is responsible. In such case, the candidate shall provide the name, address, telephone number and signed consents of such other responsible person. In a campaign regarding a ballot measure, the president or chief officer of the committee supporting or opposing such ballot measure shall be deemed responsible, unless he or she first notifies the city clerk and the city manager of some other person responsible, in the manner described in this section. The candidate, or in the case of a ballot measure, the committee president or chief officer or other responsible person, if so designated, shall be liable to pay any fees or costs for the removal and storage of illegal signs, as set out in this chapter. Where a community event sign has been posted illegally, the president or chief officer of the group sponsoring the event shall be deemed the responsible person.
(Prior code § 2-9.72)
Billboards and other permanent signs used for advertising messages which are otherwise permitted by this code or exist as legal nonconforming uses are exempt from the regulations of this chapter.
(Prior code § 2-9.73)