The purpose of this chapter is to promote the public health, safety and welfare through a comprehensive system of reasonable, effective, consistent, content-neutral and nondiscriminatory sign standards and requirements. It has also been adopted to promote the following:
(1)
Minimum standards in order to promote traffic safety;
(2)
Recognition of free speech rights by regulating signs in a content neutral manner;
(3)
The free flow of traffic and to protect pedestrians and motorists from injury and property damage caused by, or attributable to, cluttered, distracting and/or illegible signs;
(4)
Provide consistent and compatible sign design standards; and
(5)
Adopt understandable regulations which enable the fair and consistent enforcement of this Chapter.
This chapter is not intended to restrict speech on the basis of its content, viewpoint or message. Any classification of signs herein which purports to permit speech by reason of the type of sign, identity of the sign user or otherwise, should be interpreted to allow commercial or non-commercial speech on the sign. Nothing in this chapter should be construed to favor commercial speech over non-commercial speech.
(Ord. 7-2013 § 1 (Exh. A) (part), 2015; Ord. 9-2019 (Exh. 3) (part), 2019)