[Amended STM 4-6-1993, Art. 7, approved 7-16-1993; AFTM 11-14-2016, Art. 4, approved
2-17-2017]
A. Purpose.
One (1) of the purposes of the Sign Review Committee will be to provide
advisory recommendation to the Building Commissioner and the Board
of Selectmen on their respective decisions to grant permits to certain
business signs and to periodically review the existing Sign Bylaw
and advise the Board of Selectmen as to desirable modifications.
B. Membership.
Membership of the Sign Review Committee shall consist of five (5)
persons for staggered three-year terms to be appointed by the Board
of Selectmen. Preference shall be given so that membership of the
Committee will include one (1) person who is an architect, landscape
architect, or civil engineer; one (1) person from a community civic
group; two (2) business owners; and, one (1) citizen from the Town
of Falmouth. The Board of Selectmen may appoint two (2) alternate
members of the Sign Review Committee for staggered three-year terms,
and the Chairman of the Sign Review Committee may designate any alternate
member to sit on the Committee in case of absence, inability to act,
or conflict of interest on the part of a regular member, or in the
event of a vacancy on the Committee, until said vacancy is filled
in the manner in this section.
C. Schedule
for recommendations. Within twenty-one (21) days of receipt of the
application to the Building Commissioner for a sign permit, the Committee
shall submit its majority recommendation to the Building Commissioner
and the Board of Selectmen if a license is required from the Selectmen.
A schedule of fees for such permits may be established
and amended from time to time by the Board of Selectmen. However,
fees shall be waived for signs for governmental, religious and nonprofit
civic organization uses.
The Building Commissioner is hereby designated
as the Sign Code Enforcement Officer and is hereby authorized to enforce
this chapter. The Building Commissioner is authorized to order the
repair or removal of any sign and its supporting structure which is
judged dangerous or in disrepair or which is erected or maintained
contrary to this chapter.
[Amended AFTM 11-17-1998, Art. 64, approved 2-25-1999]
A. Any sign which has been ordered removed by the Building
Commissioner or his/her agent or is abandoned or discontinued shall
be removed by the person, firm, trust, realty trust or corporation
responsible for the sign within thirty (30) days of written notice
to remove.
B. In the event the business occupant ceases operation
and fails to remove the sign within sixty (60) days, the Building
Commissioner shall find that the sign has been abandoned and shall
order the property owner to remove the sign.
C. Illegal signs shall be subject to the removal provisions of §
184-11.
[Amended ASTM 4-7-1997, Art. 36, approved 6-27-1997]
Violations of any provision of this chapter or any lawful order of the Building Commissioner or his/her agents shall be subject to a fine of not more than two hundred dollars ($200.) per offense. Each day that such violation continues shall constitute a separate offense. Enforcement shall be in accordance with Chapter
1, General Provisions, Article
I, Penalties. The Building Commissioner or his/her agent is authorized to use the noncriminal disposition method, which shall carry the same fines as set forth for violations of Chapter
240, Zoning, in Article
I of Chapter
1, General Provisions.
The height of any sign shall be measured from
the surface of the road up to the highest point of the sign. In situations
where a sign is intended to be visible from two (2) roads of different
elevations, measurement shall be from the surface of the lower roadway.