Signs are herein regulated in the interest of promoting traffic safety, safeguarding public health and safety, facilitating police and fire protection and preventing adverse community appearance. The sign regulations are designed to permit maximum legibility and effectiveness of signs, and to prevent their over-concentration, improper placement, and excessive height, bulk, and area. These regulations are intended to comply with the Brawley Municipal Code as amended from time to time.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

For the purpose of this zoning ordinance, the following words and terms are defined as follows:

"Abandoned signing" means any sign, visible from a position on or off the property upon which erected, which attracts the attention of the public to something which existed at the time of its installation on the property, and which has subsequently ceased to exist on the property.

"Animated signs" means any sign which displays or employs action or movement, whether driven by mechanical means or wind actuated; signs which only rotate shall not be included in this category.

"Banner" means any sign consisting of paper, fabric, canvas, rubber plastic, or the like, with no other material for rigid structural support. Such signs are considered Temporary signs and subject to regulation pursuant to 27.218(f).

"Copy" means the words, letters, symbols, illustrations, or other graphic characters used to convey the message of a sign.

"Degree of nonconformity" means the extent to which any sign or sign structure does not conform to the standards and requirements of this section, such as the height, sign face area, setback, vertical clearance, number of signs, or manner of keeping.

"Flashing sign" means any sign which contains a source of light, internal or external, that intermittently cuts on and off, or which creates the illusion of flashing or intermittent light through animation or other means.

"Freestanding sign" means any sign permanently anchored to the ground which stands alone on its own foundation and structural supports, and free of support from any building.

"Off-site sign" means any sign that may display a message, whether commercial or noncommercial, that does not necessarily relate to the premises upon which such sign is located.

"On-site sign" means any sign which pertains to the business operated, activity conducted, or products sold or manufactured on the premises upon which such sign is located.

"Permanent sign" means any sign set in the ground with its own foundation, or which is painted on or otherwise anchored to a building, wall, or other permanent structure.

"Portable signing" means any signing which is designed to be placed on the ground, rather than anchored to the ground or to any structure, and which may be moved without disassembly or excavation of the sign or sign structure.

"Sign" means any identification, illustration, description, symbol, statue, or other device, which is affixed either directly or indirectly upon a parcel, building, structure, or other surface, and used or intended to attract the attention of the public when visible from any position on or off the premises upon which it is displayed.

"Sign area" means the area, in square feet or square inches, which encloses both the copy and entire facing of the sign. There [Where] a sign has two or more faces, the area of all faces shall be included in determining the sign area, except that only one face of a double-faced sign shall be considered where the angle between faces does not exceed thirty degrees and the distance between faces does not exceed two feet.

"Temporary signing" means any signing which is set in the ground but not permanently set in its own footing or foundation, nor permanently anchored to a building, wall, or other structure.

"Unauthorized signing" means any signing, irrespective of the method of installation, which is erected on property without the permission of the property owner, or signing that is installed without a sign permit and/or encroachment permit.

"Vertical clearance" means the vertical distance measured from the bottom edge of a sign face to the street grade of the nearest driving lane.

"Wall-mounted sign" means any sign attached to a wall of a building, whether or not parallel to the wall surface, including any sign painted on a wall surface or included on an awning.

"Window sign" means any sign painted, attached, glued, or otherwise affixed to a window, and designed to be viewed from adjoining streets, malls or parking lots.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

(Ord. No. 2010-02, § 1.)

No person shall place, erect, construct or otherwise maintain any sign in the city of Brawley without first having obtained a sign permit, and an encroachment permit from either the city of Brawley or the state, if the sign is to be placed within any city of Brawley or state street or highway right-of-way. Temporary signs described in section 27.218 do not require a sign permit, but do require an encroachment permit to be placed within city of Brawley or state street or highway right-of-way. In addition, any sign placed within the city of Brawley shall be constructed by a professional sign maker, and shall comply with all provisions of the zoning ordinance. Before a permit is issued, complete plans and specifications, and if required, complete engineering calculations, shall be submitted to the building inspector.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

No sign or advertising structure shall be permitted that endangers the safety of any person, property, or vehicle. Such signs shall be classified as hazardous structures by the building inspector, and shall either be removed or reconstructed to comply with all provisions of the Uniform Building Code. No sign shall be placed or erected that blocks the view of vehicle drivers when approaching an intersection.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Any signs or advertising structures which become classified as nonconforming uses as a result of the adoption of this zoning ordinance shall be altered to conform with this zoning ordinance, or shall be removed within twenty-five years, calculated from the effective date of this zoning ordinance. However, the time line for removal of nonconforming window signs is five years from the date this zoning ordinance is effective.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

No outdoor advertising sign in any zone shall be placed closer than six hundred sixty feet to any freeway right-of-way line if such outdoor advertising sign is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on such freeway.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

All signs and advertising structures shall be maintained in a safe, neat, and orderly condition.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Permitted temporary signs may be placed within any required yard, provided such temporary signs are not located closer than five feet to any property line.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

(a)

Each lot or parcel of land may have one temporary accessory sign not to exceed six square feet in area advertising only the sale, lease or hire of such premises, except that:

1.

On a lot or parcel of land having a front lot line of one hundred feet or more, said sign may be increased to not more than thirty-two square feet in area; and

2.

One additional sign may be established for each one hundred feet of said front lot line in excess of one hundred feet, provided that such sign is not more than thirty-two square feet in area. This section shall not apply to residential zones. Said signs shall be removed from the premises within thirty days after the property has been sold or leased.

(b)

Political campaign signs may be placed on property within the city of Brawley, provided the following requirements and restrictions are complied with:

1.

Any political campaign sign shall not be placed more than one-hundred twenty days prior to the election for which the political sign was relevant and shall be removed within fifteen days after the election for which the political sign was relevant.

2.

Any political sign placed on private property for a candidate for office shall not be placed without the permission of the property owner.

3.

In residential zoning districts, a maximum of one political sign per lot or parcel is permitted. Such sign shall not exceed six square feet in area.

4.

In commercial and industrial zones, a maximum of two political signs per lot or parcel is permitted. Such signs shall not exceed thirty-two square feet in area.

5.

Political signs shall be nonflashing.

6.

In order to avoid the appearance that the city of Brawley is endorsing a particular candidate or ballot measure, political campaign signs shall not be placed on property owned by the city of Brawley.

(c)

Each business may have window signage, provided that such signs do not exceed five percent of the surface area of the window.

(d)

Each business with an arcade may have one canopy sign that does not exceed five square feet in area.

(e)

Each lot or parcel of land zoned C-P, C-1, C-2 or C-3 may have one temporary sign (i.e., banner) subject to the approval of the planning director or his designee.

(f)

Any provision of this Code to the contrary notwithstanding, a banner sign shall require approval of the planning director or his designee. Such sign shall be kept neat, clean and in good repair. Banner signs which are faded, torn, damaged or otherwise unsightly or in a state of disrepair shall be immediately repaired or removed. Banner signs may be allowed for a period or periods not to exceed forty-five days within a twelve-month period.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

(Ord. No. 2010-02, § 2, 3-23-2010; Ord. No. 2015-06, § 1, 6-16-2015)

(a)

Signs may be constructed with two faces, and either or both faces may be used for sign copy.

(b)

Signs constructed with two faces where the distance between one face of such sign is more than three feet from the second face of said sign shall not be classified as double-faced signs.

(c)

Both faces of a double-faced sign shall be counted when calculating the area of the sign, except that only one face of a double-faced sign shall be considered where the angle between faces does not exceed thirty degrees and the distance between faces does not exceed two feet.

(d)

Double-faced signs may be placed in any commercial or industrial zone and can be illuminated or nonilluminated.

(e)

Double-faced signs may be either on-site or off-site signs.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

(a)

Illuminated signs shall be located in such a manner as to prevent glare and annoyance to the public. All illuminated signs shall be located in such a manner to prevent light from being cast on any adjoining residentially zoned property.

(b)

Flashing signs are not permitted in any zoning district.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Table 27.221 identifies the maximum number and type of signs allowed in various zoning districts.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Table 27.221
Maximum Number and Types of Signs Allowed by Zoning District

Notes:

(a) Sign copy indicating name and address of resident or owner of premises.

(b) Sign copy indicating name and address of project or mobilehome park.

(c) Sign copy advertising the business conducted or services rendered on the premises, or in the case of an off-site sign, the business conducted at another location. Sign may be double faced, and may be illuminated or nonilluminated.

(d) Sign copy advertising the business conducted or services rendered on the premises. Sign may be illuminated or nonilluminated.

(e) Requires approval of a conditional use permit by the planning director.

(f) Sign copy advertising the business conducted or services rendered on the premises.

(g) For commercial and manufacturing/industrial centers, one freestanding on-site sign per street frontage is permitted.

(h) For commercial and manufacturing/industrial centers, one wall-mounted sign per business within the center is permitted.

(a)

Table 27.222 identifies the maximum sign area and sign height allowed in various zoning districts.

(b)

The following standards shall control the computation of sign area and height:

1.

Computation of the Area of Individual Signs. The area of a sign face shall be computed by means of the smallest square, circle, rectangle, triangle, or combination thereof that will encompass the extreme limits of the writing, representation, emblem or other display, together with any material or color forming an integral part of the background of the display or used to differentiate the sign from the backdrop or structure against which it is placed, but not including any supporting framework, bracing, or decorative fence or wall when said fence or wall otherwise meets zoning ordinance regulations and is clearly incidental to the display itself.

2.

Computation of the Area of Multifaced Signs. The area for a sign with more than one face shall be computed by adding together the area of all sign faces visible from any one point. When two identical sign faces are placed back to back, so that both faces cannot be viewed from any point at the same time, and when such sign faces are part of the same sign structure and not more than forty inches apart, the sign area shall be computed by the measurement of one of the faces.

3.

Computation of Height. The height of a sign shall be computed as the distance from the base of the sign at normal grade to the top of the highest attached component of the sign. Normal grade shall be construed to the lower of: existing grade prior to construction; or the newly established grade after construction, exclusive of any filling, berming, mounding, or excavating solely for the purpose of locating the sign. In cases in which the normal grade cannot be reasonably determined, sign height shall be computed on the assumption that the elevation of the normal grade at the base of the sign is equal to elevation of the nearest point of the crown of a public street or the grade of the land at the primary entrance to the primary structure on the lot, whichever is lower.

4.

Computation of the Maximum Total Permitted Sign Area for a Lot. The permitted sum of the area of all individual signs on a lot is determined by adding the maximum sign areas for freestanding, wall-mounted, and portable signs described in table 27.222 for the applicable zone.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Table 27.222
Maximum Sign Area and Height by Zoning District

Note:

(a) No wall-mounted sign shall exceed the upper limit of the wall to which the sign is attached.

(a)

All Zoning Districts (Except Residential Zones). In any zone district, the following provisions shall apply:

1.

To ensure that a driver's view is not obstructed and that a sign does not create a hazard, the minimum vertical clearance for freestanding signs between the bottom of the sign face and the grade line of the nearest driving lane of any street or highway shall be fifteen feet.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

In all zoning districts:

1.

The maximum distance a wall-mounted sign may project from a wall shall be one foot.

2.

No wall-mounted sign shall project into or over a public street right-of-way unless an encroachment permit has been obtained.

3.

No wall-mounted sign shall project over the property line of an adjacent property unless written approval from the property owner involved has been obtained, and a copy of the written approval supplied to the planning department.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

(a)

Temporary Signs and Portable Signs.

1.

In all zoning districts, any temporary sign shall be set back at least five feet from any property line.

2.

In all zoning districts, any portable sign shall be set back at least five feet from any property line.

(b)

Freestanding, Permanent On-Site or Off-Site Signs.

1.

In all commercial and industrial zones, freestanding signs shall be set back from any side or rear property line in accordance with the table below:

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

The following procedures shall govern the application for and issuance of all sign permits under this chapter.

1.

Applications. All applications for sign permits of any kind shall be submitted to the building official on an application form or in accordance with the application requirements published by the building official.

2.

Fees. Each application for a sign permit shall be accompanied by the applicable fees, which are established by city council resolution.

3.

Application Completeness. Within ten working days of receiving an application for a sign permit, the building official shall review it for completeness. If the building official finds that the application is complete, the application shall then be processed. If the building official finds that the application is incomplete, the building official shall, within such ten-day period, send the applicant notice of the specific ways in which the application is deficient, with appropriate references to the applicable section of this zoning ordinance.

4.

Action. Within thirty days of an application for a sign permit being deemed complete, the building official shall either:

a.

Issue a sign permit if the sign that is the subject of the application conforms to the requirements of this zoning ordinance; or

b.

Deny the sign permit if the sign that is the subject of the application fails to conform with the requirements of this zoning ordinance. In the case of denial, the building official shall specify the specific sections of the ordinance with which the sign is inconsistent.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Revolving signs are not permitted.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)

Canopy signs (inside arcade) maximum area five square feet and cannot block any neighbor's signage.

(Ord. No. 2008-04 § 1.)