Bristol Town City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VIII
Sign and Billboard Regulations
§ 350-35 Purpose.
The purpose of these regulations is to provide comprehensive time, place and manner restrictions on signage, including, but not limited to, controls on size, height, quantity, location, lighting, motion, design and appearance toward the goal of promoting community aesthetics, traffic safety, economic development and the protection of property values.
§ 350-36 Sign standards.
All signs within the Town of Bristol must be maintained and be in accordance with the following:
Design qualities. Applicants are encouraged to design signs consistent with architecture and scenic vistas of the Town of Bristol.
Lighting. No sign in a residential district may be illuminated.
Attachments. No sign shall be attached to utility poles, trees or streetlights.
Attention devices. No sign shall consist of animated or moving parts.
Maintenance. All signs and structures that support a sign shall be adequately maintained. Maintenance of a conforming sign or a legally nonconforming sign shall not be considered an erection or alteration so long as a structural change is not made.
Projecting signs. No sign shall be permitted to project into any public right-of-way.
Accessory use. All signs permitted in the Town of Bristol on or after the effective date of this chapter shall be an accessory use.
Building permit. All signs, except temporary signs, shall be considered structures and shall require a building permit.
Temporary signs. All signs such as "for sale" or "for rent" (real estate), candidate signs and garage/yard sale, etc., shall be considered as temporary signs.
Real estate signs must be removed no later than 10 days after the transfer of title or rental of the property.
Political candidate signs shall be in place no more than 45 days in any given calendar year prior to Election Day. These signs must be removed within 10 days after an election.
Garage/yard sale signs shall be in place no more 30 days in any given calendar year, nor more than three consecutive days. These signs must be removed within five days after the last day of the sale.
Seasonal signs are permitted to coincide with availability of goods/merchandise/services for a period of time not to exceed 60 days.
Banners for advertising commercial activities may be in place for no more than 30 days and shall not be allowed to deteriorate.
Lighting angle. If lighting is provided, it shall be arranged to reflect away from the surrounding property and away from public ways.
Lighting intensity. The intensity of the light source shall not exceed that necessary to illuminate and make legible a sign from the public ways. Signs constituting a traffic hazard are prohibited.
Uniform Building Code. All signs shall comply with applicable regulations of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
§ 350-37 Signs permitted by district.
[Amended 6-9-2025 by L.L. No. 3-2025]
Agricultural-Conservation (A-C). Signs shall be permitted in accordance with the following requirements:
Residential use. A pole- or building-mounted, nonilluminated sign which exceeds no more than four square feet per side or 10 feet in height above ground level. No permit required for this sign.
Commercial use. One sign, which may be illuminated, but nonflashing, identifying a church, public building, home occupation, or other permitted nonresidential commercial use. Such sign shall be situated on the property to which it relates and shall be no less than five feet from the right-of-way. Such sign shall be no more than 16 square feet in area on each of two sides, nor 10 feet in height above ground level.
Residential (M-R and L-R) Districts. Signs shall be permitted in accordance with the following requirements:
Residential use. A pole- or building-mounted, nonilluminated sign which exceeds no more than four square feet per side or 10 feet in height above ground level. No permit required for this sign.
Commercial use. One sign that shall be nonilluminated and nonrotating to indicate a home occupation or professional office. Such sign shall be no more than four square feet in area on each of two sides, nor 10 feet in height above ground level.
Community Business (C-B) and Light Industrial (L-I) Districts. Signs shall be permitted in accordance with the following requirements:
Residential use. A pole- or building-mounted, nonilluminated sign which exceeds no more than four square feet per side or 10 feet in height above ground level. No permit required for this sign.
Commercial use. Signs to identify a permitted business use located on the same property shall be permitted in accordance with the following requirements:
One sign may be placed, or inscribed upon the front of a building, for each permitted use or activity, except that the said sign shall not exceed an area of 15% of the surface upon which it is located and shall not project more than 12 inches in front of the face of the building. Such sign may be illuminated, but shall be nonflashing.
Each permitted business use may have one freestanding sign, provided that such sign shall not exceed 15 feet in height and shall not exceed a maximum of 20 square feet in area per side upon which the message is affixed.
One freestanding sign for each retail/professional center, which shall not exceed 65 square feet in area nor 15 feet in height above ground level.
Each use in a commercial center or plaza shall be permitted one square foot of sign area of each linear foot of building frontage and such sign is to be mounted on the building frontage.
§ 350-38 Exceptions.
As defined in Article II, Terminology, sign regulations in the Community Business (C-B) and Light Industrial (L-I) Districts shall not apply to parking lot markers, directional signs, entrance and exit signs and other nonadvertising signs which are erected upon the premises, provided that such signs do not exceed two square feet in area on any one side and do not contain any advertising of the use of the premises.
No permit shall be required for a temporary "for sale" or "for rent" sign, provided it does not exceed 20 square feet in area and the height is no greater than seven feet.
No permit shall be required for temporary candidate or ballot signs. These signs shall measure no more than four square feet and no more than one sign for each candidate or ballot shall be placed on the same parcel. Signs must be removed within 10 days after an election.
§ 350-39 Procedures.
All permitted signs and billboards shall be considered structures and shall require a building permit from the Code Enforcement Officer. Said signs must be located within the proper setbacks of the Town, county or state right-of-way and comply with § 350-37 of this article.
The Code Enforcement Officer's review of all sign permits shall be based on the completed application form, any accompanying photos, drawings and site inspection.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall:
Review the design, size and location of the proposed sign to determine whether the proposed sign is in violation of any of the regulations or restrictions set forth in this chapter.
Grant or deny the application within 30 days of receipt of a complete application and file the decision in the office of the Town Clerk. A denial shall be accompanied with a brief statement of the reason for the denial.
Once an application has been approved, the Code Enforcement Officer shall issue a sign permit. Said permit shall be valid for a period of 120 days from the date of issuance. If a certificate of sign compliance is not issued within the 120-day period for the sign permit, said sign permit shall expire.
Should the Code Enforcement Officer, upon inspection, find the sign not in compliance with the sign permit, the applicant shall be so notified by mail within two business days of the inspection. The applicant shall have up to 30 business days to respond from the date the notice is placed in a sealed envelope, prepaid postage, addressed to the owner at the last-known address.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall maintain a file on all commercial sign permits issued. The file shall contain photos of all existing commercial speech signs and identify whether a sign was erected with or without a permit, before or after the effective date of this chapter.
When a site plan review is indicated for new construction or site alterations, the Planning Board shall, as part of the site plan review, reserve the right to accept, modify or deny proposed signage. This decision, along with all final decisions regarding the site plan review, shall be conveyed to the Code Enforcement Officer.
§ 350-40 Sign enforcement and penalties; fees.
Enforcement and penalties.
It shall be the duty of the Code Enforcement Officer or his/her delegate to administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter.
When violations occur under this chapter, the Code Enforcement Officer shall cause notice to be given to the owner or occupant of the premises on which the sign is located, or to the agent of either, or person receiving the benefits from the nonconforming sign. Said notice may be given by issuance and service of a notice of a violation. If any of said persons fail to abate said violation within 10 days after such notice has been sent to said person at their home or business address, said person shall be subject to a civil penalty for each and every day that said violation continues, recoverable by suit brought by the Code Enforcement Officer in the name of the Town and to be retained by the Town.
The Code Enforcement Officer or authorized representative may serve a written stop-work order upon the applicant, or other person who commits or assists in any such violation, requiring the correction of any violation of this chapter.
The Code Enforcement Officer, on behalf of the Town, may maintain an action for an injunction to enjoin violations of this chapter.
The remedies provided herein shall be cumulative and shall be in addition to any other remedies provided by law.
Fees. All fees associated with these regulations shall be established and maintained by the Town Board and made a part of the Town of Bristol fee schedule. Fees for signs are incorporated into the building permit fee.
§ 350-41 Sign maintenance.
All signs in the Town of Bristol shall be properly maintained at all times. The Code Enforcement Officer shall have the authority to order the painting, repair or removal of a sign and accompanying landscaping which constitutes a hazard to safety, health or public welfare by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence or abandonment. Notification shall be by mail. If the maintenance notice is not complied with within 10 days or followed with a plan of action, it shall become an order to abate the sign or perform the maintenance or repair specified therein.