Compton City Zoning Code
§ 30-22.6
Sign Standards.
[Ord. #1971, § 1]
Table 30-22.B provides standards for the type, number, aggregate area, height and other standards applicable to permitted signs. In addition to the information provided in the matrix, the following standards shall apply:
a.
Basic Formula. The following formula contains the underlying assumptions utilized in developing the matrix; it results in the maximum amount of permitted signage and shall prevail in questions of interpretation:
1.
Facade Signs. Every premises shall be permitted one business identification sign and four accessory signs for each facade which fronts on a street or parking lot. Maximum aggregate sign area shall be 1 1/2 square feet for each lineal foot of building frontage, not to exceed 200 square feet per facade in commercial zones and 300 square feet in manufacturing zones.
2.
Freestanding Signs. Freestanding signs shall be monument, ground or decorative pylon in style and shall be permitted as follows:
(a)
Individual premises with 150 or more lineal feet of street frontage shall be permitted one business identification monument sign for each qualifying street frontage, not to exceed two. Such signs shall be no more than 32 square feet in size and eight feet in height.
(b)
Multi-tenant premises (three or more separate occupants) with a street frontage of 200 lineal feet or more shall be permitted one center directory sign. Maximum individual sign area shall be four tenths of a square foot (0.4 square feet) for each lineal foot of street frontage, not to exceed 120 square feet. The sign area for signs which include noncommercial center identification may be increased a maximum of 25%, not to exceed 30 square feet, to be used exclusively for the center name. The maximum height of a multitenant sign shall be 20 feet or the height of the nearest building, whichever is less. See Figure 30-22.4.
 Figure 30-22.4: Multi-tenant Signs -Area Calculation |
(c)
Premises with 300 or more lineal feet of freeway or freeway exposed frontage shall be permitted one monument or pylon sign 35 feet in height and no more than 160 square feet in size in lieu of a business identification or center identification sign.
b.
Sign Design. All signs shall be designed and constructed so that they are proportional to the wall area, building facade and lot area where they will be displayed. In addition to the guidelines and criteria contained in the Compton Design Manual, the following standards shall apply:
1.
Sign colors and materials should be selected to be compatible with the existing building designs and should contribute to legibility and design integrity.
2.
Sign colors and materials should be selected that provide a contrast to, but do not clash with, the background color and the lettering.
3.
All lettering shall be restricted to the sign area. No projections above or below the sign area will be permitted.
4.
Individual signs should be designed to be simple, direct and concise, with limited use of color and no more than two rows of lettering. Design flexibility may be granted by the Architectural Review Board for registered trademarks and logos.
5.
No more than three brand names or business trademarks shall be used on any one permanent sign.
6.
Logos and trademarks may be mounted separately from the business identification sign.
7.
All signs shall be constructed of permanent materials, including metal, Plexiglas, lexan, wood (excluding plywood), acrylic or other comparable durable materials. Facade signs should be constructed of individualized channel letters. Where the use of channel letters would be incompatible with existing signage design, the Architectural Review Board may authorize alternative compatible sign materials provided the alternative is part of an approved sign program and complies with the findings contained in subsection 30-22.5e.
8.
In order to facilitate proportional signage and design integrity the Architectural Review Board may approve modifications to the standards contained in this section not to exceed 10% of any such standard.
c.
Sign Location. All signs, unless otherwise provided for in this section, shall be erected upon the premises or property occupied by the person or business identified by the sign and must meet the following standards for location within a site:
1.
All freestanding signs shall be located within a landscaped area or planter base with an area no less than four times the area of the largest sign face.
2.
No freestanding sign shall be located within 100 feet of any other freestanding sign on the same premises.
3.
All freestanding signs shall be located a minimum of five feet from any property line.
4.
No freestanding sign shall be located within a required rear or interior side yard setback.
5.
No sign shall be constructed in a location that will restrict or interfere with traffic circulation or pedestrian or vehicle visibility or in any way represent a hazard to on-site or off-site traffic.
6.
Signs may not be located within a vision clearance area.
(a)
Vision clearance areas are triangular-shaped areas located at the intersection of any combination of streets, alleys or driveways. The sides of the triangle extend 15 feet from the intersection of the vehicle travel areas (see Figure 30-22.5). The height of the vision clearance area ranges from 42 inches above grade to 10 feet above grade (see Figure 30-22.5).
 Figure 30-22.5: Vision Clearance Area |
(b)
Support structures for a sign may only be located in a vision clearance area if the combined total width is 12 inches or less and the combined total depth is 12 inches or less.
7.
Sign area may not be transferred to non-qualifying frontage nor combined or consolidated with or on any qualifying frontage.
d.
Sign Illumination. Lighting devices on or directed toward signs shall not create glare, conflict with vehicular traffic or spillover to adjacent land uses. Signs may be internally or externally illuminated. The following limitations shall apply to all lighted signs:
1.
Except for low-intensity, internally illuminated directory or address signs, illuminated signs shall be prohibited in residential zones.
2.
Sign illumination shall not result in glare being directed toward surrounding properties.
3.
Exterior lighting directed at a sign shall be shielded to insure that the light is projected only upon the sign.
Table 30-22.B.1 Sign Matrix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Sign Type | Maximum Number | Maximum Area | Other |
Facade: Wall or Canopy | |||
Business Identification | 1 per street or parking lot frontage | 1.5 s/f per lineal foot of frontage, not to exceed 200 s/f in "C" zone or 300 s/f in "M" zone | Maximum area applies to aggregate of all facade signs |
Accessory | 4 per street or parking lot frontage, with a maximum of 8 installed on no more than 2 facades | 25% of the size of the business identification sign per accessory sign | Maximum 1 line copy, 1 product or service per sign May not project above height of primary sign or first floor |
Under Canopy | 1 sign per primary business entrance | 8 s/f | Name/address/product only In lieu of an accessory sign |
Free Standing Signs* | |||
Business Identification: Monument | 1 sign for each street frontage of 150 feet or more; not to exceed 2 | 32 s/f | Maximum height: 8 feet |
Center Identification: Monument/Pylon | 1 sign only per center with 200 feet or more of street frontage located on a single street | 0.4 s/f for each lineal foot of frontage, not to exceed 120 s/f plus 0.1 s/f for each lineal foot for a non-commercial center name, not to exceed 30 s/f | Maximum height: 20 feet or height of nearest building, whichever is least |
Freeway Adjacent: Pylon (single or double) | 1 sign only per location with 300 feet or more of freeway/overpass frontage | 160 s/f | In lieu of freestanding sign Maximum height: 35 feet |
Special Purpose Signs | |||
Monument or Wall: Outside Storage Yards, Car Lots, Auto Repair Garages | 1 sign per street frontage, not to exceed 2 | 32 s/f | Limited to fenced locations where buildings are not readily visible from the street. Maximum height: 6 feet |
Monument: Service Stations | 1 | 24 s/f for business identification, 8 s/f for price information | Limited to service stations with less than 150 feet of frontage. Maximum height: 8 feet |
Free-Standing: Drive-Thru Menu/Order Board | 2 per drive thru lane | 30 s/f | Maximum height: 7 feet |
Wall/Kiosk: Directory Signs/Multiple Tenant Centers | 1 wall sign per building entrance or 1 kiosk, but no more than 2, per pedestrian concourse | 12 s/f per sign face | Maximum height: 6 feet |
Advertising Benches: | 1 per front and rear of bench backrest | 75% of backrest | Subject to review and approval of Public Works Dept. |
Monument or Wall: Identification Signs/Churches, Institutions & Mobile Home Parks and Licensed Nonconforming Businesses in Residential Zones | 1 per street frontage | 12 s/f for wall sign, 24 s/f for monument sign | Maximum height: 6 feet |
Pennants or Flags | 1 per lineal foot of street frontage | 100 s/f and 200 lineal feet | Maximum size: 2 s/f for pennants; 12 s/f for flags |
Wall: Mural or Decorative Graphic | 1 per business entrance | 24 s/f | Permitted as part of sign program only Nonresidential zones only |
* | Must be in landscaped planter. Must be 100 feet from any other freestanding sign, 5 feet from any property line. May not be in required rear or side yard. |