(a)

Purpose and intent. The purpose and intent of this chapter is to regulate, control and administer, without reference to content, the use of signs within the boundaries of the city and within the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction to the extent allowed by law, and to provide for the safety and well-being of the city's citizens by providing safe and aesthetically pleasing signage without causing undue hardship or burden on businesses.

(b)

Applicability.

(1)

All ordinances adopted by the city regulating the erection, structure, size location, and placement of all signs and advertisements shall be and are hereby made applicable to all properties and land within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city in addition to the corporate and territorial limits of the city to the extent that such regulations are applicable to outdoor signs, and the city does hereby extend the provisions of said outdoor sign regulatory ordinances to the city's area of extraterritorial jurisdiction.

(2)

Any sign which did not lawfully exist at the time of adoption of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived shall not become or be made legal solely by adoption of said ordinance. Any sign or use not specifically permitted is prohibited.

(c)

Sign permits.

(1)

A sign permit is not included with a building permit.

(2)

No person shall erect, install, repair, remodel, expand, or display a sign without first obtaining a sign permit as required by this chapter.

(3)

No signage other than the main permitted sign shall be painted on or attached to a pole or support members of any sign.

(d)

Signs exempt from permit. The following signs do not require a permit:

(1)

Copy changes and sign face replacement, when no increase in sign area or height is made, for signs otherwise allowed under this section, not including changes proposed on a nonconforming sign or to modify any sign to an electronic message center, are exempt from the permit requirements of this chapter.

(2)

Construction signs when placed upon the construction site following the issuance of a building permit.

(3)

Flags of the United States, state, or any other political subdivision, any flag of a bona fide region, fraternal or charitable organizations, and flags of corporations, subdivisions, or community associations or organizations. Exemption does not apply to the pole structure that is regulated by the associated zoning district.

(4)

Memorial plaques, building identification signs, and building cornerstones when cut or carved into the masonry surface or when made of noncombustible material and is made an integral part of the building or structure. These signs shall not exceed four square feet in area.

(5)

On-site directional signs not exceeding four square feet, provided such sign does not contain advertising and is not used as such. Directional signs are only permitted behind the property line.

(6)

Political signs.

(7)

Traffic or other municipally-owned signs, legal notices, danger and such emergency, temporary or non-advertising signs as may be approved by the city council or its authorized agent.

(8)

Signs on fences or other structures within public parks, signs that are positioned internally within public sport fields, and signs prepared by or for the local, state, or federal government, including sites or buildings of historical significance. No sign shall be larger than 32 square feet in area.

(9)

Temporary signs advertising garage sales, provided that such signs shall be removed within 72 hours after posting. No sign shall be affixed to utility poles or street signs.

(10)

Window signs. They may be no larger than 20 percent of the total opening.

(11)

Wall decorations and works of art that do not include a commercial message or logos.

(Ord. No. 793-25, § 2(Exh. A), 1-23-25)

(a)

Application.

(1)

An application for a sign permit shall be made in writing upon forms furnished by the building department. Such application shall contain the location by street and number of the proposed sign structure as well as the name and address of the owner and the sign contractor or erector. The director of planning or designee may require the filing of plans drawn to scale, building materials or other pertinent information where such information is necessary to ensure compliance with the sign regulations.

(2)

Permit fees will be set by an appropriate fee resolution by the city council, and such permit are nonrefundable and nontransferable.

(3)

The permit is valid for 60 days from issuance, work must commence before the end of 60 days from issuance, and work must be complete 180 days from issuance.

(b)

Permit revocation.

(1)

The director of planning or designee may suspend or revoke any permit issued under the provisions of this chapter whenever:

a.

It is determined by the director of planning or designee that the permit is issued on the basis of incorrect or false information supplied; or

b.

A sign for which such permit is issued violates any of the provisions of this chapter or any other ordinance of the city or laws of the state or the United States.

c.

Such suspension or revocation shall be effective when communicated in writing to the person to whom the permit is issued, the owner of the sign or the owner of the premises upon which the sign is located.

(2)

The director of planning or designee is hereby authorized to withhold issuance of a sign permit to any person who has previously failed or refused to pay any fees or costs assessed under provisions of this chapter, or who is currently in violation of any provision of a city ordinance, until such fees are paid or ordinance violations are abated.

(3)

Whenever any work for which a permit is required by this chapter has commenced without first obtaining said permit, an administrative review shall be made before a permit may be issued for such work. This associated investigation shall have a fee that is provided for in the city's fee schedule and will be assessed in addition to any permit fee.

(c)

Variances. Any property owner may apply to the board of adjustment of the city to request the board to vary any or all terms of these sign regulations. The board may grant a variance to the terms of this chapter upon a specific finding from evidence presented to it that strict compliance with the provisions of this chapter will result in substantial hardship or inequity to the applicant without corresponding benefit to the city and its citizens in accomplishing the objectives of this chapter. In no event shall the granting of such a variance permit a sign to be placed in public right-of-way, an unsafe sign, a waiver of the permit requirements of this chapter, reconstruction of a nonconforming sign, or the placement of a commercial sign in a residential zone. Notice of a public hearing on such application shall be given in the same manner as for a zoning application.

(d)

Maintenance, nuisances, and violations.

(1)

All signs shall be kept in a proper state of repair and preservation. It is a violation of this chapter to keep or allow to be kept any sign in a dilapidated or deteriorated condition.

(2)

All signs and sign structures shall comply with the minimum standards established by the building codes of the city, as amended, unless standards described in this chapter are more restrictive, then in such an event the provisions of this chapter shall apply.

(3)

If the director of planning or designee shall determine that any sign is unsafe, unsecure or is a public nuisance, the director of planning or designee shall give written notice to the permittee, owner and person or persons responsible for such sign. If the permittee, owner, or person responsible for such sign or the owner, manager, occupant, agent or person having beneficial use of the property or structure upon which such sign is mounted or located fails to remove or repair the sign within ten days after such notice, such sign shall constitute a public nuisance and any and all of such persons shall be in violation of this chapter and subject to prosecution. The director of planning or designee may cause any sign which is an immediate safety hazard to persons to be removed summarily and without notice.

(4)

Any sign found on public property or within the public right-of-way and not authorized by this chapter may be immediately removed by any city employee or designee.

(Ord. No. 793-25, § 2(Exh. A), 1-23-25)

(a)

Monument.

Single Tenant

Multi-Tenant

(b)

Wall.

Wall Signs

Awning: Awning signs may project from the wall of the building to protect the main entrance.

Canopy: Canopies may be freestanding or supported independently by columns and subject to the following.

(c)

Banners.

Temporary Commercial Signage

(d)

Old Town.

(e)

Temporary.

(1)

One temporary, unlit sign may be placed on an individually platted residential lot provided the following conditions are met:

a.

The sign shall not exceed eight square feet in area;

b.

The sign shall be removed within one week following the close of sale or lease of the lot;

c.

The lot must be part of a subdivision for which a final plat shall have been filed and recorded with the county; and

d.

The subdivision and its public improvements and infrastructure shall have been accepted by the city.

(2)

For any residential subdivisions under construction, only four temporary unlit signs shall be permitted within the city provided the following conditions are met:

a.

One sign is permitted onsite in the subdivision during the construction phase and three additional signs are permitted in other legal locations throughout the city;

b.

Only one sign is permitted per major existing street frontage;

c.

Only one sign is permitted on any one lot or tract of land. There does not have to be a main structure on the lot or tract of land;

d.

Such sign shall be placed within the property lines of the lot or tract;

e.

Such sign shall be located behind a 25-foot visibility triangle only after a final plat of the development shall have been filed and recorded with the county;

f.

Such sign shall not exceed 15 feet in height or 100 square feet in area; and

g.

All signs shall be removed when construction on all phases in the subdivision are complete.

(3)

On any undeveloped property or tract of land, only one temporary unlit sign shall be allowed, provided the following conditions are met:

a.

Only one sign is permitted for any one lot and tract of land. There does not have to be a main structure on the lot or tract of land;

b.

Such sign shall be placed within the property lines of the lot or tract;

c.

Such sign shall be located behind a 25-foot visibility triangle;

d.

Such sign shall not exceed 15 feet in height and 100 square feet in area; and

e.

Such sign shall be removed within one week following the close of sale or lease of land.

(a)

Prohibited. All signs not expressly permitted or exempt from this chapter are prohibited. The following signs are prohibited in the city and the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ):

(1)

Any sign erected in a manner that would confuse or obstruct the view or interpretation of any official traffic sign, signal or device;

(2)

Portable signs, inflatable signs, free-standing light poles, streamers, pennants, ribbons, spinners, search lights, and other such temporary signs, except that are allowed in this chapter;

(3)

Snipe signs or any advertising sign placed on a utility pole, rock, tree or other natural features;

(4)

Off-premises signs or billboards;

(5)

Wind devices;

(6)

A parked motor vehicle and/or trailer used as an advertisement, except signage on delivery vehicles;

(7)

Spectacular signs and signs which emit audible sound, odor, or visible matter; and

(8)

Signs on the right-of-way of a road or highway maintained by the city.

(9)

Electronic message center or digital message boards. Electronic message boards are prohibited and shall not be allowed within the City of Justin or its ETJ area. Electronic message board signs that are in place as of the effective date of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived shall be classified as non-conforming and subject to the provisions and requirements of section 52-602(d).

(b)

Nonconforming.

(1)

Nonconforming signs are signs which were lawfully approved prior to the effective date of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived; but which are no longer in compliance with the sign regulations currently in effect.

(2)

It is the declared purpose of this chapter that nonconforming signs be eventually discontinued and the use of the premises be required to conform to the regulations prescribed by this chapter.

(3)

A nonconforming sign may be used and maintained in good repair, but it shall not be altered, remodeled, or enlarged.

(4)

The right to use or maintain a nonconforming sign shall cease and such use shall be terminated if:

a.

The sign is altered, remodeled, removed, or enlarged, regardless of whether such alteration, remodel, removal or enlargement was necessitated by right-of-way acquisition by a governmental agency;

b.

The sign or structure is replaced;

c.

The sign is relocated;

d.

The sign identifies a business, person or activity that has ceased to operate on the premises on which the sign is located for a period of one year or;

e.

The premises on which the sign is located is leased and two years have passed since the most recent tenant has ceased to operate on the premises; or

f.

The sign or a substantial part of it is blown down or otherwise destroyed or dismantled for any purpose other than maintenance operations or for changing the letters, symbols, or other matter on the sign. The term "substantial part" shall mean the cost of repairing the sign is more than 60 percent of the cost of erecting a new sign of the same type at the same location.

(c)

Digital billboards.

(1)

Digital billboard requirements. Digital billboard signs shall be reviewed and approved, at a duly noticed public hearing in accordance with section 52-201 and notification to surrounding property owner, by the planning and zoning commission prior to the issuance of a building permit.

a.

A building permit and permit fee are required for all digital billboards. Building permit shall include but not be limited to: Plans for electrical, structural, soils reports, erosion controls pre-construction, construction and post-construction conditions, wind shear conditions, or drainage as may be specified by the city.

(2)

Digital billboards. With approval by the planning and zoning commission, an existing legal nonconforming off-premises billboard signs located on lots having frontage on a state highway, farm-to-market roadway or a tollway may be converted to digital billboards under the following conditions:

a.

Each message shall be displayed for at least eight seconds and a change of message shall be accomplished within two seconds or less.

b.

Transitions between the display of a message, content, and/or image shall be immediate only and shall occur simultaneously on the entire sign face.

c.

No display shall include animation, full motion video, blinking, flashing, dissolving or fading images, moving light, scrolling images or text, nor shall it project a static image upon a stationary object.

d.

The display of message, content, and/or image shall be visible only from one direction of traffic travel per sign face on the primary roadway to which the sign is designed to be read.

e.

No portion of a digital billboard shall project into a dedicated utility easement or be closer than five feet to a federal, state, or local right-of-way at the time of initial construction.

f.

The main support structure shall have a decorative finish consisting of brick, stone, or other approved masonry finish materials. The use of EIFS shall not constitute an approved finish material.

g.

A minimum spacing of 1,500 feet distance shall be required between one digital billboard and any other digital or conventional billboard on the same roadway. The planning and zoning commission is authorized to grant variances to the minimum spacing requirements provided that no variance violates the Highway Beautification Act of 1965.

h.

A digital billboard shall have a default mechanism built in to either turn the display off or show "full black" on the display in the event of a malfunction.

i.

The display may not display light of such intensity or brilliance to cause glare or otherwise impair the vision of the driver, or results in a nuisance to the driver.

j.

A digital billboard shall be equipped with both a dimmer control and a photocell, which automatically adjusts the display's intensity according to natural ambient light conditions. The brightness of the display shall not exceed 0.3 foot-candles over ambient light measurement at a distance of 250 feet from the sign.

(3)

Upon notification, the sign operators shall coordinate with city staff to display emergency information critical to the traveling public, such as but not limited to AMBER ALERTS from a National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) authorized source, Homeland Security, and other alerts involving terrorist attacks, and natural disasters. Emergency messages are to remain in the display's rotation according to the designated issuing agency's protocols until further notified.

(4)

The owner of a digital billboard shall provide contact information for a person who is available to be contacted at any time and is able to turn off the sign promptly after malfunction occurs or reduce the intensity of the sign within 12 hours of a request by the director of planning or designee or the Texas Department of Transportation to a level acceptable to the city.

(5)

A digital billboard or its message, content and/or image shall not be configured to resemble a warning or danger signal or cause a driver to mistake it for a warning or danger signal.

(6)

A digital billboard or its message, content and/or image shall not resemble or simulate any lights of official signage used to control traffic in accordance with the currently adopted edition of the TXDOT manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

(7)

Prohibitions. A digital billboard shall not:

a.

Be allowed within 250 feet of single-family residential, single-family planned or multifamily residential developments.

b.

Exceed 672 square feet in total display area.

c.

Electronic message board and billboard signs that are in place as of the effective date of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived shall be classified as non-conforming and subject to the provisions and requirements of section 52-604(b).

(8)

Conversion of an existing billboard. In cases where a conventional billboard is converted to a digital billboard of larger size, the net area increase of the proposed digital billboard display must be physically removed from other conventional billboards located within the city and under the same ownership or control as the owner proposing the conversion. Once an inventory of all billboards within the city is submitted, the owner may choose which specific conventional billboard face(s) are to be removed in exchange for the net area increase caused by the digital sign conversion. The square footage can be accumulated by the surrendering of smaller conventional billboard face(s) if the aggregate amount removed equals or exceeds the area increase caused by the conversion.

(9)

Removal of an existing billboard. A demolition permit application and permit fee shall be required in order to remove an existing billboard.

(10)

Appeals. The decision of the planning and zoning commission is final, unless an appeal is filed in writing within ten days after the commission's decision. An applicant may appeal a commission decision to the city council. An appeal shall be filed with city development services department and a fee paid for processing an appeal for city council consideration.

(Ord. No. 793-25, § 2(Exh. A), 1-23-25)