Lancaster City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VIII
Signs and Illumination
§ 220-27 General regulations.
A.
Interference with traffic. No sign shall be so placed or so worded, designed, colored or illuminated as to obscure or distract from signs regulating traffic.
B.
Motion. Flashing or moving signs are prohibited in all districts.
C.
Setbacks and corner clearance. No sign, including temporary signs, shall be closer than 20 feet to any street or lot line unless affixed to a building. The requirements of corner clearance (§ 220-13) shall apply.
D.
Signs on Town property. All signs on Town property, except for temporary or directional signs as permitted in § 220-30, shall require a special permit from the Board of Appeals.
E.
Sign content. Except for permitted directional signs, sign content shall pertain exclusively to products, services, or activities on the premises. Sign shall not display brand names, symbols, or slogans of nationally advertised products or services except in cases where the majority of the floor or lot area on the premises is devoted to that brand, product or service.
§ 220-28 Permitted forms of illumination.
A.
In R Districts. There shall be no illumination of signs or outdoor areas unless the Board of Appeals grants a special permit for indirect illumination in cases where such illumination would not prove detrimental to residential uses or highway traffic.
B.
In other districts. Illumination of signs and outdoor areas in NB, EZ, LI, LI2 and GI Districts shall be indirect.
[Amended 5-3-1988; 5-5-2008 ATM by Art. 14; 5-6-2013 ATM by Art. 12; 5-5-2014 ATM by Art. 14]
§ 220-29 Limitations on sign location and size.
A.
General location of signs. All signs shall be placed on the premises to which their message pertains, with the following exceptions:
B.
Freestanding signs. Freestanding signs shall be limited to one per premises, in the principal front yard only, and shall not be placed on a tree, rock, or utility pole. In Residence Districts, no such sign shall exceed three square feet in area on residential premises, nor 12 square feet on nonresidential premises or on premises for sale. In all other districts, such signs are limited to an area not greater than 30 square feet or one square foot for each four linear feet of the principal lot frontage, whichever is smaller.
[Amended 5-2-2011 ATM by Art. 14]
C.
Attached signs.
(1)
Attached signs may be placed only on the side of a building facing a street and shall not project more than three inches from the face of the building, nor above the line of the eaves, and shall not obscure any window, door, or other architectural feature. In Residence Districts, the maximum area of signs shall not exceed three square feet for each permitted family or home occupation on residential premises, or 12 square feet for each permitted nonresidential premises. In any other district, the aggregate area of all signs on any face of a building fronting a street shall not exceed 10% of the area of that face or 30 square feet, whichever is smaller.
(2)
In the case of a shopping center, the maximum area of such signs on any face of the shopping center building shall not exceed one square foot to each linear foot of such building face measured horizontally along such building face. Such signs shall be permitted on all faces of the building but shall be limited to major department stores, entrances and theaters.
§ 220-30 Exceptions for temporary and directional signs.
A.
Temporary posters for noncommercial events, political signs. Such signs are limited to a period of 45 days preceding and seven days after the relevant event and to not more than one, not to exceed 12 square feet, per residential premises in Residence Districts nor more than two, not exceeding 20 square feet each, on all other premises.
B.
Directional signs. Accessory signs directing traffic to entrances or exits from the building or parking area are permitted in any district and all yards, provided:
(1)
No freestanding directional sign exceeds two square feet in area, or is placed higher than three feet above the ground;
(2)
No such sign is closer than 10 feet to a street lot line;
(3)
The number of such signs is limited to the minimum necessary to give clear directions;
(4)
The sign bears no advertising matter.
§ 220-31 Size, location and illumination exceptions.
[Added 5-2-2011 ATM by Art. 19[1]]
The Board of Appeals may grant exceptions regarding the size, location and allowable illumination of signs (such as allowing direct illumination) upon its determination that the objectives of facilitating efficient communication, avoidance of visual conflict with the environs, and good relationships between signs and the buildings to which they relate are satisfied, considering the following among other considerations.
A.
Sign size is appropriate in relation to development scale, viewer distance, speed of vehicular travel, street width, and signage on nearby premises.
B.
Visibility of other public or private signage on nearby premises is not unreasonably diminished.
C.
Sign content is simple and neat, with minimum wording to improve legibility.
D.
Sign placement, colors, lettering style, and form are compatible with building design.
E.
Sign design and location do not interrupt, obscure or hide architectural features of the building, such as columns, sill lines, cornices, or roof edges.
F.
Sign brightness is not inconsistent with that of other signs in the vicinity.
§ 220-31.1 Permit required; fees.
A.
Permits. No sign of three square feet or more in area shall be erected, enlarged, or structurally altered without a sign permit issued by the Building Inspector.