Malverne City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IX
Signs
§ 600-9.0 Purpose; definitions; legal notices.
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this article is to establish reasonable regulations for all signs in the Village of Malverne in order to:
(1)
Further the objectives of the Village Comprehensive Plan;
(2)
Protect the value of property in the Village;
(3)
Protect the health, safety and general welfare;
(4)
Protect the essential character of residential neighborhoods and nonresidential areas of the Village;
(5)
Facilitate the creation of an attractive and harmonious community; and
(6)
Reduce traffic hazards.
B. PERSON SIGN SIGN, BILLBOARD SIGN PERMIT SIGN, REAL ESTATE OR CONSTRUCTION SIGN, TEMPORARY
Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated, unless the context otherwise indicates:
Includes any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
That portion of any building or structure or any billboard, signboard, sandwich board, banner, pennant or other temporary or permanent object, shape, device, image or merchandise, displayed or used as an advertisement, announcement or direction, and all text, symbols, shapes, lights, marks, letters or figures affixed thereto, painted thereon or incorporated therein. Any motor vehicles habitually parked so that markings, signboards, merchandise, images, etc., positioned thereon or located therein as business advertising may be viewed from an adjacent street or highway shall be deemed to constitute a sign. Any vending machine located on premises occupied by a business shall not be deemed a sign, provided that the same is not illuminated. Illuminated machines shall be deemed signs.
A sign directing attention to a business, commodity, service, event, entertainment or attraction sold, offered or existing other than upon the same lot where such sign is sited or only incidentally sold, offered or existing upon such lot.
A type of building permit issued by the Superintendent of Buildings, or the Building Inspector, authorizing the erection, construction, reconstruction, alteration or moving of a sign.
A type of temporary sign advertising the availability for sale or rental of a realty subdivision, a parcel of land or a lot or improvements thereto during the period of such availability but in no case for a period of more than 180 days.
A sign which directs attention to an activity or event on the lot on which the sign is located immediately prior to and/or during the pendency of such event, and which is removed immediately upon the conclusion of same.
C.
Legal notices. These regulations shall not apply to signs placed on any property to provide legal notice to the public where such notice and such sign are required by the terms of any law, ordinance, governmental regulation, court decree or administrative order. However, in the case of gasoline price signs and other similar external signs required by law to be posted by certain businesses or special use permits, any characteristic of the sign, such as maximum size, color, exact on-site location, etc., not specifically determined by the law requiring the sign shall be subject to site plan and/or architectural and design approval in the same manner as any other sign on the property.
§ 600-9.1 Signs in residential districts.
No sign shall be displayed in any residential district, other than by a governmental authority, except as follows:
B.
An identification sign shall be required for each residence, which shall be one sign, which shall not exceed two square feet in area, displaying not more than the name and street number of the occupant of the premises and, in the case of a permitted office, studio or occupational room, the identification thereof. Such sign shall not be placed within a distance of three feet from any street or property line, and all freestanding signs shall not exceed four feet in height above ground level.
C.
One sign or bulletin board, not exceeding eight square feet in area, on church, institutional or school property, giving the identification thereof or advertising the activities thereof, or both. Such sign shall not be placed within a distance of 10 feet from any street or property line and shall not exceed six feet in height above ground level.
D.
One sign, which shall not exceed one square foot in area, indicating that the premises are protected by a security company. Such sign shall not be placed within a distance of three feet from any property line and shall not exceed two feet in height above ground level. Signs on windows, not exceeding 36 square inches, indicating that the premises are protected by a security company, shall be exempt from the provisions of this section.
E.
No signs shall have characters, letters, figures, designs or outlines illuminated by electric lights or luminous tubes or use reflective or fluorescent paint or material.
F.
All signs permitted pursuant to this section shall have lettering only on one side and shall be attached to the premises or shall be displayed on a stationary rod or post. As set forth in these sections, no sign shall be attached to a tree, bush, hydrant, telephone pole, car or lamp post. No sign shall be placed so as to obstruct a clear view of a street from any intersecting street.
§ 600-9.2 Temporary signs in residential districts.
A.
Temporary signs. Real estate, construction, open house and other temporary signs shall be permitted in accordance with this section.
B.
Real estate signs shall be permitted, provided such signs contain only the words "for sale," "for lease," "for rent" or "open house" and, at the option of the applicant, the word "owner" or "broker" and a telephone number.
C.
No more than one temporary sign may be in effect at any one time for a single parcel of property.
F.
Expiration and removal of temporary signs.
(1)
Real estate signs must be removed within 24 hours of the transfer of the title to the property or the giving of possession of the property, whichever event first occurs, except that "open house" signs shall be removed at the conclusion of the open house.
(2)
All other temporary signs shall be erected no more than 10 days prior to the event or activity advertised and shall be removed at the conclusion of the event or activity.
G.
Special regulations for "open house" signs.
(1)
"Open house" signs shall require a permit from the Superintendent of Buildings. Upon proper application and submission of an application fee which shall be set, from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Trustees and upon such conditions as the Board of Trustees may prescribe, the placement of "open house" signs is permitted on Saturdays and Sundays solely between the hours of 12:00 noon and 4:00 p.m. Only one such sign may be placed on any property.
(2)
Any such sign may be double-sided and shall contain no more than the words "open house," the property address, and the name and telephone number of the owner or agent of the open house location. Such sign shall not exceed a total of four square feet. Such sign shall be placed on a location on the property so not to impede, hinder, or make unsafe any sidewalk or public right-of-way. No sign shall be placed in any location on any corner property in any way that shall impede, hinder, or make unsafe the line-of-sight triangle for traffic.
(3)
Any such sign may be placed only on private property and only with the consent of the property owner.
(4)
Directional signs to the "open house," up to a maximum of four such signs, may be placed curbside. Any such directional signs may contain only the words "open house," the property address, and a directional arrow. Such directional signs shall in all other respects comply with the requirements of Subsection G(1), (2) and (3) of this section.
(5)
"Open house" and directional signs shall be removed immediately upon the completion of the open house but in no event more than one hour after the completion of the open house.
§ 600-9.3 Signs in nonresidential districts.
A.
Permit required. Except as otherwise provided herein, it shall be unlawful to erect, construct, paint, alter, relocate, reconstruct, display or maintain or cause to be erected, constructed, painted altered, relocated, reconstructed, displayed or maintained within the nonresidential districts any sign unless a written permit therefor has been obtained from the Superintendent of Buildings as hereinafter provided. An application for a sign permit shall be accompanied by the following:
(1)
A drawing showing the lettering, color and pictorial matter of the sign, a description of the construction details of the sign structure, a location plan showing the position of the sign on the building or premises, and such other information as the Superintendent of Buildings may reasonably require to show compliance with provisions of this section.
(2)
A written statement showing the name of the owner and the name of the person in control of the building or the premises where such sign is to be located, and the right or authority of the applicant to apply for a permit.
B.
Placement, size and other requirements. In addition to the other requirements of this article, any sign, other than political signs as defined in § 600-9.5, erected, constructed, painted, altered, relocated, reconstructed, displayed or maintained in a nonresidential district shall meet the following requirements:
(1)
Except as provided for in this article, a sign may be placed only upon the front or face or side of a building or on the interior or exterior surface of any front, side or rear window thereof or on an awning or canopy and must be constructed and maintained parallel with the building wall to which it is attached and extending outward from such wall not more than 12 inches unless located upon an awning or canopy where it shall extend no more than three feet from such wall. No more than one sign per exterior wall shall be permitted. One of the signs shall be deemed the main sign. An additional three signs shall be permitted and be deemed subordinate to the main sign. Each of the three subordinate signs shall be no greater than 75% of the main sign and no sign shall adjoin or face a residential district or parcel. There shall be no more than four signs, except that the Board of Trustees may permit one additional sign in accordance with Subsection H.
(2)
The maximum area of the main sign referenced in Subsection B(1) shall not exceed 24 square feet and the vertical dimension shall not exceed two feet.
(3)
The upper edge of each sign shall not be located above the top of the building, and no part of such sign shall extend above the top or beyond the ends of the building wall upon which it is placed.
(4)
More than one sign for each building is permitted, provided that the combined signs for each such building do not exceed the maximum limitations for a single sign as herein prescribed.
(5)
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, any sign may be painted on the inner or outer surface of a window, provided that it meets with all other requirements of this section.
(6)
Such signs shall advertise only the business conducted or products sold on the premises.
C.
No neon signs or internally illuminated signs shall be permitted. All lighting on signs must be through detached fixtures directed at the sign. In addition, lighting in a nonresidential district shall be arranged and affixed in such a way that no direct light rays from any light used in such illumination shall penetrate a residential district or impede traffic within the Village. Any lighting constituting a nuisance to neighboring residences or buildings or the occupants thereof is strictly prohibited.
D.
No illuminated signs of a flashing, flickering, intermittently lighted or similar nature, nor animated illuminated signs known as "spectaculars," shall be permitted.
E.
No right-angle or projecting signs shall be permitted.
F.
No sign or other advertising structure or device shall be erected or maintained where, because of the size, location, shape, height, wording, design or lighting, such sign might be confused as a traffic directional or "stop" sign, or might interfere with the vision or discernment of a traffic directional or stop-and-go sign, or might otherwise imperil the safety of travel on streets and highways.
G.
Signs erected or maintained by the Village, or other governmental authorities, in the discharge of their official duties or functions are exempt from the regulations of this article.
H.
If a building abuts on a public parking field, one additional sign conforming to the conditions of this article may be erected on the rear or side wall facing such parking field by special use permit from the Board of Trustees.
I.
Billboard signs shall be prohibited.
§ 600-9.4 Temporary signs in nonresidential districts.
A temporary sign shall be permitted for advertising and sales of merchandise or other special occasions, subject to the following conditions:
A.
No more than one sign, which shall cover no more than 40% of each window, shall be used to advertise special occasions or the sale of merchandise.
B.
The legend on the sign shall be directly related to the business activity carried on by the occupant of the business premises.
C.
The duration of the temporary sign shall be no longer than two calendar weeks, except that where the second calendar week expires on a Thursday or Friday, the sign may be displayed for the weekend immediately following.
D.
No signs shall be on neon or neon paper, or internally illuminated.
E.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to temporary signs placed within the windows of retail establishments of the business district by charitable, religious or eleemosynary organizations.
§ 600-9.5 Political signs.
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to promote and protect the public health, welfare and safety by regulating the use of political signs so that they are compatible with their surroundings. It is intended to protect property values, create a more attractive economic and business climate, enhance and protect the physical appearance of the community, preserve the scenic and natural beauty and provide a more enjoyable and pleasing community. It is further intended to reduce sign clutter, distractions, and obstructions that may contribute to traffic accidents, to provide more open space and to curb the deterioration of the community environment.
B. POLITICAL SIGN SIGN AREA
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Any device, illuminated or nonilluminated, identification, description or illustration, which is visible by the public, which indicates the name, cause or affiliation of anyone seeking public office, or which indicates any issue for which a public election is scheduled to be held.
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, graphic illustration, picture, symbol or other display, together with any material or color forming an integral part of the background of the sign and used to differentiate the sign from the backdrop or structure against which it is placed. No sign shall have more than two display faces. The sign area for a sign with two faces shall be computed by adding together the area of all sign faces visible from any one point. When a sign having two faces is such that both faces cannot be viewed from any point at the same time, the sign area shall be computed by the measurement of the larger of the two faces.
C.
General political sign requirements.
(1)
All political signs permitted by this section shall be erected and maintained not more than 10 feet from any side property line, and not less than 15 feet from a driveway.
(2)
All political signs permitted by this section shall not exceed four square feet.
(3)
No more than two political signs regulated by this section are permitted for the premises or parcel.
(4)
No political signs may be erected prior to 30 days before the public action for which signs were placed.
(5)
Political signs must be removed no later than three days after the public action for which said signs were placed.
D.
Prohibited political signs and political sign features:
(1)
Signs which are not designed, constructed or maintained in accordance with these provisions, which are not compatible with the objectives of this section or which do not meet the requirements of all applicable state, county, town and federal codes.
(2)
Signs which, by reason of location, size, color or design, interfere with public traffic or are confused with or obstruct the view or effectiveness of any official traffic signal or traffic marking; signs which interfere with traffic or driver vision, impede pedestrian traffic, or otherwise present a safety hazard.
(3)
Billboards, streamers, pennants, ribbons, spinners or other similar devices.
(4)
Flashing signs, illuminated signs, neon signs, roof signs, signs containing moving parts or appearing to move, and signs which sparkle or twinkle in the sunlight.
(5)
"A" frame signs and sandwich board signs.
(6)
Signs which are attached to any utility pole, telephone or lighting pole, traffic device, hydrant, tree, sign posts.
(7)
Portable signs not supported by a sign structure in the ground or attached to or erected against a building or structure, except as may be specifically permitted by the terms of this section.
(8)
Signs which bear or contain statements, words or pictures of an obscene, pornographic or immoral character or which contain advertising matter which is untruthful, or as otherwise prohibited by state or federal law.
(9)
Signs located wholly within the residence, subject to any other ordinances or regulations enacted by the Village of Malverne related thereto.
(10)
Signs along public roadways and on public property.
§ 600-9.6 Removal of sign identifying tenant or business.
No later than 60 days after a tenant has vacated a premises, any exterior signs identifying such tenant or business shall be removed by the building owner and the facade of the building shall be restored.
§ 600-9.7 Enforcement; appeals.
A.
Enforcement. It shall be the duty of the Superintendent of Buildings and of any other person authorized by resolution of the Board of Trustees to enforce the provisions of this article. Any sign not in conformity with this article may be removed without notice to the property owner or the owner of the sign.
B.
Appeals. Any person seeking review of the action of the Superintendent of Buildings, the Building Inspector or any other Code Enforcement Officer may appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals.
§ 600-9.8 Application fees.
Applicant shall be required to pay those fees as set forth, from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Trustees.