Area. The area of a sign shall be the area of the smallest rectangle, triangle, or circle that will encompass all elements of the sign, such as letters, figures, symbols, designs, or other display.

Height. The height of a sign shall be measured from the average ground level beneath the sign to the highest point of the sign. The ground level shall be the lower of the ground level existing at the time of construction or the ground level existing prior to construction and prior to any earth disturbance at the site. This prior ground level may be established by any reliable source, including, without limitation, existing topographic maps, aerial photographs, photographs of the site, or affidavits of people who are personally familiar with the site. No person(s) shall artificially increase the maximum height of a sign by altering the grade at the base of the sign by any means.

All signs shall be constructed of durable materials, maintained in good condition, and secured in a safe manner. All signs shall be designed and constructed in accordance with the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC).

When a sign becomes unsafe, the Zoning Officer shall give written notice to the owner of the premises on which the sign is located that the sign must be made safe or removed immediately.

The areas surrounding all signs shall be maintained in a neat, clean, and attractive condition.

All signs shall be removed within three months if the purpose for which they were erected no longer exists.

Each property that displays one or more permanent freestanding signs and that is in an area where street addresses have been assigned, must prominently display the address on one permanent freestanding sign visible from the street. The address must include the street number; the street name is optional. The address must be of a size and design that is easily identifiable and legible from moving traffic in the street at a distance of 100 feet (three-inch high lettering/numerals with a 3/4 inch stroke). The area taken up by the address does not count as part of the sign area. Planned center signs are exempt from this requirement.

No temporary signs shall be permitted except as authorized elsewhere in this article.

No sign shall be located within a street right-of-way, except a government sign, a public utility sign, a sidewalk sign, a nonprofit organization sign, or another sign approved by the Board of Supervisors or the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

No sign within any required clear sight triangle shall obstruct vision between the heights of 30 inches and eight feet above the elevation of the center line of the street.

No signs shall be painted, pasted, nailed, stapled, or otherwise attached to utility poles, trees, fences, fire hydrants, or in an unauthorized manner to walls or other signs, except insofar as such signs comply with generally applicable rules, regulations, or policies formally adopted by the Board of Supervisors.

No sign shall be located in a position that will endanger traffic on nearby roads, access drive or driveways, by obscuring the view.

No sign shall be placed so as to obstruct any door, stairway, window, fire escape, or other means of egress or ingress.

No sign shall be placed so as to obstruct ventilation or light from a building.

(13)—. No overhead sign shall have a clearance of less than eight feet between any pedestrian walk and the lowest part of the sign nor less than 17 feet six inches between any roadway and the lowest part of the sign.

No flat wall sign shall project more than 18 inches from the face of the wall to which it is attached over a public sidewalk.

No wall projecting sign shall project more than 48 inches from the face of the wall to which it is attached over a public sidewalk.

No sign shall have lights or other illuminating devices that constitute a public safety or traffic hazard.

No sign shall be permitted which imitates or which might be confused with an official traffic sign or signal, such as by containing the words "Stop," "Yield," "Detour," "Caution," "Work Area" or "Danger" or by including red, green, or yellow traffic lights.

No sign or window display shall include a revolving beam or beacon of light resembling an emergency vehicle or facility.

No sign shall advertise activities or products that are illegal under federal, state, or local municipal laws or regulations.

No sign shall include statements, words, or pictures that are considered to be vulgar, obscene, or pornographic. No sign shall depict "specified anatomical areas" or "specified sexual activities," both as defined herein.

No streamers, pennants, spinners, reflectors, ribbons, tinsel, balloons or similar materials shall be displayed outside a building. (See "Special Event Sign" in Temporary Sign Regulations Table for regulations that apply to banners used as special events signs.)

In addition to any other signage permitted by this article, each commercial or industrial use may display one flag not to exceed 35 square feet with a company or corporate identification logo on premise on an approved, standard flagpole.

No sign shall emit smoke, visible vapors, particles, sound, or odor.

No sign shall be placed on an automobile, truck, or other vehicle if that vehicle is being used primarily for displaying such sign.

No inflatable signs shall be permitted.

No open flames shall be permitted as part of a sign or in any other way to attract attention.

Advertising painted upon or displayed upon a barn or other structure shall be considered a sign and shall comply with this article.

Any sign may be exempted from the regulations of this article as a conditional use, if the applicant can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors that the sign has been authenticated as historically significant and accurate for its specific location, whether original or a replica.

The lighting of new, or relighting of existing, billboards and signs shall be subject to the following requirements:

Business identification signs of buildings, provided that:

Business directional signs, signs that are accessory to a principal use on the site and that provide direction to the location of buildings, provided that:

On site directional signs that are accessory to a principal use on the site and that provide direction to the location of parking lots, receiving areas, loading spaces, rest rooms and other pertinent information, provided that:

Three months following cessation of the use for which the nonconforming sign's message applies; or,

Five years from the effective date of this article.

No billboard shall be located within 1,000 feet of another billboard;

All billboards shall be a minimum of 50 feet from all property lines and any street right-of-way;

All billboards shall be set back at least 300 feet from any land within a (R-A) District and at least 1,000 feet from any land within a (ESC, R-S, R-U, R-M, V, R-MH and/or R-C) District;

No billboard shall obstruct the view of motorists on adjoining roads, or the view of adjoining commercial or industrial uses, which depend upon visibility for identification;

No billboard shall exceed an overall size of 300 square feet, except that a two-sided billboard shall not exceed an overall size of 600 square feet provided both sides are arranged back-to-back faces and are no more than three feet apart at any point. No billboard shall exceed 25 feet in height;

All billboards and properties upon which they are erected shall be regularly maintained so as not to create a safety hazard due to structural integrity nor a nuisance by means of weeds, litter or vector habitation;

Any lighting used for billboards shall be designed in accordance with § 27-1703, Subsection 1CC, of this article; and,

Billboards incorporating dynamic message displays, as defined herein, shall comply with § 27-1703, Subsection 1CC(12), of this article.

Application for permit shall be made in writing to the Zoning Officer and shall contain all information necessary for such officer to determine whether the proposed sign, or the proposed alterations, conform to the requirements of this article. All applications for sign permits shall be accompanied by scaled plans or diagrams showing the following:

Applications for the lighting or relighting of signs and billboards shall be accompanied by a point-by-point plot of illuminance on the sign or billboard face, catalog cuts of proposed fixtures and any glare reduction devices and a description of lamps, mounting locations, aiming angles and proposed hours of operation and method for automatically extinguishing the lighting.

No sign permit shall be issued except in conformity with the regulations of this article, except upon order of the Zoning Hearing Board, granted pursuant to the procedures established for the issuance of a variance.

Permits shall be granted or refused within 30 days from date of application, or within 30 days from the date of the Zoning Hearing Board's decision, where applicable.

Sign permits shall include a signature by the owner of the property; except that an owner's legal agent may sign the permit. When a legal agent signs the permit, the owner shall be bound by the terms of the permit.