Westfield Marquette County
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
§ 525-12
Signs.
[Amended 3-8-1988; 10-11-1988]
A.
No sign shall hereafter be located, erected, moved, reconstructed, extended, enlarged, converted, or structurally altered without first taking the following steps:
(1)
Filing a sign permit application and paying the required fee as set by the Village Board.
(2)
Obtaining a signed permit approved by the Zoning Administrator. If the sign permit is denied, said petitioner can ask to be placed on the agenda of the next regular meeting of the Village Board and petition the Village Board for a review of the Zoning Administrator's denial.
B.
All signs are prohibited in all R-1, R-2 and R-3 Districts except for the following. All signs permitted within the exceptions below shall be constructed not less than five feet from the side property boundaries and not less than two feet from the property line facing the Village right-of-way. Lighted signs are not permitted.
(1)
Signs over show windows or doors of a nonconforming business establishment announcing without display or elaboration only the name and occupation of the proprietor and not to exceed two feet in height and 10 feet in length.
(2)
Real estate signs not to exceed eight square feet in area which advertise the sale, rental, or lease of the premises upon which said signs are temporarily located.
(3)
Name, occupation and warning signs not to exceed 16 square feet located on the premises.
(4)
Bulletin boards for public, charitable or religious institutions not to exceed eight square feet in area located on the premises.
(5)
Memorial signs, tables, names of buildings and date of erection when cut into any masonry surface or when constructed of metal and affixed flat against a structure.
(6)
Official signs, such as traffic control, parking restrictions, information and notices.
(7)
Temporary signs when authorized by the Zoning Administrator for a period not to exceed 30 days.
(8)
Political signs subject to the erection and removal guidelines of the Wisconsin Statutes.
(9)
Rummage sale signs. Signs advertising a rummage sale (see definitions below) may be placed on the seller's property, one per lot, except that on a corner lot one sign may be placed facing each street. Signs may be placed on other residential property only with the permission of the property owner or other person who is in charge of the property at the time of the sale. A maximum of two off-premises signs may be displayed if they meet the other conditions of this chapter.
[Added 10-21-1998]
(a)
Such signs shall not exceed six square feet in area, shall be freestanding, and shall be presentable in appearance. Signs shall not be erected prior to 6:00 p.m. on the day before the beginning of the sale and shall be taken down within one hour after the close of the sale on the last day of the sale. Signs shall not be attached to or displayed on traffic or regulatory signs, utility poles, or trees. No signs shall be placed on public land or in street rights-of-way.
(b)
Owners of signs posted in violation of this chapter may be requested to remove them, or Village personnel may cause their removal.
(c)
"Rummage sale" means and includes all general sales open to the public, for the purpose of disposing of personal property, and conducted from or on a residential premises, as defined in § 525-4. This includes, but is not limited to, all sales titled "rummage," "lawn," "yard," "porch," "room," "backyard," "patio," "flea market" or "garage" sale. "Personal property" means property which is acquired, owned, utilized and maintained in the normal course of living in or maintaining a residence. It does not include merchandise which was purchased for resale or obtained on consignment.
C.
Signs in an R 4 District are permitted provided that they meet the following specifications:
(1)
Said signs may be lighted but with nonblinking lights.
(2)
Said signs shall be constructed not less than five feet from the side property boundaries and not less than two feet from the property line facing the Village right-of-way.
(3)
Political signs are permitted subject to the erection and removal guidelines of the Wisconsin Statutes.
(4)
Said signs must not exceed 16 square feet. Any sign exceeding 16 square feet must be approved by the Village Board.
D.
Signs are permitted in all commercial and industrial districts except districts bordering U.S. 51 as described below and subject to the following restrictions:
(1)
Signs bordering U.S. 51.
(a)
No signs shall be erected closer than 10 feet to the highway right-of-way.
(b)
All signs erected shall have a minimum of 96 square feet and shall not be any longer than 24 feet.
(c)
No signs shall be erected which are illuminated by flashing neon lights or any other type of flashing light. However, lighted signs are permissible provided that the lights do not interfere with driver safety.
(d)
All signs in this district are subject to review by the Fiscal Committee, and the person erecting said sign must have a permit from the Village Clerk-Treasurer and pay the required fee.
(e)
The top of the sign shall not be more than 100 feet above the ground level at the base of the sign.
(f)
Every sign contractor shall file with the Village Clerk-Treasurer a certificate of insurance indicating the applicant holds a public liability and property damage policy specifically to include the hold harmless with bodily injury limits of at least $300,000 per occurrence, and $300,000 aggregate, and property damage insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence and $100,000 aggregate. Such insurance shall not be canceled or reduced without the insured first giving 30 days' notice in writing to the Village of Westfield of such cancellation or reduction.
(g)
Advertising vehicles. No persons shall park any vehicle or trailer on any public right-of-way property or on private properties so as to be seen from a public right-of-way which has attached thereto or located thereon any sign or advertising device for the basic purpose of providing advertisement of products or directing people to a business activity located on the same or nearby property or any other premises. The Village Clerk-Treasurer may issue special permits for the parking of advertising vehicles for a period not to exceed five days per location.
(h)
Off-premises signs are permitted in B-2 Highway Commercial Districts only. They are not permitted in any other district, whether it be residential, industrial or commercial. An off-premises sign is defined as being a sign advertising a business or product for a business on another location other than where the sign is located.
(2)
Wall signs placed against the exterior walls of buildings shall not exceed more than six inches outside of a building's wall surface and shall not exceed 500 square feet in area for any one premises.
(3)
Projected signs fastened to, suspended from, or supported by structures shall not exceed 100 square feet in area for any one premises, shall not extend more than six feet into any required yard, shall not extend more than three feet into any public right-of-way, and shall not be less than 10 feet above the sidewalk nor 15 feet above a driveway or an alley.
(4)
Ground signs shall meet all yard requirements for the district in which they are located. With regards to a B-3 ground sign, setback requirements shall be not less than five feet from the side property boundaries and not less than two feet from the property lines facing the Village right-of-way.
(5)
Roof signs shall not exceed 10 feet in height above the roof, shall meet all setback requirements for the district in which they are located, and shall not exceed 300 square feet on all sides for any one premises.
(6)
Combination of any of the above signs shall meet all the requirements for the individual sign.
(7)
Directory signs shall be permitted under the following conditions:
(a)
The directory sign will be designed in such a way to accommodate no fewer that five businesses with the same letter type for each business.
(b)
The sign will be maintained by those persons signing the sign permit.
(c)
The sign size, shape and dimensions will be subject to the approval of the Fiscal Committee.
(d)
The Fiscal Committee will also approve the location of a directory sign.
E.
Signs shall not resemble, imitate or approximate the shape, size, form or color of railroad or traffic signs, signals or devices. No sign shall be erected, relocated, or maintained so as to prevent free ingress to or egress from any door, window, or fire escape, and no sign shall be attached to a standpipe or a fire escape. No sign shall be placed so as to obstruct or interfere with traffic visibility. No sign shall be maintained in an unsightly, unsafe or hazardous manner. In the event that such a sign exists, the Village Clerk-Treasurer shall give the owner of said real estate 10 days' written notice to remove or repair said sign in accordance with the Village sign requirements and with a further notice that if said repairs are not completed within 10 days that the Village shall remove said sign and levy the cost of removal as a tax assessment against the landowner.
F.
A sign lawfully existing at the time of the adoption or amendment of this chapter may be continued although the use, size or location does not conform to the provisions of this chapter. However, it shall be deemed a nonconforming use or structure and the provisions of § 525-13 shall apply.
G.
In the event that a business closes in which a sign relates, said sign shall be removed by the landowner within 30 days of the business closing or the Village will remove the same and levy all costs of removal as a special tax assessment after giving the ten-day notice as specified in Subsection E above.
H.
In the event that there is any violation of this section, the Village shall give a ten-day written notice to notify said landowner of said violation, and failure to correct the same shall result in the Village removing the sign and levying it on the tax rolls as a special assessment.