Lincoln Municipal Code Ch. 16.02 Permanent Signs

(a) Unless otherwise stated, the following regulations apply to private property. It is the intent of this limitation to prohibit the use of exterior signs for the general advertisement of products or services having no relation to the premises upon which they are placed.

TABLE 3 - Regulations for Permanent Signs:

(Ord. No. 897B, § 2(Exh. A), 3-24-2015)

(a) Billboards. Billboards may be approved in compliance with the following requirements:

(1) Location. Billboards may be approved within nonresidential zones (excluding open space) along Highway 65.

(2) Distance Between Billboards. The minimum distance to another legal billboard, as measured along the centerline of the roadway is one thousand five hundred feet.

(3) Permits. Operating agreements, a conditional use permit, and building permit(s) are required.

(4) Height Limit. The sign shall not exceed a maximum height of twenty-five feet.

(5) Sign Face. The sign face shall not exceed a maximum size of two hundred fifty square feet.

(b) Freestanding Signs. The following standards apply to freestanding signs where allowed:

(1) Separation. Multiple signs shall be separated by a minimum of seventy-five feet to ensure adequate visibility for all signs. This requirement may be waived if the locations of existing signs on adjacent properties would make the seventy-five-foot separation impractical, or there is no other alternative.

(2) Safety Requirements. A sign shall not project over public property, vehicular easements, or rights-of-way, and shall not obstruct the traffic site distant triangle, as determined by the director.

(3) Street Address. To assist emergency response personnel in locating the site, freestanding signs shall contain an illuminated street address plate. Numbers shall be a minimum of six inches in height. Street address numbers shall not be included in calculations of allowed sign area.

(4) Setback Requirements. A freestanding sign shall be set back a minimum of three feet from the property line.

(5) Landscaping. A freestanding sign shall be designed and constructed with accent landscaping at the base of sign to the approval of the director.

(c) Service Station Signs. Service station signs shall comply with the provisions of California Business and Professions Code Section 13531. Additional signs advertising the price of each grade of gasoline may be placed on each gasoline pump or beneath any canopy which is over the gasoline pumps.

(d) Flags (Noncommercial Speech). Flags may be displayed without a permit at all times and in all zones. All poles must comply with applicable building code requirements. Flags are limited to the display of noncommercial speech unless specifically allowed as a temporary special advertising sign.

(e) Menu/Order Board Signs. Two menu/order board signs for each drive-through business; provided that each sign not exceed a maximum forty square foot sign area and an eight foot height limit and be located adjacent to the drive-through lane on private property.

(Ord. No. 897B, § 2(Exh. A), 3-24-2015)

(a) "Digital freeway sign" means an off-site sign utilizing digital message technology, capable of changing the static message or copy on the sign electronically. A digital freeway sign may be internally or externally illuminated. Digital freeway signs shall contain static messages only and shall not have animation, movement, or the appearance or optical illusion of movement, of any part of the sign structure, design, or pictorial segment of the sign. Each static message shall not include flashing, scintillating lighting, or the varying of light intensity. A digital freeway sign consists of a digital display area and a sign structure.

(b) Digital freeway signs shall be in addition to all other signs allowed by Title 16. The locations and heights of digital freeway signs shall be governed by this section. Heights of digital freeway signs shall be established relative to topography and setting so as to provide the best balance between the sign's purpose of effectively communicating a visual message, the setting, including topography and surrounding architecture, and freeway traffic safety. However, in no case shall a digital freeway sign exceed a maximum height of sixty-five feet as measured from the center line of the nearest freeway to the top of the digital freeway sign structure. Subject to the limitations of this section, and notwithstanding the provisions of the applicable general development plans, digital freeway signs shall be a conditionally permitted use.

(c) No digital freeway signs shall be conditionally permitted until the city has entered into an operating agreement with a digital freeway sign owner to allow for digital billboards under certain circumstances; including:

(1) Compensation to the city;

(2) The provision of access to the city to a portion of the total available display time to allow the city to present messages of community interest, information, and public safety;

(3) The provision of access to the appropriate agencies for the purpose of displaying "Amber Alert" messages and emergency-disaster communications; and

(4) To establish quality and maintenance standards.

(d) All digital freeway signs shall require approval of a conditional use permit and be subject to design review consistent with the Lincoln Municipal Code.

(e) Minimum Display Time. Each message on the sign must be displayed for a minimum of eight seconds.

(f) Maximum Face Size. Each face of the sign will be no larger than fourteen feet by forty-eight feet in dimension (total six hundred seventy-two square feet) plus framing. Digital freeway signs are exempt from the area limitations in Section 16.01.060, Permanent Signs.

(g) Illumination Standards. Each display must have a light sensing device that will adjust the brightness as ambient light conditions change. Digital freeway sign illumination and distance requirements shall be determined during the discretionary review process. The most current and restrictive technology to measure digital freeway sign illumination shall be required when measuring standard.

(h) Future Technologies. The technology currently being deployed for digital freeway signs is LED (light emitting diode), but there may be alternate, preferred or superior technology available in the future. Owners of digital freeway signs are authorized to change the digital freeway signs to any other technology that operates under the maximum brightness standards in this subsection. The city shall expedite any required approvals for technology that is superior in energy efficiency over previous generations or types.

(i) The digital freeway signs shall be operated with systems and monitoring in place to either turn the display off or show a "full black" image on the display in the event of a malfunction.

(j) After receiving approval to install a digital freeway sign(s), owners of digital freeway signs may at any time add or remove digital faces to their sign structures. However, the following shall apply:

(1) Any prior sign removals completed as a part of the operating agreement approval of the digital freeway sign(s) shall not be reinstated.

(2) The number of physical sign faces shall not be increased.

(3) The overall size of the sign faces shall not be increased by more than five percent.

(Ord. No. 897B, § 2(Exh. A), 3-24-2015)