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Title 18 — ZONING›Chapter 18.62 — NONCONFORMING USES, STRUCTURES AND SITES

§ 18.73

Whittier Zoning Code · 2026-06 edition · updated 2026-07-25 · Whittier

18.73.020 - Signs in the public right-of-way.

Except as provided in Section 18.73.030, no private person, group, or entity may place any type of sign, temporary or permanent, or any human advertisement, in the public right-of-way.

(Ord. 2900 § 4 (part), 2007)

18.73.030 - Exceptions—Temporary directional signs.

A.

The following temporary signs may be placed in the public right-of-way, without obtaining a permit: signs for any business that provides goods or services that meet one or more of the following criteria: (1) the business is of a transitory or temporary nature; (2) the business does not have a fixed place of business or the goods or services themselves cannot practically be viewed and/or sold out of one business location or any business location.

B.

Before a business may place its signs in the public right-of-way pursuant to this section, the director must make a finding, in accordance with the procedures in Section 18.73.040, that a particular type of business satisfies the criteria in subsection A of this section.

C.

Without a prior finding by the director, temporary directional signs for the following goods and services are deemed to satisfy the criteria for the exception in subsection A above:

1.

Real estate directional signs, directing to properties that are for sale or for rent.

2.

Yard sale directional signs, including garage sales and estate sales, directing where such sales are to occur.

D.

Temporary directional signs in the public right-of-way are subject to all of the following limitations:

1.

Signs shall be temporary signs, and will not be permanently affixed to or in the public right-of-way, but may be anchored or weighed down to or in the public right-of-way to prevent them from falling or being blown into the street or sidewalk.

Only directional signs are allowed, that is, the purpose of the sign is to indicate in which direction potential buyers or customers should proceed to locate the goods or services.

3.

Temporary directional signs shall only be placed in landscaped parkways, and shall not be placed on the sidewalk or in the center street median.

4.

No signs shall be placed on utility poles, light or traffic light poles, traffic signs or traffic sign poles, or street trees.

5.

No more than seven signs per property for sale or rent, and no more than four signs per yard sale, may be temporarily placed in the public right-of-way at any one time.

6.

A distance of five hundred feet or more is required between individual temporary directional signs on the same street, which purpose is to direct persons to a particular address or property. This limitation does not apply to signs that pertain to different properties.

7.

The background sign area shall be no larger than three feet by four feet.

8.

All signs shall not exceed five feet in height, measured from the highest street grade in contact with the sign to the top of the sign.

9.

Real estate signs directing persons to a particular property shall be placed in the public right-of-way only during the hours that an open house is occurring at that property, and at which the seller or his/her representative is present.

10.

Yard sale and estate sale signs must be removed at the conclusion of the sale to which they refer. Such signs may not be placed in the public right-of-way any earlier than the Thursday preceding the sale, and no sooner than forty-eight hours prior to the sale to which they refer.

11.

No signs shall be placed so as to obstruct pedestrians' and motorists' view of signs erected by a local, state, or federal governmental agency, including but not limited to traffic signs, public directional signs, parking signs, and street address signs.

No signs shall be placed so as to obstruct or hinder sidewalk or street access by pedestrians and vehicles.

13.

No signs shall be placed so as to obstruct ingress and egress to any public or private property.

14.

Temporary directional signs shall only be placed on the public right-of-way Thursday through Sunday for a maximum of eight consecutive hours on each day.

15.

Temporary directional signs shall not be designed or constructed to cause undue distraction to motorists. For example, temporary signs in the public right-of-way shall not be illuminated, either internally or externally, shall not have flashing lights, shall not have any moving parts, and shall not generate any source sounds (including radio waves), and shall not release steam or smoke.

16.

Any other reasonable restrictions, or modifications to the above restrictions, which the director finds are necessary to further the purposes of this code, consistent with the type of sign or business.

E.

This section is subject to the substitution clause articulated in Section 18.72.050 of this code.

(Ord. 2900 § 4 (part), 2007)

18.73.040 - Human advertisements.

All human advertisement is prohibited in the city of Whittier where such advertisement is intended to, or does in fact, attract the attention of passing motorists to a business or service.

(Ord. 2900 § 4 (part), 2007)

18.73.050 - Procedure—Exception and appeal.

A.

The director must make the determination of whether a business falls within the exception in Section 18.73.030(A) within fifteen business days of receipt of a written request by the sign's owner for such determination. The director shall notify the applicant of his/her decision forthwith by U.S. mail.

B.

In the event that the director denies the request, or fails to make a determination within the time prescribed, the applicant may appeal the director's decision in writing to the city manager, who shall review all relevant evidence relating to the appeal. The city manager shall make a determination within ten business days of

receipt of the appeal. The city manager shall notify the applicant of the determination forthwith by U.S. mail.

C.

In the event that the city manager denies the request, or fails to make a determination within the time prescribed, the applicant may appeal the city manager's decision in writing to the city council, which shall conduct a hearing on the matter within thirty days of receipt of the request. Notice of the time and place of the hearing before the city council shall be given by U.S. mail. At the hearing, the city council shall conduct a de novo review of all relevant evidence relating to the appeal and shall not be bound by the formal rules of evidence. The city council shall make a determination within fifteen business days of the hearing. The city council shall notify the applicant of the determination forthwith by U.S. mail. The city council's determination is final. The time for a challenge to the city council's decision in a court of law is governed by California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.8. Notice of the city council's decision shall include citation to California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.8.

(Ord. 2900 § 4 (part), 2007)

Chapter 18.75 - ON-PREMISES SIGN PERMIT REQUIREMENTS AND APPLICATION PROCEDURES

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▸ Contents — Whittier Zoning Code
Whittier Zoning Code
  1. ▸ Title 18 — ZONING
    Overview
    1. § 18.02
    2. § 18.04
    3. § 18.07
    4. § 18.08
    5. § 18.09
    6. § 18.10
    7. § 18.11
    8. § 18.12
    9. § 18.14
    10. § 18.16
    11. § 18.18
    12. § 18.20
    13. § 18.22
    14. § 18.23
    15. § 18.24
    16. § 18.26
    17. § 18.30
    18. § 18.32
    19. § 18.33
    20. § 18.34
    21. § 18.35
    22. § 18.36
    23. § 18.37
    24. § 18.38
    25. § 18.39
    26. § 18.40
    27. § 18.41
    28. § 18.42
    29. § 18.43
    30. § 18.44
    31. § 18.45
    32. Chapter 18.46 — EQUESTRIAN USES
    33. ▸ Chapter 18.62 — NONCONFORMING USES, STRUCTURES AND SITES
      Overview
      1. § 18.64
      2. § 18.66
      3. § 18.67
      4. § 18.68
      5. § 18.72
      6. § 18.73
      7. § 18.75
      8. § 18.76
      9. § 18.78
      10. § 18.80
      11. § 18.84
      12. § 18.86
      13. § 18.87
      14. § 18.88
      15. § 18.89
      16. § 18.90
      17. § 18.92
      18. § 18.93
      19. § 18.94
      20. § 18.96
      21. § 18.98
      22. § 18.99

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