Code of the City of Washington, North Carolina
Chapter 27 - Zoning
Article XVI. Signs
Illustrated Sign Ordinance
Section 170: Total allowable sign surface area

(a) Unless otherwise provided in this Article, the total surface area devoted to all signs on any lot shall not exceed the limitations set forth in this section, and all signs except temporary signs shall be included in this calculation.

(b) Unless otherwise provided in this Article, the maximum sign surface area permitted on any lot in any residential district is four (4) square feet.
In the RHD district, the maximum sign surface area permitted on any lot is two (2) square feet. The maximum sign surface area allowed for approved home occupations is set out in Section 27-175(e).
(c) Subject to the other provisions of this ordinance, the maximum sign surface area permitted on any lot in a B1H district shall be five (5) percent of the area of the building facade plus twenty (20) percent of the area of the front display window. However, in no case may the total sign surface area exceed one hundred (100) square feet.

(d) Subject to the other provisions of this Section, the maximum sign surface area permitted on any lot in an O&I or B4 district shall be determined by multiplying the number of linear feet of street frontage by seventy-five one-hundredths (0.75) of a foot. However, in no case may the total sign surface area exceed two hundred (200) square feet.

(e) Subject to the other provisions of this Ordinance, the maximum sign surface area permitted on any lot in a B2, B3, I1, or I2 district shall be determined by multiplying the number of linear feet of street frontage of the lot by one and one-half (1.5) feet. However, in no case may the total sign surface area exceed four hundred (400) square feet.

(f) Within a Planned Unit Development (PUD), the maximum sign surface area permitted for each use shall be determined by multiplying the number of linear feet of street frontage of the development by one and one-half (1.5) feet. However, in no case may the total sign surface area for each use exceed four hundred (400) square feet.

(g) If a lot has frontage on more than one (1) street, then the total surface area permitted on that lot shall be the sum of the sign surface area allotments related to each street on which the lot has frontage. However, the total sign surface area that is oriented toward a particular street may not exceed the portion of the lot's total sign surface area allocation that is derived from frontage on that street.
(h) Whenever a lot is situated such that it has no street frontage on any lot boundary and an applicant desires to install on such a lot a sign that is oriented toward a street, then the total sign surface area permitted on that lot shall be the sign surface area that would be allowed if the lot boundary closest to the street toward which such sign is to be oriented fronted on such street. The applicant shall be restricted to using only one (1) street and the closest lot boundary to this street for determining the total permitted sign surface area. However, the applicant shall be given the opportunity to determine the one (1) street used in the calculation.
(i) The total sign area delineated in this section may be allocated among the various types of permissible signs at the discretion of the sign permit applicant. However, the maximum sign area allocated to any one (1) particular type of sign is outlined in Sections 27-171 and 27-172. Therefore, the total sign area determined by this section may not be attained in some cases because of the sign area cap for individual freestanding or wall signs. For example, a use in the B1H district with one hundred (100) feet of lot frontage, five hundred (500) square feet of building facade, and a front display window area of fifty (50) square feet would be allowed a total sign area of thirty-five (35) square feet, since freestanding signs are not permitted in the B1H district. A maximum wall sign of twenty-five (25) square feet (500 feet building facade surface area x 5% = 25 square feet) and a maximum window sign of ten (10) square feet (50 feet display window area x 20% = 10 square feet) would be allowed.

Consequently, the limited amount of building facade area and the fact freestanding signs are not allowed in the district, in this case, would prevent the total sign surface area from being attained. The amount of total permissible sign area not utilized for freestanding and wall signs could, however, be applied to other types of allowable signs.

(j) The maximum sign surface area permitted in the AP zone shall be determined by multiplying the number of linear feet by one-half (0.5) foot. However, in no case may the total sign area exceed one hundred (100) square feet.

(Ord. No. 01-01, 01-08-01)

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