Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sign Ordinance Billboards topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
City moves to define billboards, limit electronic signage; sign code amendments approved for follow-up
Summary
City staff and the Planning Commission advanced code changes that redefine billboards and set electronic sign rules tied to road classification, while asking staff to continue work on portable and temporary signs.
City staff presented amendments to the city sign ordinance that redefine and regulate billboards and electronic message signs and remove an older ‘‘off-site sign’’ moratorium that had limited enforcement after litigation.
Aaron Venet, presenting the staff package on signs, said the draft ordinance replaces the previous off-site sign category with a clearer definition of billboards (freestanding signs over 250 square feet) and sets height and separation rules tied to road classification. "Billboards are classified as a freestanding sign over 250 square feet in size," Venet said during the hearing, adding that the rules align city standards with TxDOT classifications to avoid conflicts on state-controlled corridors.
Key provisions in staff materials and in the adopted first-reading language include: - Definition: Billboard = freestanding sign greater than 250 square feet; can be static or electronic. - Height by road type: local/collector max sign height 25 ft; arterial 45 ft; US highways/freeways 50 ft (these heights reflect TxDOT consistency recommendations.) - Spacing and residential setbacks: billboards must be set back 25–125 feet from residential district boundaries depending on type and must be separated from other billboards by 500 feet on the same side of the roadway; electronic billboards require larger separation/dimming and additional restrictions. - Electronic message panels: limited to one digital panel per side of a billboard (multi-panel signs cannot render all faces electronic), with dimming requirements and a stated intent to adopt a definition that distinguishes animation from video; staff said it will refine the animation/video wording before final reading.
Sign-industry representatives and local sign companies attended and asked staff to clarify technical limits on animation, dwell times, dimming and enforcement. Michael Martinez of FASTSIGNS asked the city to “protect the investment of those that have already made the investment” and to differentiate animation from video so that community messaging and nonprofit boards are not unintentionally prohibited.
Staff told the council it will continue discussion on several adjacent issues — portable signs, temporary banners and permit fees — and will bring more precise language back to council. The Planning Commission recommended the sign ordinance changes; the City Council approved the amendments that address billboards and electronic message centers and directed staff to continue the portable/temporary sign and fees work.
Public commenters raised neighborhood concerns about light, brightness and distracted driving; one citizen asked that the Knickerbocker corridor between Red Arroyo and the Neighborhood Walmart be included in a prohibited-billboard zone. Staff responded that some corridors already restrict billboards by road classification and underlying zoning, and staff will review the request as it finalizes the map.
Existing large signs will remain nonconforming under the standard municipal nonconforming-use provisions; staff noted that removal typically occurs only when an existing sign is damaged beyond a defined threshold.
The ordinance package passed the council’s consideration for this reading; staff said it will return to council with clarifying language on animation and continued work on temporary/portable signage.
