SUPPORTS ITEM NO. 4
P&E COMMITTEE AGENDA
APRIL 4, 1996
POLICY REPORT
DEVELOPMENT AND BUILDING
Date: March 14, 1996
Dept. File No. PAJ
TO: Standing Committee on Planning and Environment
FROM: Director of Land Use and Development
SUBJECT: Free-standing and Changeable Copy Signs
(Proposed Amendments to the Sign By-law)
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare
an amendment to the Sign By-law, generally in accordance with
Appendix A, to:
(i) allow cultural, recreational and institutional uses to
have larger free-standing signs than presently permitted,
with manual changeable copy, in residential and some
commercial zoning districts;
(ii) apply the Sign By-law to signs in public parks;
FURTHER THAT the By-law be referred to a Public Hearing,
together with the recommendation of the Director of Land Use
and Development to approve the amendment.
CONSIDERATION
B. THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare
an amendment to the Sign By-law, generally in accordance with
Appendix B, to:
(i) allow cultural, recreational and institutional uses to
have automatic changeable copy signs in residential and
other zoning districts where they are currently not
permitted;
(ii) allow third-party advertising, limited to events
organized and presented by a non-profit society or public
agency, on manual and automatic changeable copy signs;
FURTHER THAT the By-law be referred to a Public Hearing.
MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of A
and puts forward B for CONSIDERATION.
The City Manager's comments are relatively extensive, and will be
provided to Council in a separate memo as soon as possible.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council policy, as reflected in the Sign By-law:
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(i) severely limits the size and type of signs permitted in
residential districts;
(ii) restricts automatic changeable copy signs to five commercial and
industrial zoning districts;
(iii) prohibits third-party advertising on manual and automatic
changeable copy signs; and
(iv) exempts public parks from the jurisdiction of the Sign By-law.
SUMMARY
This report responds to a request from the Board of School Trustees to
install a 5 m› (54 sq. ft.) free-standing sign with automatic changeable
copy on the residentially-zoned Vancouver Technical Secondary School
site on East Broadway. Free-standing signs in residential districts are
limited to 1.2 m› (13 sq. ft.) in size and no automatic changeable copy
is allowed.
Park Board staff were also considering similar signage for some
community centres. At present, the Sign By-law does not apply to signs
in public parks.
Staff have considered the advantages and impacts of the proposed sign,
and have concluded that the size limit for free-standing signs in
residential districts should be increased. Recommendation A, if
approved by Council, would allow larger free-standing signs for certain
uses on large sites in residential districts, and would require signs in
parks to comply with the Sign By-law.
Based on concerns about the impacts of automatic changeable copy signs,
staff are not recommending that the By-law be amended to allow these
signs in residential districts. Staff have, however, drafted amendments
to allow these signs, including the one proposed for Vancouver
Technical, for Council's consideration. The amendments, if approved,
would still attempt to reduce the impact of automatic changeable copy
signs by limiting their size, allowing
them only on major arterials, and requiring them to be set back from
residential uses. Staff also put forward for consideration amendments
to allow third-party advertising on the signs, limited to events
organized and presented by a non-profit society or public agency.
PURPOSE
This report recommends revised regulations for free-standing and manual
changeable copy signs. It also recommends an amendment to regulate
signs in public parks. Amendments to allow automatic changeable copy
signs in residential districts are discussed and put forward for
Council's consideration.
BACKGROUND
Request for Amendments In June 1995, the Board of School Trustees
passed a motion requesting that Council review the Sign By-law and
consider amendments which would allow Vancouver Technical Secondary
School to install a free-standing electronic message sign to provide
improved communications. Vancouver Technical, at 2600 East Broadway, is
zoned residential (RS-1S). Sign regulations are very restrictive in
residential districts, and no automatic changeable copy signs (i.e.,
electronic message signs) are permitted. In December 1995, staff met
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with the school's staff to ascertain details of the proposed sign.
Also in December 1995, staff met with Board of Parks and Recreation
staff to discuss automatic changeable copy signs proposed for various
community centres located on city parks, most of which are zoned
residential. The proposed signs were to be part of the Park Board's
corporate sponsorship program and would have contained third-party
advertising. Although Park Board staff have dropped the idea of
corporate sponsorship signage - at least for now - this report includes
these signs in its analysis, since many of the issues pertaining to them
are the same as the proposed school sign. In addition, staff feel that
the Sign By-law provision which exempts public parks from the By-law's
jurisdiction should be reconsidered.
Existing Regulations Free-standing signs are permitted in residential
districts for public, institutional and charitable uses, without permit,
up to 1.2 m› (13 sq. ft.) in size and 1.8 m (6 ft.) in height. No
manual or automatic changeable copy is allowed in residential districts.
"Manual changeable copy" refers to copy which can be changed manually by
the use of detachable letters or numbers.
"Automatic changeable copy" refers to copy which can be changed
automatically by electronic switching of lamps or illuminated tubes.
Automatic changeable copy signs are presently limited to the C-2, C-2B,
C-3A, IC-2 and DD districts, and certain CD-1 districts. A number of
size, height and location restrictions apply, including a requirement
that automatic changeable copy signs not be located within 60 m
(197 ft.) of a residential district when facing it. This provision is
intended to protect the livability of residential districts by
prohibiting constantly moving and flashing signs from facing them. It
does not, however, protect residential uses located in commercial
districts from these signs.
Because of the constant movement of changing messages, automatic
changeable copy signs attract considerably more attention than
stationary signs and play more of an advertising, rather than an
identification, role. Based on Sign By-law objectives that signage
should primarily be for identification, and should not invade the
reasonable privacy of adjacent residents, tenants or property owners,
automatic changeable copy signs are significantly restricted in size and
location in Vancouver.
Proposed School and Park Signs According to proponents, the sign for
Vancouver Technical Secondary School is intended to display community
messages, provide information about school events and night school
programs, raise school spirit, promote positive achievements, and invite
parental and community participation in the school. Funds for the sign
have been raised by graduating classes and the school now has sufficient
money for an automatic changeable copy sign. This type of sign has been
chosen because it demonstrates the technology which is being used within
the school, can be used as a teaching tool, and produces messages in a
variety of languages. A copy of the proposed sign is included in
Appendix C. School staff advise that the sign would be used for
community messages but that there is no intention to use it for third-
party commercial advertising.
The signs originally proposed by the Park Board for seven community
centres and the Aquatic Centre were intended to include third-party
commercial advertising, both on a fixed 'ad panel' and on the automatic
changeable copy portion of the sign. An example of one of the proposed
signs is included in Appendix D.
The proposed school and park signs are free-standing signs approximately
5 m› (54 sq. ft.) in size.
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DISCUSSION
Factors Taken Into Consideration In considering the School Board
request that the By-law be amended to allow Vancouver Technical to have
the proposed sign, staff have considered the following:
- the benefits that the sign would offer the school and the community;
- the suitability of the site for the sign given the site's size and
its location on an extremely busy arterial where impacts on
surrounding properties might be minimal;
- the likelihood that other schools as well as recreational and
institutional uses (e.g., community centres, churches, hospitals)
located in closer proximity to low-density residential uses will want
to have similar signs;
- the extremely restrictive sign regulations that apply to
residentially-zoned sites;
- the inequity of allowing certain uses to have signage opportunities
not available to other uses;
- the impact of automatic changeable copy signs on the appearance of
the city and on residential livability; and
- staff's ability to draft workable, enforceable, non-discretionary
regulations to regulate such signs.
Amendments to Allow Free-Standing Signs Given the large sites that most
schools and other recreational and institutional uses occupy in
residential districts, and the desire of many of these organizations to
have signage which not only identifies the building but communicates
events taking place on the site, staff believe an amendment to the By-
law is warranted to allow these uses to have larger signs than presently
permitted. Amendments (1) and (2) in Appendix A would permit cultural,
recreational and institutional uses - whether public or private - on
sites 2 000 m› (21,530 sq. ft.) or greater, to which very restrictive
free-standing sign regulations currently apply, to have a free-standing
sign not exceeding 5 m (16 ft.) in height and 5 m› (54 sq. ft.) in area.
This is approximately the size of the proposed school sign illustrated
in Appendix C. These two amendments alone would not, however, allow
manual or automatic changeable copy on the signs.
With approval of amendments (1) and (2), other existing Sign By-law
regulations limiting the number, spacing, setbacks and clearances of
free-standing signs would still apply. The regulation that prohibits
free-standing signs from being within 30 m (98 ft.) of a residential
district would require amendment in order to allow signs in residential
districts. Amendment (3) in Appendix A would revise this requirement to
apply only to a residentially-zoned site containing residential
premises, and would reduce the minimum separation from 30 m (98 ft.) to
25 m (82 ft.). The 25 m separation would require that a sign located
across the street from a residentially-zoned site containing residential
premises be set back approximately 5 m (16 ft.) from the street,
assuming an average 20 m (66 ft.) street allowance. Amendment (4) would
remove the restriction which prohibits manual changeable copy signs in
residential and C-1 districts.
Staff are comfortable recommending the above four amendments. Although
they allow for much bigger signs than presently permitted, the size of
buildings on these large sites is likely to be such that the scale of
these signs would not be out of context. The amendments would also
reduce appeals to the Board of Variance requesting relaxation of the
very restrictive free-standing sign regulations which presently apply in
residential districts. The signs would be limited to approximately one-
half the size of the maximum size permitted for free-standing signs in
most commercial districts.
Amendment to Regulate Signs in Parks
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The issue of Park Board versus City Council responsibilities and
jurisdiction is beyond the scope of this report. Staff advise, however,
that without an amendment to the Sign By-law to regulate signs in parks,
the By-law's restrictions on signage in residential districts will be
undermined if the Park Board ever decides to construct corporate
sponsorship signage, or any other signage not permitted by the By-law,
on public parks. Most Park Board facilities, including community
centres, are located on land designated "public park". Only Park Board
facilities located on land not designated "public Park" by City Council
are currently regulated by the Sign By-law.
Corporation Counsel advises that Council has the authority to regulate
signs in parks. Although Section 491 of the Vancouver Charter enables
the Park Board to pass by-laws regulating advertising or signs in parks,
the by-laws cannot be inconsistent with any by-law passed by City
Council. Consequently, if Council were to amend the Sign By-law to
regulate signs in parks, the Park Board could not pass a by-law to allow
signs not permitted by Council.
Amendment (5) in Appendix A would extend the regulations of the Sign By-
law to public parks. Staff recommend this amendment on the basis that
all land in the city, except streets, should be regulated consistently
with respect to signage.
Amendments to Allow Automatic Changeable Copy
Approval of the above amendments would allow larger free-standing signs
than currently permitted and would allow manual changeable copy. They
would not, however, allow automatic changeable copy on the signs.
Staff are unable to recommend amendments to the By-law to expand the
districts where automatic changeable copy signs are permitted. Staff
recognize the very significant advantages automatic changeable copy has
over manual changeable copy: easier to change the copy since it is done
electronically rather than physically; much more information can be
provided since copy can be changed every few seconds; and, signs are
less subject to vandalism. However, automatic changeable copy signs
project a totally different image than static signs. Staff contend that
this image is inconsistent with the characteristics desired in
residential districts, and many other areas of the city. Staff note
that the Sign By-law prohibits automatic changeable copy signs in many
commercial districts due to their impact on the pedestrian environment.
Staff are reluctant to put forward, even for consideration, amendments
which increase the opportunities for automatic changeable copy signs.
Nevertheless, staff recognize that the automatic changeable copy
proposed for Vancouver Technical Secondary School would probably have no
more impact than an automatic changeable copy sign in the C-3A area of
Broadway, given the proposed sign's east/west orientation to Broadway
traffic (i.e., not directly facing residential across Broadway), and the
230 m (750 ft.) width of the site. Staff also recognize that without an
amendment to the Sign By-law, Council and staff cannot prohibit
automatic changeable copy signs on public parks. There is a
possibility, therefore, that automatic changeable copy signs may appear
in residentially-zoned parks, if the Park Board pursues corporate
sponsorship signage in the future. Consequently, staff have endeavoured
to draft amendments which would allow the school sign, as well as signs
for certain other uses on residentially-zoned sites, where impacts on
adjacent residential premises and the image of the city might be
acceptable to Council. Staff do not recommend approval but submit these
for consideration.
Amendments (1) (2) and (3) in Appendix B, presented only for
consideration, would allow cultural, recreational and institutional uses
to have automatic changeable copy on free-standing signs in all
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districts where they are presently not permitted (except the historic
districts) provided that:
- the sign is located adjacent to a street marked for six lanes of
moving traffic, or four lanes of moving traffic combined with two
lanes of curb parking;
- the sign is more than 60 m (197 ft.), measured perpendicularly to the
face of the copy at its midpoint, from any residential premises; and
- the automatic changeable copy portion of the sign is limited to a
maximum size of 2.3 m› (25 sq. ft.).
The above amendments would accommodate the Vancouver Technical Secondary
School sign and would accommodate what sign industry representatives
have advised is a standard 3 x 8 ft. automatic changeable copy sign.
The amendments would not accommodate all the originally proposed Park
Board signs (should Council decide to apply the Sign By-law to parks)
since they are not all located on streets which meet the criterion
listed above. The six-lane criterion has been chosen because streets
developed to this standard, such as Broadway, Oak and Granville, carry a
large volume of traffic which would mitigate, to some extent, the impact
of the signs.
Amendment (2) in Appendix B which requires an automatic changeable copy
sign to be more than 60 m (197 ft.) from any residential premises,
measured perpendicularly to the face of the sign, would effectively
require that any such sign located across the street from residential
premises be perpendicular to the street. This amendment would
ameliorate the problem with existing regulations which allow automatic
changeable copy signs to face directly into residential premises in
commercial districts.
In summary, amendments (1) (2) and (3) in Appendix B would allow
automatic changeable copy signs for cultural, recreational and
institutional uses in residential districts, subject to location,
setback and size restrictions. These signs would only be allowed on
free-standing signs and would also be subject to the free-standing sign
regulations. While staff are aware of the desire of Vancouver Technical
School, some churches, and other uses to have automatic changeable copy
signs, staff do not know the public's views on the introduction of these
signs in residential districts. Consequently, staff are presenting
automatic changeable copy amendments only for Council's consideration.
Amendments to Allow Limited Third-Party Advertising
At present, the By-law restricts third-party advertising to:
(1) billboards, parking lot advertising signs, signs in conjunction
with murals and signs at General Motors Place; and
(2) 30 percent of the total copy area of all other signs, provided that
the products or services advertised are sold or provided on the
premises at which the sign is located.
Except for signs at General Motors Place, no automatic changeable sign
is permitted to display any third-party advertising. Advertising of an
event on another site (e.g., Vancouver Technical Secondary School
displaying a message about a community centre event) would be third-
party advertising.
Amendment (4) in Appendix B, also not recommended by staff but presented
for Council's consideration, would amend the By-law to allow cultural,
recreational and institutional uses to have limited third-party
advertising on manual and automatic changeable copy, restricted to the
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display of events organized and presented by a non-profit society or
public agency. This amendment would allow the Vancouver Technical
Secondary School sign and any other automatic changeable copy sign to
announce non-commercial community events. If Council wishes to allow
automatic changeable copy in residential districts, staff are not
opposed to the signs being used to promote such community events. Staff
would, however, be opposed to any form of commercial third-party
advertising on these signs (e.g., advertising of McDonald's, ShowBoat,
or a Grizzlies game).
School Board Comments A draft of this report was provided to the
Vancouver School Board on January 26, 1996 for review and comment. A
copy of the responses received from the Director of Planning and
Facilities and the Principal of Vancouver Technical Secondary School are
attached as Appendices E and F.
In summary, the Board "supports the placement of a free-standing and
changeable copy sign on the Vancouver Technical School site, and urges
Council to adopt changes to the Sign By-law which will facilitate the
approval of the request from Vancouver Technical School". However, both
the Board and school staff express concern that this specific request
cannot be approved without more extensive amendments to the Sign By-law
which affect other sites and uses. The Principal of Vancouver Technical
School advises that residential neighbours have been surveyed and do not
object to the sign, and that concerns about potential adverse impacts of
the changeable copy sign will be addressed through limiting its hours of
operation and the speed of the message changes, and by orienting the
sign to minimize any impact to neighbours.
In response to the concern that the Vancouver Technical School sign
cannot be accommodated without amendments to the By-law which affect
other sites and uses, Planning staff note that the Sign By-law does not
lend itself to individual site-specific sign regulations since the By-
law's schedules (i.e., differing regulations) are based on zoning
districts. Further, one of the objectives of the review of the previous
Sign By-law in the mid-eighties was the simplification of sign
regulations and a reduction in the number of different sign schedules
which apply to zoning districts. The current By-law reflects this
objective, although Council has departed from it twice in recent years
by adopting site-specific regulations for General Motors Place and the
VanCity building at Main and Terminal.
Staff advise that further site-specific regulations will necessitate a
comprehensive re-write and restructuring of the Sign By-law. This will
result in a bigger, more complicated Sign By-law, requiring additional
staff resources for permit processing and enforcement, and for preparing
reports responding to requests for additional site-specific sign
regulations. A more complicated Sign By-law will further contribute to
the growth and complexity of development control regulations which are
the cause of many of the permit administration problems. Staff feel a
more complicated By-law will likely be opposed by the sign industry.
If Council wishes to accommodate the Vancouver Technical School sign
without establishing site-specific regulations for the site, or without
allowing the same sign opportunities for other sites and uses which meet
the proposed size and location restrictions, Council could:
(1) rezone the site or a portion of the site to C-2 or C-3A (commercial
districts which allow such signs); or
(2) restrict the proposed amendments to schools.
Staff strongly oppose increasing the commercial zoning on Broadway for
the purpose of allowing a sign. C-2 or C-3A zoning would also allow for
a bigger sign than the one proposed, as well as other types of signs
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(e.g., billboards). Staff also do not support singling out schools in
residential districts for automatic changeable copy signs. Staff feel
that if Council accepts the arguments for allowing an automatic
changeable copy sign for the school, these arguments apply equally well
to community centres, churches, hospitals and other institutional uses
providing community services.
Park Board Comments A copy of the draft report was also sent to the
General Manager of the Board of Parks and Recreation on January 26, 1996
for staff's and/or the Park Board's review and comment. At time of
finalization of this report, no written response has been received.
However, Park Board staff have verbally expressed concern that the issue
of park signage has been included in the report when staff are no longer
proposing corporate sponsorship signage.
PERSONNEL AND FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The small signs currently allowed in residential districts are not
required to obtain a sign permit. A permit would be required for the
larger free-standing signs recommended in this report. This, along with
the recommendation to bring signs in public parks within the
jurisdiction of the Sign By-law, will require staff resources to process
the sign permits. It is difficult to estimate the increase in sign
permit processing resources required by the amendments put forward in
Recommendation A and Consideration B, but
given the need for the Sign Permit Review Clerk to work overtime on some
occasions, any additional processing demands will likely result in
increased overtime or the need for additional staff. Staff are
currently preparing a report for Council on increasing sign permit
application fees to achieve full cost recovery, and this report is
expected to address Sign By-law administration and enforcement staffing
needs.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommend referral to Public Hearing, and approval of amendments
which would allow larger free-standing signs than presently allowed in
residential districts. Staff also recommend amendments to bring public
parks within the jurisdiction of the Sign By-law. Staff put forward for
Council's consideration amendments which would allow automatic
changeable copy signs, with limited third-party advertising, in
residential districts, but do not recommend approval.
* * * * * APPENDIX A
Page 1 of 2
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO SIGN BY-LAW
(RECOMMENDATION A)
(1) TO ALLOW LARGER FREE-STANDING SIGNS FOR CULTURAL, RECREATIONAL AND
INSTITUTIONAL USES IN RESIDENTIAL DISTRICTS REGULATED BY SCHEDULE A
Add the following new provision to Schedule A - Residential Areas:
"(c) Free-standing sign, except that:
(i) a free-standing sign shall be permitted only for
cultural and recreational uses and institutional uses,
including accessory uses, on a site exceeding 2 000 m›
in area, subject to compliance with the side and rear
yard and building requirements of the Zoning and
Development By-law;
(ii) the height of a free-standing sign shall not exceed 5
m; and
(iii) the sign area of a free-standing sign shall not exceed
5 m›."
(2) TO ALLOW THESE USES TO HAVE SAME SIGN OPPORTUNITIES IN FM-1, C-1,
C-5, C-6, C-7 AND WEST END RM DISTRICTS
Add the following new provision as Section (h)(iv) of Schedule B
and Section (g)(iv) of Schedule D:
"a free-standing sign shall be permitted for cultural and
recreational uses and institutional uses, including accessory uses,
subject to compliance with Section (c) of Schedule A."
(3) TO REDUCE THE REQUIRED SETBACK OF FREE-STANDING SIGNS TO
RESIDENTIAL DISTRICTS AND ONLY APPLY SETBACK TO ADJACENT SITES
CONTAINING RESIDENTIAL PREMISES
Amend Section 10.7.2(f) as follows (underlining indicates
amendment):
"A free-standing sign shall not be located within 25 m of any site
in a Residential Area, as identified in Section 9.2, containing
residential premises, which abuts the same street as the sign."
APPENDIX A
Page 2 of 2
(4) TO ALLOW MANUAL CHANGEABLE COPY IN DISTRICTS WHERE PRESENTLY NOT
PERMITTED
Amend Section 11.7.2 as follows ( indicates deletion):
"Manual changeable copy shall be permitted on a sign in all areas
except in residential areas as listed in Section 9, HA-1, HA-1A,
HA-2, HA-3 and HA-4, RM-5B, RM-5A, RM-5B, RM-5C, RM-6 and C-1
Districts, ..."
(5) TO REGULATE SIGNS IN PUBLIC PARKS
Amend Section 3.1 as follows ( indicates deletion):
"This By-law applies to all signs on any property other than
streets, lanes or public parks, and to all signs encroaching over a
street or lane, except as noted in Section 3.2."
APPENDIX B
Page 1 of 2
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO SIGN BY-LAW
(CONSIDERATION B)
(1) TO ALLOW AUTOMATIC CHANGEABLE COPY FOR CULTURAL, RECREATIONAL AND
INSTITUTIONAL USES IN DISTRICTS WHERE PRESENTLY NOT PERMITTED
Amend Section 11.8.1 as follows (underlining indicates amendment):
"Automatic changeable copy shall only be permitted:
(a) in C-2, C-2B, C-3A, IC-2, DD Districts and the site regulated
by CD-1 Number 311 (General Motors Place); and
(b) for cultural and recreational uses and institutional uses, in
all other districts, except HA-1, HA-1A, and HA-2, provided
the sign is located adjacent to a street marked for a minimum
of six lanes of moving traffic, or a minimum of four lanes of
moving traffic combined with two lanes of curb parking;
except that automatic changeable copy shall not be permitted in
areas designated by Schedule 'F' and 'G'."
(2) TO PREVENT AUTOMATIC CHANGEABLE COPY FROM FACING RESIDENTIAL USES
Amend Section 11.8.3 as follows (underlining indicates amendment):
"Automatic changeable copy shall not be located within 60 m,
measured perpendicularly to the face of the copy at its midpoint,
of any residential premises."
(3) TO LIMIT THE SIZE OF AUTOMATIC CHANGEABLE COPY SIGNS FOR CULTURAL,
RECREATIONAL AND INSTITUTIONAL USES
Amend Section 11.8.5 as follows (underlining indicates amendment):
"The automatic changeable copy area of a sign shall not exceed 80
percent of the sign area to a maximum of :
(a) 4 m› for a site less than 0.4 ha except as provided in Section
11.8.5(c); or
(b) 8 m› for a site 0.4 ha or more, except as provided in Section
11.8.5(c) or Section 11.8.6; or
(c) 2.3 m› for a sign permitted by Section 11.8.1(b)." APPENDIX B
Page 2 of 2
(4) TO ALLOW THIRD-PARTY ADVERTISING OF COMMUNITY EVENTS ON MANUAL AND
AUTOMATIC CHANGEABLE COPY SIGNS
Amend Section 11.6.2 as follows (underlining indicates amendment,
deletion):
"Except for a billboard, a parking lot advertising sign, or a sign
in conjunction with a mural, or a manual or automatic changeable
copy sign displaying events organized and presented by a non-profit
society or public agency, no third-party sign shall be permitted."
Amend Section 11.8.9 as follows (underlining indicates amendment):
"No sign with automatic changeable copy shall be permitted to
display any third-party advertising on the changeable copy, except
for a free-standing sign for cultural and recreational uses and
institutional uses."