San Marcos Development Code 9.1.2020

7 C H A P T E R

Supplemental Development Standards

located in or above a utility or drainage easement. Signs shall maintain ten feet of vertical and horizontal clearance from all electrical lines. 7. Only governmental signs or temporary holiday signs may be located on the roof of any structure. 8. Lighting for signs shall not produce glare onto adjoining properties or in the eyes of motorists or pedestrians. Bare-bulb illumination is prohibited within 150 feet of any premises containing a residential use, and in other cases is limited to 25-watt bulbs at night and 33-watt bulbs during daylight hours. 9. Permanent signs on premises within a historic district shall be subject to the issuance of a certificate of appropriateness by the Historic Preservation Commission and subject to compliance with adopted sign criteria. 10. All freestanding signs shall be set back a minimum of five feet from all property lines. B. CEVM Signs. CEVM signs are subject to the above location restrictions and additionally are prohibited within 350 feet of any residential zoned district, multifamily zoned districts, and any district zoned Neighborhood Commercial, Mixed Use, Historic, Parkland, the River Corridor, or the CBA Boundary. Measurement shall be made by straight line from the nearest boundary of the zoning district to the nearest point of the sign where the nearest point of the sign is determined by dropping a horizontal line from the nearest edge of the sign face to the ground. Section 7.3.1.7Abandonment A. Obsolete Sign Copy. When any sign contains information that is no longer current, the property owner shall remove the sign or the copy, cover the copy, or change the copy to current information within 30 days, except as otherwise provided in this Chapter. B. Conformance. When an on-premises sign is nonconforming with respect to any provision of this Article and use of the premises ceases for a period of six months, the sign shall be brought into conformance by the property owner. C. Leased Copy. When an off-premise sign has copy which is subject to a lease for a specified period and the lease is

purchased in advance, the copy may remain through the contract period if it is maintained in good condition. Section 7.3.1.8Nonconforming Signs A. Signs in Existence Prior to This Code. A sign existing on the effective date of this Development Code that violates this Article or any other ordinance, and a sign that comes under the jurisdiction of this Chapter due to the expansion of the City, is a legal nonconforming sign and may be continued, repaired and maintained in good condition, but may not be otherwise altered. B. Voluntary Removal. Voluntary removal of a nonconforming sign for purposes other than maintenance shall terminate its status as a legal nonconforming sign. Replacing a sign cabinet is not considered maintenance. C. Legal, Nonconforming Off-Premise Signs. An off-premise sign existing on July 24, 2003 that violates a spacing or location restriction in Section 7.3.3.3 Location and spacing restrictions and an existing off-premise sign that thereafter becomes in violation of a spacing or location restriction in Section 7.3.3.3 Location and spacing restrictions, is a legal nonconforming sign and may be continued, repaired and maintained in good condition, but may not be otherwise altered. A nonconforming off-premise sign shall have its legal nonconforming status terminated if the sign, or a substantial part of it, is blown down or otherwise destroyed, or dismantled for any purpose other than routine maintenance or for changing the letters, symbols, or other matter on the sign. For purposes of this Section 7.3.1.8), a sign is considered to have been destroyed only if the cost of repairing the sign is more than 50 percent of the cost of erecting a new sign of the same type, material, and dimensions at the same location. D. CEVM Signs in operation as of March 3, 2008. A CEVM sign in operation as of the above date shall be considered a legal nonconforming sign as to location, size and height restriction; however, said sign shall be subject to the operational standards of this Development Code as they exist or shall be amended in the future. (Ord. No. 2019-45, 12-17-19)

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San Marcos Development Code Amended: September 1, 2020