Doesn't that suck? I know that it was not the fault of the code unit; it had to come down from the county commission, but it still sucks!

Wall mounted signs regardless of size.... $35.00
Freestanding signs 10' tall or shorter.... $35.00
Add $5 for each addtional foot.

Here's our City sign code: Prepare to read a little... very little:

Any sign over 32 sq. ft. is required to be reviewed by the planning commission.

Any sign over 10 feet above ground is required to be reviewed by the planning commission.

That is the entire code but what it really means is... If you have built a business building after 1997 you should have had a site plan review. Fee for that is $300.00. If at that time you did not show the finished version of your sign and now wish to install one so you can advertise or simply indicate to people that you in fact do have a business, you guessed it, an additional $300.00.

I put up a sign today that cost my customer $280.00. His fee was $300.00.

$35.00 for ground signs

Since I build many apartment sign projects, I also have to deal with the multi family ordinances, the swimming pool ordinances, the addressing ordinace, the fire marshal's office, etc. All of these laws are handled by different entities at City Hall.

Some of the local cities post their ordinances on their web sites, however, the search features to find what is needed are usually abyssmal. Also, the ordinances as posted are not necessarily up to date. In the city I live, a major change was made in the sign ordinance last year, however, the web site is still not updated. Today, after a three week wait, I finally received the current ordinance in the mail. Had I known it would take three weeks to send, I would have driven to City Hall and gotten it myself.