Market Street East Sign Regulations.
Philadelphia Code § 14-906
in effect§ 14-906. Market Street East Sign Regulations.
Notes
987 | Repealed and replaced, Bill No. 120430-A (approved January 14, 2013); amended, Bill No. 240972 (approved December 23, 2024). Bill No. 240972 was subsequently repealed by Bill No. 250242 (approved May 14, 2025).
(1) District Boundaries.
The Market Street East Advertising District contains the area bounded by 13th Street, Filbert Street, 7th Street, Ranstead Street, 9th Street, Ludlow Street (extended), 10th Street, Ludlow Street, Girard Street, and Ludlow Street (extended), as shown in the following map for illustrative purposes only.
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(2) Applicability.
The provisions of this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 988 ) apply to accessory and non- accessory signs not otherwise permitted by this Zoning Code and located in the Market Street East Advertising District, subject to all of the following: 989
(a) The owner of the property, or a tenant with the owner's authorization, has committed to use the gross proceeds, in whole or in part, from the erection or maintenance of such sign, including but not limited to any lease payments owing to the property owner, to offset the costs of public improvements, so long as the Commission has determined that the public improvements satisfy the criteria of § 14-906(4) (Criteria for Public Improvements).
(b) The sign shall be located on a property either with 100 ft. or more of frontage on Market Street, or belonging to a contiguous set of buildings under common ownership or management with a collective frontage on Market Street of 100 ft. or more. For the purposes of this subsection (b), two buildings are contiguous to one another if there are no other lots between them, even if there is a street between them.
(c) The sign shall be located no more than 100 ft. north or south of the lot line on Market Street, but may be located more than 100 ft. north of the lot line on Market Street if located on the north-facing facade of a bridge structure over 9th Street or 10th Street between Market Street and Filbert Street. 990
(d) Signs on or abutting a parking garage or surface parking lot with frontage on Market Street are exempt from this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 991 ).
Notes
988 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
989 | Amended, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
990 | Amended, Bill No. 180979 (approved January 3, 2019).
991 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
(3) Sign Regulations.
The following regulations shall apply to signs that are subject to this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 992 ), provided that the conditions of § 14-906(4) (Criteria for Public Improvements) and § 14-906(5) (Limitations), below, are satisfied. In the event of a conflict between any provision of this § 14-906 and any other provision of this Zoning Code, the provision of this § 14-906 shall control.
(a) The following types of accessory and non-accessory signs shall be permitted: 993
(.1) Wall signs;
(.2) Projecting signs, provided that the maximum projection onto a public right of way shall not exceed three ft. for the first 15 ft. of building height or five ft. for building heights in excess of 15 ft., and neither the bottom nor top edge of any projecting sign shall create an acute angle with the vertical wall from which it projects greater than 60 degrees; nor shall any such edge be perpendicular to such wall; and provided further that no antenna may be attached to a projecting sign.
(.3) Accessory freestanding signs, subject to the requirements set forth in Table 14-904-1 as applicable to the underlying zoning district;
(.4) Building identification signs, subject to the requirements set forth in § 14-904(3), as applicable;
(.5) Real estate signs;
(.6) Roof signs, if located on a building on which a roof sign was situated at any time prior to January 1, 1950; and
(.7) Signs with animated illumination, mechanical motion, or digital displays, provided that:
(.a) The applicant submits documentation prepared by a licensed professional traffic engineer demonstrating to the satisfaction of the Commission that the sign will not create a material distraction to drivers of motor vehicles or otherwise present a safety hazard or substantially interfere with the peaceful enjoyment of the neighborhood; and
(.b) The following shall apply to accessory and non-accessory signs.
(i) § 14-905(7) (Illuminated, Flashing, and Revolving Signs).
(ii) For digital displays, during daylight hours luminance shall be no greater than 2,500 nits. At all other times, luminance shall be no greater than 250 nits. Automatic dimming is required to maintain the appropriate illumination levels at all times.
(b) Signs shall not exceed 1,600 sq. ft. per sign face. The total aggregate sign area on any property, excluding any accessory sign area that would be permitted under Table 14-904-1 or § 14-502(7)(m) (Market Street East Retail Area), shall not exceed 24 times the property's linear footage along Market Street. 994
(c) The top edge of any sign shall not be located more than 90 ft. above street level; provided further that, on any building on which was situated a sign the top edge of which was located more than 90 ft. above street level at any time prior to January 1, 1950, a sign of no greater size and no greater height shall be permitted.
(d) L&I shall not issue a zoning permit for the sign until the Commission has reviewed plans of the sign and determined that the design of the sign structure does not detract from the building's key architectural or character-defining features.
(e) Non-accessory signs are exempt from the:
(.1) Spacing requirements of § 14-905(2) (Spacing Requirements) and the distance from residential zoning district standards of § 14-905(3) (Distances from Residential District Property).
(.2) Sign face regulations of § 14-905(6) (Sign Face Regulations).
(.3) Prohibited area provisions of § 14-905(10) (Prohibited Areas).
(.4) Permit procedures of § 14-905(12)(b) through § 14-905(12)(e).
(.5) Height regulations of § 14-905(5). 995
Notes
992 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
993 | Amended by deleting former subsection (.6) and renumbering subsequent subsections, Bill No. 150264 (approved June 16, 2015).
994 | Amended, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
995 | Added, Bill No. 150264 (approved June 16, 2015).
(4) Criteria for Public Improvements.
The Commission shall approve a public improvement only if it determines that all of the following criteria have been satisfied:
(a) The public improvement shall be located in the District and must materially improve the facade (including, but not limited to, facade lighting) or publicly accessible exterior of the property, or, if no such material improvements are needed, in the exclusive judgment of the Commission, the public improvement may improve either publicly accessible interior areas of the property or publicly accessible exterior of another property in the District, with permission of the other property's owner. Improvements to the publicly accessible exterior of a property may include improvements or connections to a public transit facility.
(.1) With regards to improvements relating to public transit, the applicant shall submit a letter from the public transit agency confirming that the agency (a) is aware of the proposed transit improvements; (b) approves the portion of the project that will be constructed on its property; and (c) verifies that the improvements are engineered and will be completed to accommodate peak hour travel in all directions.
(b) The public improvement requires a minimum investment of ten million dollars ($10,000,000), exclusive of any facade work directly associated with construction and operation of the sign.
(c) The public improvement has been completed prior to the application for a zoning permit, or will be completed pursuant to an approved investment schedule prepared in accordance with subsections (.1) through (.3), below. Upon completion of the public improvement, the applicant shall submit to the Commission a Final Certificate of Payment that it is confirmed by a licensed architect indicating that the applicant has completed the minimum required investment.
(.1) The applicant shall submit to the Commission a scope of work; construction documents and plans prepared by a licensed architect; and documentation of the total costs and investment schedule as prepared by a cost estimator certified by the American Society of Professional Estimators, the Society of Cost Estimating and Analysis, or AACE International.
(.2) The investment schedule shall indicate that a minimum of six million dollars ($6,000,000) will be invested within eighteen months of issuance of the sign permit; and the total ten million dollar ($10,000,000) required investment shall be made within two years and six months of issuance of the sign permit. An applicant may request an extension of that time for a maximum of an additional twelve months, for good cause shown. The applicant shall submit a Certificate of Payment that is confirmed by a licensed architect annually to the Commission to demonstrate compliance with the investment schedule. 996
(.3) The applicant shall post a bond or letter of credit in an amount equal to ten million dollars ($10,000,000) in a form and with financial entities acceptable to the City. The City shall maintain an irrevocable right to draw on the bond or letter of credit if the owner fails to meet the approved investment schedule.
Notes
996 | Amended, Bill No. 150264 (approved June 16, 2015).
(5) Limitations.
(a) For any individual property:
(.1) The sign shall not be erected until the applicant has received the necessary permits and approvals for the public improvement required by subsection (2)(a), above.
(.2) Reserved. 997
(.3) The provisions of subsection (3), above, shall apply only for such periods of time when sixty percent (60%) or more of the property is either occupied or, in the judgment of the Commission, is being actively marketed, provided that no space shall be considered actively marketed if vacant for more than three years.
(.4) The provisions of subsection (3), above, shall not apply if the property owner is delinquent for more than six months on any taxes relating to the subject property owing to the City or the School District, or has any outstanding Code violations relating to the subject property that remain uncured more than six months after notice. A property owner shall not be considered delinquent, and a violation shall not be considered uncured, when there is pending a bona fide legal dispute concerning the tax liability or violation.
(.5) Upon failure to comply with the provisions of subsections (.3), or (.4) above, the owner of the property shall remove any sign authorized by this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 998 ), or, if the owner fails to do so, the Department may remove such sign and shall place a lien on the property for the costs of removal. 999
(b) Reserved. 1000
(c) The individual provisions of this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 1001 ) are not severable from the remainder of the provisions of this Code relating to the Market Street East Advertising District. Should a court of competent jurisdiction issue an order declaring any provision of this § 14-906 invalid or unenforceable, it is the intent of Council that all provisions of this Zoning Code relating to the Market Street East Advertising District would not have been adopted without such invalid or unenforceable provision and said provisions shall be null and void.
(d) Nothing in this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 1002 ) shall permit the erection or maintenance of a sign on any lot on which sits a building designated historic under Chapter 14-1000 (Historic Preservation) unless, in addition to any requirements imposed by Chapter 14-1000 (Historic Preservation), the Historical Commission determines that the sign is consistent with historic precedent with respect to such building and the sign does not materially obscure the view of the building's key architectural, historic or character-defining features.
(e) Other than a sign permitted by any provision of this Code other than this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 1003 ), no person shall place or maintain, or allow to be placed or maintained, within 1,000 ft. of any school, public playground, recreation center, child-care center or library, any sign advertising any tobacco product.
(f) Nothing in this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 1004 ) is intended to supersede any requirement of The Philadelphia Code not in conflict with the provisions of this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations 1005 ), including but not limited to the requirements of Chapter 14-1000 (Historic Preservation).
Notes
997 | Deleted, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
998 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
999 | Amended, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
1000 | Added, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
1001 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
1002 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
1003 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
1004 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
1005 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
(6) Accessory Digital News Ticker Signs.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Zoning Code, Digital News Ticker Signs shall be permitted in the Market Street East Advertising District subject to the following conditions:
(.1) The sign shall be accessory to a permitted business use primarily involving the collection, production, or dissemination of news and information via various print and electronic media;
(.2) The sign band shall not exceed 5 ft. in height;
(.3) The top edge of the sign shall not be located more than 50 ft. above street level; and
(.4) The sign shall be permitted on any public street frontage of the property, provided it does not exceed in length the property's linear footage along any public street.
(b) An accessory Digital News Ticker Sign, as permitted in this section, shall be permitted in addition to any other signs permitted for the property under Chapter 14-900 of this Zoning Code and shall not count against the maximum square footage of any signs otherwise permitted under Chapter 14-900.
Notes
1006 | Added, Bill No. 130856 (approved December 18, 2013).
(7) Sunset Provision.
The provisions of this § 14-906 (Market Street East Sign Regulations) 1008 shall expire July 19, 2031. Lawfully permitted signs in existence on July 19, 2031, to the extent not authorized by any provision of this Zoning Code other than this § 14-906, shall be deemed nonconforming and may be maintained as nonconforming signs pursuant to § 14-305 (Nonconformities).
Notes
1007 | Added, Bill No. 150379 (approved June 18, 2015).
1008 | Revised by Code editor to conform to section's caption.
Source: City of Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Code and Home Rule Charter (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/philadelphia/latest/philadelphia_pa/0-0-0-294338Fetched: 10/27/2026