Sec. 64.277. - Off-Premises Digital Billboard Signs.
Purpose. The purpose of this Section is to provide standards and restrictions for the exchange of traditional billboard signs for Off-Premises Digital Billboard Signs that are pursuant to the interest of the citizens of the City of Orlando in the visual aesthetics of the City and the safety of vehicular travel. These standards and restrictions maintain, support and protect the aesthetic character of the City of Orlando by providing for the removal of certain traditional billboard signs, as well as protect the safety of the motoring public, by limiting the locations of, and specifications for, off-premises digital billboard signs and generally further the public interest of the citizens of the City of Orlando.
(I) Definitions:
1. Off-premises digital billboard sign: a billboard sign that changes the "static" message or copy on the sign by electronic means.
2. Structure or Supporting Structure: anything built, constructed or erected or any piece or work artificially built-upon composed of parts joined together in some definite manner including, but not limited to, buildings of any kind, utility poles, fences, fire-hydrants, street light standards, traffic light standards, traffic directional sign standards or any other thing to which a sign, may be placed, affixed, erected, painted, posted, maintained or displayed.
3. Traditional Billboard: a billboard sign that does not display messages by electronic means but instead utilizes materials such as painted, vinyl and paper substrates. Traditional billboard signs include multi-vision signs that do not display messages electronically and utilize the same or similar materials.
(II) No off-premises digital billboard signs shall be allowed in the City except as provided in this Section.
A. 1)
An application for an off-premises digital billboard sign shall be made to the City's Planning Official and shall constitute a request for a Planning Official's determination, which determination may be appealed as provided by City Code. An application for a building permit to construct the off-premises digital billboard sign, as well as all related applications for permits to demolish the billboards to be exchanged, must be made within 14 days from the issuance of the Planning Official's written determination, failing which the determination shall immediately expire. The building permit for construction of the off-premises digital billboard sign, and all related demolition permits, must then be issued within 30 days from the date of the building permit application, failing which the Planning Official's written determination shall immediately expire. Construction of the sign, and demolition of all associated exchange billboards, must be completed, as evidenced by the City's issuance of a Certificate of Completion for the off-premises digital billboard sign, within 90 days of the City's issuance of the permit, failing which the building permit for construction of the off-premises digital billboard sign shall immediately expire. Upon expiration of the Planning Official's written determination or the permit, all rights in the proposed sign, the Planning Official's determination and the permit, terminate and construction of the sign may only occur by means of a new application, a new Planning Official's determination and permit. Upon request of the sign owner at least 30 days prior to the expiration of the building permit to construct the off-premises digital billboard sign, the term of the permit, and any associated demolition permits, may be extended by the Planning Official for one, 30-day period upon a showing of (i) good cause and (ii) diligent pursuit of construction under the permit for the off-premises digital billboard sign. Issuance of the Planning Official's written determination or a permit for an off-premises digital billboard sign shall not create a right in the construction of the sign except as specifically provided in the terms of the determination, the permit or this Section. No sign owner shall, at any one time, maintain more than five active permits (including Planning Official's determinations) for the construction of off-premises digital billboard signs. A permit or Planning Official's determination is considered active, from the date on which the application for a Planning Official's determination is made or the permit is issued, until the written determination or permit expires or a certificate of completion is issued upon the completion of construction.
2) City shall establish fees for application and inspection, by resolution, in accordance with applicable law. City shall inspect off-premises digital billboard signs at least once per year to ensure compliance with the permit and City Code.
3) An owner of existing, legally non-conforming traditional, billboard signs (or the owner of a vested right, arising from an agreement with the City, to construct a traditional billboard sign) shall be eligible to receive a building permit for one off-premises digital billboard sign in exchange for the permanent removal of at least four times the amount of square feet of traditional billboard sign face to be permitted as an off-premises digital billboard sign(s). For example, 1,600 square feet of traditional billboard advertising sign face would be removed in exchange for a permit to construct an off-premises digital billboard sign of 400 square feet. For purposes of calculating the removal requirement, a traditional tri-vision billboard sign(s) shall constitute three sign faces. Except in the case of a conversion of an existing traditional billboard sign to an off-premises digital billboard sign, the removal of signs for exchange purposes must include the supporting structure(s), as defined in this Section, and shall only apply to legally non-conforming billboard signs, (or a vested right, arising from an agreement with the City, to construct a traditional billboard sign), located within the jurisdictional limits of the City of Orlando. The permit application must comply with all applicable regulations and standards set forth herein. If removing the supporting structure(s) requires removing existing billboard advertising sign face in excess of that required for the off-premises digital billboard sign permit, the excess shall be assigned to the owner of the sign by the City and may be utilized with respect to future building permits under this Section. All applications for an off-premises digital billboard sign must identify the traditional billboard signs to be demolished. The City's issuance of a permit for an off-premises digital billboard sign shall only occur in conjunction with the issuance of permits for the demolition of the billboard signs identified for removal. The billboard signs to be exchanged must be removed completely prior to the City's issuance of a Certificate of Completion for the off-premises digital billboard sign. The removal of billboard signs occurring prior to the effective date of this Section shall not be counted for exchange purposes under this Section.
4) Traditional billboard signs, including tri-vision, may not be converted to off-premises digital billboard signs except in strict compliance with this Section. Subject to the exchange criteria described herein, new permits may be issued for a traditional billboard sign face, including tri-vision, on the same structure which has been permitted for an off-premises digital billboard sign under this section. The new traditional billboard sign must be facing the opposite direction of the off-premises digital billboard sign face and must comply with City Code and all applicable laws, rules and regulations. The issuance of a permit for the new traditional billboard sign face may only occur in conjunction with issuance of the permit for the off-premises digital billboard sign on the same sign structure. The traditional billboard sign face shall be the same dimensions as the off-premises digital billboard sign face on the same sign structure. Further, issuance of the permit for the new traditional billboard sign face shall only occur in conjunction with the issuance of a permit to remove a legally non-conforming, traditional billboard sign face(s) located in the City of Orlando, including the sign structure, of equal or greater square footage. For purposes of calculating the removal requirement, a permit for a new traditional tri-vision billboard sign(s) shall require the removal of sign face(s) equal to or greater than the square footage of the three sign faces on the tri-vision billboard sign combined. The traditional billboard sign(s), including the sign structure, to be exchanged for the new traditional billboard sign face permit, must be removed completely prior to the City's issuance of a Certificate of Completion for the new traditional billboard sign or the off-premises digital billboard sign located on the same sign structure. An existing, legally-nonconforming traditional billboard sign face, including tri-vision, (that is not being used to meet the exchange/removal requirements referenced above) may remain on an existing sign structure which is permitted under this section for conversion to an off-premises digital billboard sign. The permit issued for the construction of the off-premises digital billboard sign may include the reconstruction of the existing traditional billboard sign face(s), consistent with all applicable laws, rules and regulations, located on the same sign structure and facing the opposite direction. The reconstruction shall only consist of the repair and restoration of the existing traditional billboard sign face, and shall not include, without limitation, any alteration in the existing dimensions and operational characteristics, unless the traditional billboard sign face is being enlarged so as to be the same size as the proposed off-premises digital billboard sign face and all exchange requirements for the enlargement have been met. The traditional billboard sign face shall be the same size as the off-premises digital billboard sign face on the same sign structure.
5) All off-premises digital billboard signs shall be subject to this Section and all other relevant provisions of City Code and applicable law.
6) Any off-premises digital billboard sign permitted under this Section, whether new or converted, must be located on a monopole structure.
B. (1)
Off-premises digital billboard signs must be approved through the Digital Billboard Exchange Program and must comply with the following requirements:
a) Locations where allowed: Off-premises digital billboard signs shall be allowed only in the following zoning districts and only within 150 feet of the right-of-way along limited access highways or a designated state arterial roadway:
I-G General Industrial
I-P Industrial Park
I-C Industrial - Commercial
AC-1 Activity Center
AC-2 Activity Center
AC-3 Activity Center
AC-N Activity Center
MU-2 High Intensity Mixed Use Corridor, located within 150 feet of the right-of-way, only along limited access roadways.
b) In order to allow for further digital billboard exchanges, exchanges are allowed at a ratio of 4:1 based on square footage in the following identified corridors for properties that are either adjacent to the corridor or where an existing billboard is sited within 150 feet of the right-of-way as calculated by the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the sign to the edge of the right-of-way. At least 50% of the traded square feet must come from that particular corridor and the remaining 50% may come from throughout the city.
1. Colonial Drive East (East of Orange Avenue to the eastern City limit);
2. Colonial Drive West (West of Orange Avenue to the western City limit);
3. Orange Blossom Trail Corridor (South of Colonial Drive to the southern City limit);
4. North John Young Parkway (W.D. Judge Road to north of Orange Blossom Trail);
5. International Drive/South Kirkman Road/Sand Lake Road/Conroy Road;
6. Semoran Blvd (Beachline Expressway to the north City limit);
7. South Orange Avenue (from Michigan Street to the southern City limit).
8. Downtown Orlando CRA/Downtown View Corridor Area and Interstate 4 View Corridor.
Billboard signs located in the Downtown Orlando CRA/Downtown View Corridor area must abide by one of the following conditions:
i. Billboard construction is allowed on developed sites. Architectural integration is required into a principal building or parking garage and the proposed billboard structure must be reviewed through an ARB major review process, the Historic Preservation Board or the Development Review Committee, as applicable. The maximum number of billboard structures allowed per development site is one.
ii. An existing non-digital billboard may be converted to digital. As a result of the use of this Digital Billboard Exchange Program, future relocation on the same parcel is permitted without trading in square footage so long as the siting of the billboard allows for logical development of the site or can be relocated on the site to allow logical redevelopment, subject to minor review by the Appearance Review Board within the Downtown CRA.
d) Billboard Exchange Incentive. Billboards located along the following pedestrian oriented main streets are eligible for a 3:1 exchange ratio based on square footage. This incentive is proposed to provide an appealing pedestrian-oriented urban and mixed use environment. To receive the incentive, a portion of the traded square footage must come from one of the pre-identified billboards below in its entirety along with any of the eligible billboards described in section 64.277(B)(1)(b) above. The addresses of these proposed "incentive" billboards are:
1. 2601 Delaney Avenue
2. 2702 S. Orange Avenue
3. 2830 S. Orange Avenue
4. 1508 E. Michigan Street
5. 1323 N. Orange Avenue
6. 2912 Edgewater Drive
7. 201 N. Bumby Avenue
8. 717 N. Mills Avenue
9. 1001 N. Mills Avenue
10. 1349 N. Mills Avenue
11. 2720 E .Robinson Street
12. 3500 Curry Ford Road
13. 802 W. Church Street
14. 410 N. Orange Blossom Trail
15. 1500 W. Smith Street
16. 3117 S. Orange Avenue
17. 1246 Carter Street
18. 2 S. Orange Blossom Trail
19. 430 S. Orange Blossom Trail
20. 4435 Curry Ford Road
21. 938 W. Colonial Drive
22. 34 N. Gertrude's Walk
23. 2401 E. South Street
24. 19 N. Westmoreland Drive
25. 1638 E. Colonial Drive
26. 2021 E. Colonial Drive
27. 321 W. Concord Street
28. 3122 E. Colonial Drive
29. 3614 E. Colonial Drive
e) Off-premises digital billboard signs shall not be located within the following designated view corridors unless otherwise stated above: (GMP Figure UD32), as amended.
• John Young Parkway from Silver Star Road south to the southern entrance of Orlando Executive Park;
• Princeton Street from Silver Star Road to Orange Blossom Trail;
• Semoran Boulevard from Hoffner Road south to the City limits, including the Orlando International Airport;
• All roadways within or abutting Loch Haven Park, including Lake Estelle and its shoreline;
• Lake Ivanhoe and all roadways abutting its shorelines;
• Orange Avenue;
• State Road 408 from Conway Road west to Bumby Avenue;
• I-4 from Princeton Street to Michigan Avenue;
• Mills avenue from the northern City limits south to Virginia Drive;
• Kirkman Road, I-4 north to the City limits; and
• Any view corridor described in the Urban Design Element of the Growth Management Plan, Figure UD-32, as amended.
f) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within 400 ft. of any residentially zoned property, except AC-1 Activity Center, AC-2 Activity Center, AC-3 Activity Center, AC-N Activity Center, or MU-2 High Intensity Mixed Use Corridor as described in subsection (a) above, or within 400 ft. of any property with an existing, legal residential land use. If a limited access roadway separates the digital billboard sign from residentially zoned property, the digital billboard sign must be a minimum of 300 ft. away from the residentially zoned property. The distance shall be calculated as the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the billboard sign to the edge of the residentially zoned property.
g) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within an historic district, or within 400 ft. of an historic district boundary. The distance shall be calculated as the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the sign to the edge of the historic district.
h) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within fifteen feet of any public road right-of-way as calculated by the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the sign to the edge of the right-of-way, except for the conversion of existing non-digital billboards and any associated structural improvements necessary and approved by the planning official.
i) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within 400 feet of any public park, community/neighborhood centers, public or private elementary, middle, or high school or religious institution. The distance shall be calculated as the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the sign to the edge of the premises on which the any public park, community/neighborhood centers, public or private elementary, middle, or high school or religious institution is located.
j) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within 100 feet of a hotel or motel, as that term is defined in City Code. The distance shall be calculated as the shortest measurable distance between the nearest point of the sign to the edge of the premises on which the hotel or motel is located. However, as an alternative to the enforcement of this subsection, the sign owner may obtain a written document signed by all of the owner(s), and any individual or entity having a real property interest, including lessees, in the affected hotel(s) or motel(s) indicating the owner(s) consent to the applicable sign permit application. In such an event, a copy of the written consent document(s) shall be filed with the permit application.
k) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be located within 1000 feet of another off-premise digital billboard sign or within 1000 feet of a non-digital billboard sign. The distance shall be calculated as the shortest measurable distance between the edge of one sign to the edge of the other sign. However, when any two billboards are located across a limited access roadway (freeway or expressway), no minimum distance separation is required between such billboard signs.
2) Spacing Requirements: The minimum spacing between off-premises digital billboard signs with faces visible from the same driving direction along the roadway is 1,000 ft. A 1,000 ft. distance separation is required between off-premises digital billboard signs and any traditional billboard sign, including tri-vision, located along the same side of the roadway. The distance shall be measured from the nearest point of the sign as projected to the centerline of the roadway upon which the sign is intended to be viewed to the nearest point of the other sign as measured to its closest point as projected to the centerline along the same roadway.
3) Operational Requirements:
a) There shall be no display of flashing or rotating lighting or the varying of light intensity during the static message. Off-premises digital billboard signs may be internally or externally illuminated. Off-premises digital billboard signs shall not be illuminated in such a manner so as to cause glare or to impair the vision of motorists or otherwise distract motorists so as to interfere with the motorists' ability to safely operate their vehicles. Otherwise, all off-premises digital billboard signs shall comply with the lighting requirements of the State of Florida, including Ch. 479, Florida Statutes and Rule 14.10, Florida Administrative Code, certain of which provisions currently prohibit moving light.
b) No message or image may be displayed for less than eight (8) seconds. This message time is referred to as dwell time.
c) Message changes will be completed in less than 0.5 seconds. The change time shall not be included in the eight seconds of display time referenced in subparagraph (b) above.
d) The change of message shall appear as a seamless, imperceptible transition from one image to the next. No special visual effects of any kind shall be allowed.
e) The message shall not advertise a principal or accessory use located on the premises of the sign and shall not advertise any merchandise, services, activities, or entertainment sold, produced, manufactured, or furnished on said premises. "Premises" means the integrated land area on which the sign is located including all contiguous land areas under ownership of, or lease arrangement with, the sign owner.
f) The illumination of an off-premises digital billboard sign shall not exceed a brightness level of 0.3 foot candles above ambient light, as measured using a foot candle meter at the following pre-set distances from the base of the sign structure:
300—375 square feet sign face .....150 feet
376—475 square feet sign face .....200 feet
476—672 square feet sign face .....250 feet
The measurement of the brightness level shall be taken with the meter aimed directly at the billboard sign face from the applicable pre-set distance.
As limited by the above-standards, no off-premises digital billboard sign shall be brighter than is necessary for clear and adequate visibility.
g) No off-premises digital billboard sign shall display light of such intensity or brilliance as to cause glare or otherwise impair the vision of a driver or result in a nuisance. No off-premises digital billboard sign shall be of such intensity or brilliance that it interferes with the effectiveness of an official traffic sign, device or signal.
h) Off-premises digital billboard signs shall have a default mechanism built in to either turn the display off or show "full black" on the display in the event of a malfunction. Malfunction is defined as any operation of the sign that causes glare or impairs the vision of motorists or otherwise distracts motorists so as to interfere with the motorists' ability to safely operate their vehicles or otherwise constitutes a violation of this Section.
i) The off-premises digital billboard sign shall not be configured to resemble a warning, danger signal, official signage used to control traffic or to cause a driver to mistake an off-premises digital billboard sign for a warning or danger signal.
j) All off-premises digital billboard signs must be equipped with controls that automatically adjust the displays intensity according to natural ambient light conditions, consistent with the lighting standards of this Section.
k) Any off-premises digital billboard sign operating out of compliance with any standard of this Section must immediately terminate displaying an image until compliance is achieved.
4) Maximum height and size of sign face:
a) Where located along limited access roadways, an off-premises digital billboard sign shall not exceed 40 feet in height above the crown of the adjacent limited access roadway, not to exceed a maximum of 65 feet above ground level. Where located along state arterial roadways, an off-premises digital billboard sign shall not exceed 30 feet in height above the crown of the adjacent state arterial roadway, not to exceed 60 feet above ground level. Height shall be measured from the top of the sign structure.
b) The maximum size of the sign face, as viewed from one direction, for any off-premises digital billboard shall be 672 square feet where the sign is oriented to a limited access roadway and 400 sq. ft. when oriented to a state arterial roadway. The minimum size of the sign face for any off-premises digital billboard sign shall be 300 square feet.
c) The maximum number of off-premises digital billboard sign faces per sign structure shall be limited to one per sign structure facing the same direction. All visible portions of the back side of an off-premises digital billboard sign shall be painted monochromatic black or other monochromatic, dark, neutral color, as approved by the City's Planning Official.
d) No embellishments and cutouts may be utilized on off-premises digital billboard signs.
(III) Effective Date. The Digital Billboard Exchange Program, established by this Section, shall take effect thirty (30) days from the effective date of the enacting ordinance.
(Ord. of 4-12-2010, § 1, Doc. #10014121102; Ord. No. 2022-19, § 2, 4-4-2022, Doc. #2204041203; Ord. No. 2022-52, § 1, 9-12-2022, Doc. #2209121207; Ord. No. 2022-56, § 4, 9-26-2022, Doc. #2209261204)
