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The following tables specify the permitted number, size and location of signs by zoning category:

A. R 40,000, R 9,600, R 8,400, R 7,200, R 5,400d, R 5,400a, R 4,000 and R 2,800 Zones – On-Premises Sign Requirements.

Use

Permitted Sign Type(s) and Number Permitted

Maximum Allowable Sign Area

Maximum Allowable Sign Height/Width

Residential uses and permitted and licensed activities1 occurring in a single-family residential structure.

One wall sign (on-premises real estate signs may also be freestanding).

Two square feet (on-premises real estate signs may be up to six square feet in area).

Wall – No sign shall project above the uppermost extent of wall.

Permitted and licensed activities1 occurring in a multifamily residential structure.3

One wall sign (on-premises real estate signs may also be freestanding).

Two square feet (on-premises real estate signs may be up to six square feet in area).

Wall – No sign shall project above the uppermost extent of wall.

Schools, churches, and other permitted and licensed activities1 not occurring in a single-family or multifamily residential structure.

One wall and one freestanding sign per street frontage.

Wall – 36 square feet.

Freestanding – 36 square feet.

Wall – No sign shall project above the uppermost extent of wall.

Freestanding – six feet in height or 10 feet in width.4

Neighborhood, subdivision, multifamily complex and mobile/manufactured home park identification signs.2

One freestanding sign per entrance.

50 square feet.

Freestanding – six feet in height or 10 feet in width.

1Permitted activities in these zones are specified in Chapter 12.06 BMC. Examples of some of these activities include home day care centers and home occupation businesses.

2Includes approved short and formal plats (subdivisions), approved multifamily developments of two or more dwelling units, and approved mobile/manufactured home parks.

3Potential users of such signs should note that the use of such signs may also be at the discretion of the property owner.

4Uses located on property containing at least 660 lineal feet of street frontage may erect a freestanding sign up to 15 feet tall. Other dimensional requirements as specified above shall still apply. No structural support poles or braces shall be visible (“pole signs” are prohibited) and the overall appearance of the sign shall be as a uniformly integrated whole. For the purposes of this section, lineal feet shall apply to a single street frontage only. Corner lots shall not count both street frontages towards the total.

Other: Only indirect illumination of signs permitted.

B. R-AC, NB, CB, OP, GC, and LI Zones – On-Premises Sign Requirements for a Single Use (One Business or Tenant) on an Individual Lot.

Use

Permitted Sign Type(s) and Number Permitted

Maximum Allowable Sign Area

Maximum Allowable Sign Height/Width

Advertisement and identification of permitted uses.4

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: No maximum number.1

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: Total area of all signs shall not exceed two square feet of sign area per lineal foot of front face of building containing a public entrance.1 A minimum of 36 square feet of sign area is permitted.

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: Shall not project above the uppermost extent of wall.

Freestanding: One sign per street frontage for individual uses located on a single lot.

Freestanding: Maximum of 50 square feet.

Freestanding: six feet in height or 10 feet in width.3

Portable A-frame: One sign per property street frontage.2

Portable A-frame:

Maximum six square feet.

Portable A-frame: three feet in height or width.

1There is no limit to the number of wall/window/projecting/awning signs a use may have, nor is there any particular locational requirement (though they must be located on the building where the use is occurring). The total maximum sign area may be applied to one sign, or be divided among several signs.

2A-frame signs shall be subject to the following criteria:

1Each legal business shall be permitted one A-frame sign per street frontage on which the business is located. The maximum size of an A-frame sign shall be six square feet in area and 36 inches in height or width.

2A-frame signs shall be located on the same lot on which the business being advertised by the sign is located. For the purposes of this section, the lot shall be considered to include the sidewalk abutting the business.

3A-frame signs shall be placed so as to not impede pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

4A-frame signs shall not be placed in any landscaped area.

3Uses located on property containing at least 330 lineal feet of street frontage may erect a freestanding sign up to 15 feet tall. Other dimensional requirements as specified above shall still apply. No structural support poles or braces shall be visible (“pole signs” are prohibited) and the overall appearance of the sign shall be as a uniformly integrated whole.

4If a property containing a single use changes such that two or more uses occupy the property, the sign regulations in subsection C of this section shall apply.

Other: Either indirect or internal illumination of signs is permitted.

C. R-AC, NB, CB, OP, GC and LI Zones – On-Premises Sign Requirements for Two or More Uses (Businesses or Tenants) Located on an Individual Lot, or an Aggregation of Lots into One Retail or Commercial Center.

Use

Permitted Sign Type(s) and Number Permitted

Maximum Allowable Sign Area

Maximum Allowable Sign Height/Width

Advertisement and identification of permitted uses.

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: No limit, subject to maximum allowable sign area.4

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: two square feet of sign area per each lineal foot of the width of tenant’s space within the front face of the building.2 A minimum of 36 square feet of sign area is permitted.

Wall/Window/Projecting/ Awning: Shall not project above the uppermost extent of wall.

Freestanding: One sign per each 150 lineal feet of property street frontage.1

Freestanding: Maximum of 50 square feet.

Freestanding: six feet in height and 10 feet in width.3

5Portable A-frame: One sign per property street frontage.

5Portable A-frame:

Maximum six square feet.

5Portable A-frame: three feet in height or width.

1Freestanding signs may be used both to identify a multitenant center and/or to identify individual tenants within a center, at the property owner’s discretion.

2A tenant whose business is located on more than one floor of a building shall be permitted sign area based upon the width of the tenant’s space within the building face of each occupied floor.

3For uses located on property containing at least 330 lineal feet of street frontage, one of the allowed freestanding signs may be up to 15 feet in height. Other dimensional requirements as specified above shall still apply. No structural support poles or braces shall be visible.

4The total maximum sign area may be applied to one sign, or be divided among several signs.

5A-frame signs shall be subject to the following criteria:

1Each legal business shall be permitted one A-frame sign per street frontage on which the business is located. The maximum size of an A-frame sign shall be six square feet in area and 36 inches in height or width.

2A-frame signs shall be located on the same lot on which the business being advertised by the sign is located. For the purposes of this section, the lot shall be considered to include the sidewalk abutting the business.

3A-frame signs shall be placed so as to not impede pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

4A-frame signs shall not be placed in any landscaped area.

Other: Either indirect or internal illumination of signs is permitted.

D. Other Requirements Applicable to All Zones.

1. In multiple use zones, the number of signs permitted and the location, maximum sign area, and permitted illumination shall be based upon the zoning designation of the actual use proposed (e.g., signs for a proposed multifamily complex within the R 2,800, OP zone shall be regulated per the R 40,000 through R 2,800 zone restrictions).

2. In multiple building complexes, each building is permitted one additional 10-square-foot wall sign for building identification purposes.

E. Landscaping Requirements for Freestanding Signs.

1. Pole-mounted signs shall be landscaped around the base of the sign with shrubs and groundcovers, or other plant materials, such that, within a period of two years from planting, the pole support(s) of the sign shall effectively be obscured by the landscape plantings.

2. Monument signs shall be landscaped around the base of the sign with groundcovers or other plant materials sufficient to provide at least 85 percent ground coverage around the base of the sign within a period of two years from planting.

F. Setbacks. There are no specific setback requirements for on-premises signs; provided, that no sign shall intrude into the sight distance triangle and line of sight, as depicted in plan No. 316 of the city of Bothell design and construction standards and specifications. (Ord. 1994 § 1, 2008; Ord. 1957 § 1 (Exh. B), 2006; Ord. 1946 § 2, 2005; Ord. 1905 § 1, 2003; Ord. 1879 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1876 § 2, 2002; Ord. 1805 § 2, 2000).