When sign permitting comes up in conversation, it can cause some to cringe. It is often like pulling teeth, and is yet another expense you have to pass on to the customer. To make matters worse, if the signage you want to put up is not approved by the permitters, then guess what...you may be out of luck.
Typically cities are fair when it comes to signage, after all the laws are in place to maintain control and overall looks the signs will bring. Some cities mandate the signage may not exceed a certain height, or that 'temporary' signage such as banners may only stay up for so long. Permitting differs from city to city, and some cities are tighter on control than others. For instance, there is a little deli I drive by every day on the way to work. I always thought how strange it was how this deli only had one sign on the outside of her business. The worst part is, she is on highway frontage, and cars can't really see the sign. Honestly, I drove by for the longest time and not once noticed her business in that strip center. And if that news wasn't bad enough, the signs that are on the building aren't very fancy. I stopped in one day, and she told me 1.) her landlord dictates the types of signs that go over the businesses, so she was stuck with what she had, and 2.) She could not add ANY signage due to sign permitting restrictions by the city. I suppose the reason I'm telling this story is simple. Signage on a business will either make or break you. You sign a lease, you need to know what you are allowed to have on your building. The landlord may restrict you on what you can have, and it may hurt you. Secondly, if you are in a city, you need to pay a visit to their sign permitting office and speak to the individual responsible for giving out the permits. You need to find out what restrictions you have concerning displaying signage in your windows, or adding a second sign on your building. That very well may give you second thoughts if you find a great place to lease, but you will have a horrible time putting signage up. Here are some links to sign ordinances in our immediate area: New Braunfels: http://www.nbtexas.org/index.aspx?NID=235 San Marcos: http://www.sanmarcostx.gov/permits/ (...bottom of the page) Austin: http://www.reiclub.com/forums/index.php?topic=620.0 (could not find on their site. This is a posting that is from '03) Kyle: http://www.cityofkyle.com/building/sign-permit-application (application only) (sign permit details not available on their website)
