Resources
Sign code guides
Follow our research method, explore public permit case files, and use practical guides to organize sign-code sources, measurements, and questions for local officials.
Start with the Austin source-to-result example for a public code section, a fictional measurement, and the questions that remain open.
Start here: research in practice
See how we evaluate sources, follow two public permit-research examples, and keep your own evidence record.
How FreeCodeChecks turns ordinance text into a sign-code report
A practical account of how an address becomes a sign-code report, what each source label means, where the process stops, and how to report a correction.
Austin sign-permit research: building an address record
A public-source walkthrough from Austin’s wall-sign measurement provision to a worked drawing, a source record, and the questions that still block a permit conclusion.
Charlotte sign-permit research: two reviews and a fee-date trap
A worked Charlotte research record: separate city and county reviews, follow the sign-permit Wizard, and resolve conflicting fee dates before budgeting.
Sign-code research worksheet: keep the authority and the evidence together
A downloadable research record for an address, responsible offices, ordinance versions, district evidence, design assumptions, and unanswered sign-permit questions.
Find the responsible authority
Work out which offices and sources to consult before applying a sign rule.
Township, county, or city: finding your sign authority
A parcel-first workflow for identifying who adopts sign rules, who issues permits, and which additional approvals to check.
When county code governs a sign project
Check the legal grant, local adoption, territorial coverage, and permitting arrangement before applying county sign rules to a parcel.
County sign authority: limits and important exceptions
How to distinguish limited county zoning power from an unadopted code, a separate permit, or an unresolved question, with state-law examples.
How to compare sign rules between two project sites
Check whether two sign rules describe the same sign type, district, measurement, and approval before treating their numbers as a meaningful comparison.
What a sign-code search cannot confirm for your project
Use a source-and-site checklist to resolve parcel boundaries, approvals, existing-sign status, private restrictions, and missing information before fabrication.
Measure and plan a sign
Use worked planning examples and measurement checklists alongside the applicable local code.
How to calculate wall sign area and the available allowance
Work through fictional frontage, wall-percentage, and capped formulas, then compare the allowance with the measured sign and existing signs.
How to measure monument sign height
Identify the sign category and the starting point for the measurement, see how two real codes choose different starting points, and check a fictional sloped-site drawing.
How to measure a freestanding sign setback
Distinguish the property line, right-of-way, curb, sign edge, and visibility area before locating a freestanding sign foundation.
Monument, pole, or pylon: how to classify a freestanding sign
Use the support, base, cabinet, and local definitions to classify a proposed freestanding sign. Includes a drawing checklist and a method for checking unfamiliar terminology.
How to calculate window sign coverage
Measure eligible glass and proposed graphics, see how one real code caps window signs, and work through the per-pane versus whole-storefront question.
Awning signs: clearance, projection, and copy area
Check an awning in section, plan, and elevation so vertical headroom, horizontal projection, and sign area remain separate measurements.
Plan lighting and digital displays
Identify the lighting, brightness, and message-change questions to resolve for a proposed sign.
Illuminated signs: a specification and permit checklist
Separate lighting method, electrical safety, brightness, operating hours, and digital controls when specifying an illuminated sign.
Digital sign rules: a checklist before you specify the display
Plan a digital sign by checking its classification, location, display behavior, brightness measurement, and permit conditions before choosing hardware.
Digital sign brightness: nits, footcandles, and the test plan
Distinguish luminance from illuminance, document the required measurement conditions, and work through a fictional above-ambient calculation.
Digital sign dwell time: hold, transition, and animation
Turn a digital-sign timing rule into controller settings and an acceptance test, using a real ordinance with a required blank pause and a worked playlist.
Prepare for permits and fees
Organize fee research, permit deadlines, and temporary-sign questions.
How to estimate sign permit costs before you bid
Build a sign-permit budget from the fee schedule, separate agency charges from preparation costs, and work through a fictional estimate.
How long does a sign permit stay valid?
Separate review time from permit expiration, work-start deadlines, interruptions, display periods, and renewal. Build a project calendar from the actual approval.
Temporary signs: plan the display and resolve exceptions
Build a temporary-sign project record, distinguish display periods from removal deadlines, and clarify exemption, interpretation, and variance questions.
Research by state
Start with the state and local authority relationships that shape your research.
California sign permits: local authority and Caltrans review
Separate California city or county sign review from charter-city authority and the state outdoor advertising permit process.
Florida sign permits: local land development rules and FDOT
Find Florida sign rules in the applicable land development regulations, check charter and joint-agreement exceptions, and separate FDOT approval.
New York sign permits: town, village, city, and county review
Resolve New York town and village boundaries, distinguish county referral from local approval, and plan the right application sequence.
Ohio sign permits: township zoning, county zoning, and adoption
Determine whether township or county zoning covers an Ohio parcel, check voter approval and precedence, and keep ODOT permits separate.
Pennsylvania sign permits: municipal zoning and county fallback
Check municipal adoption, conditional county zoning, and the proper decision-maker under Pennsylvania’s Municipalities Planning Code.
Texas sign permits: city, ETJ, county, and state authority
Route a Texas sign project by checking city limits, current ETJ status, specific county powers, and TxDOT jurisdiction.
More sign-planning guides
Explore additional sign-code research and planning resources.
Ashburn, Lansdowne or Leesburg: which sign code covers a Loudoun County address?
A Leesburg mailing address does not mean the Town of Leesburg writes the sign rules. How Virginia splits zoning between counties and towns, and how to check a Loudoun County address in two minutes.
Addison, Illinois: confirm the village line before you read a sign rule
DuPage County and the Village of Addison both regulate signs, but never on the same lot. How Illinois draws that line, three free ways to check an address, and two details in Addison’s sign chapter that are easy to miss.
One wall sign, three measuring rules: Austin, Loudoun County and Addison
We measured the same fictional wall sign under three real codes. On a bare face all three agree. Put the same letters on a background panel and the answers split, and the freestanding rules split further.
Austin sign districts: one lot, four different sign allowances
Austin assigns every sign to one of nine sign districts, and the district sets the numbers. How the ranking works, and the same invented lot worked through four districts side by side.
Signing a storefront in downtown San Luis Obispo: the numbers and the permit path
One invented downtown storefront taken through San Luis Obispo’s sign chapter: which signs are exempt, the per-sign and cumulative limits in the C-D zone, lighting rules, and how the permit is reviewed.
Quick reference
Look up a term or start with a common sign-permit question.
Start a sign-code lookup
Creating an account is free. Sign in, enter a U.S. street address, and see whether a research report is available. Available reports identify sources and label planning assumptions and gaps to confirm.
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