Title
An Ordinance Of The City Of Hollywood, Florida, Amending The Zoning And Land Development Regulations By Amending Article 2 Entitled "Definitions" And By Repealing And Replacing Article 8 Entitled "Sign Regulations;" And Providing For Severability, Inclusion In The Code, And For Conflicts. (18-T-02)
Body
Staff Recommends: Approval of the Attached Ordinance.
Explanation:
The need for a text amendment to the sign regulations was triggered by a recent U.S. Supreme Court case, Reed v. Town of Gilbert; which strengthened the constitutional limitations on the City's ability to regulate signs. A key component of complying with this case is to ensure that the regulations are content neutral. For more background on the case, refer to Attachment A, Consultant Memo. The need for this text amendment provided Staff the opportunity to also incorporate several policy and organizational changes, as outlined below.
The text amendment proposes to amend Article 8 of the Zoning and Land Development Regulations, titled Signs, to ensure the content-neutrality of sign regulations, compliant with Reed v. Town of Gilbert; Article 2 will also be revised to update and modify the definitions applicable to Article 8. Finally, the text amendment; additionally incorporates several policy and organizational changes which have been considered or anticipated by the City for some time. Attachment A, Consultant Memo details the specifics regarding the Supreme Court case and outlines the limitations that influenced the crafting of the proposed content-neutral regulations. These are designed to meet the legal requirements, but to otherwise be policy neutral.
The purpose of the Staff's proposed policy and organizational changes is to:
* Emphasize the importance of aesthetics in sign design, placement, and maintenance:
o Require that all signs be professionally produced;
o Require that all signs be maintained in good condition and appearance; and
o Establish the total number of signs ...
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