Chapter 13.40
BANNERS IN PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY
Sections:
13.40.030 Authority and administration.
13.40.040 Permit required—Street lights and telephone/utility poles.
13.40.050 Permit required—Private bridges and skywalks.
13.40.110 Removal bond required prior to installation.
13.40.120 Installation location and method.
13.40.160 Request for modification and appeals.
13.40.180 City rights not affected.
13.40.010 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to permit the limited hanging of banners on private bridges and skywalks and certain street light and telephone/utility poles within the city’s public rights-of-way. The city’s intent is not to provide a general public forum for the posting of messages, by banner, in the city’s public rights-of-way. Rather, this chapter creates a limited forum allowing banners that alert the public to events of general interest and civic organizations within the city. Such banners specifically benefit the city by drawing attention to events and locations of interest within the city and by contributing to making the city an attractive and enjoyable place to reside and visit. (Ord. 3258-12 § 1, 2012)
13.40.020 Definitions.
For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the specified meanings:
A. “Banner” means a nonilluminated sign made of vinyl, fabric, cloth, or other approved pliable material and includes both event banners and identification banners.
B. “Block” means two opposing “block faces.”
C. “Block face” means the street frontage of one block from intersection to intersection on one side of the street.
D. “Eligible event” means an event which promotes community happenings such as: arts and cultural events (including theatrical and musical performances), sporting events, parades, festivals, conventions, and educational activities.
E. “Eligible organization” means, and is limited to, educational institutions, hospitals, and city-recognized neighborhood associations, business districts and historic districts.
F. “Event banner” means a banner promoting an eligible event for a specific time period within the city.
G. “Identification banner” means a banner that promotes an eligible organization.
H. “Public rights-of-way” means land owned by the city and held open for public travel or land dedicated to the city or the public for public travel.
I. “Public works director” means the public works director or designee. (Ord. 3258-12 § 2, 2012)
13.40.030 Authority and administration.
The public works director is authorized to issue permits and to promulgate rules to implement the provisions of this chapter and shall solicit input on rules and standards from the planning and community development director and the parks and recreation director. (Ord. 3258-12 § 3, 2012)
13.40.040 Permit required—Street lights and telephone/utility poles.
A. It is unlawful for any person to hang or suspend any banner from a street light or telephone/utility pole within the public rights-of-way, except as authorized by a city-issued permit.
B. Permits may only authorize installation of banners along designated roadways as established by the public works director and may only allow installation of banners on four contiguous city blocks, unless expanded as provided in Section 13.40.100(B). Generally, such roadways should be arterial streets in areas zoned for commercial use, arterial streets in areas zoned for a mix of commercial and multifamily uses, or abutting institutional uses located in residential zones.
C. Permits may not authorize banners spanning across the public rights-of-way, except as provided in Section 13.40.050.
D. Permits may not authorize any portion of a banner to be less than twelve feet above any sidewalk or less than sixteen feet above any street surface.
E. Banners allowed under a permit are otherwise exempt from the requirements of EMC Title 19. (Ord. 3258-12 § 4, 2012)
13.40.050 Permit required—Private bridges and skywalks.
A. It is unlawful for any person to hang or suspend any banner from a private bridge or skywalk spanning a public right-of-way, except as authorized by a city-issued permit.
B. Permits may only be issued for event banners and, not withstanding Section 13.40.090, may only authorize installation and display for a maximum of seven days.
C. Banners authorized by permit on private bridges or skywalks must be installed by private contractor only. City crews are not available to install banners on private bridges or skywalks.
D. Banners allowed under a permit are otherwise exempt from the requirements of EMC Title 19. (Ord. 3258-12 § 5, 2012)
13.40.060 Banner content.
Banners shall comply with the following requirements:
A. Content shall be limited to:
1. Event banners—the name of the event and related graphics; the name of the applicant and related graphics; the date of the event; the time of the event; the location of the event; and a location to find more information.
2. Identification banners—identification of the eligible organization and related graphics and a short message or slogan related to the organization.
B. Banners may not: be personal, political, controversial, or solely commercial in nature; promote hate speech or criminal behavior; or create confusion with traffic signals or signs (including the use of colors identified for sign background or legends in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, except white and black).
C. Sponsorships. Applicants may at times have relationships with commercial entities which they may display on banners in the form of sponsorship content. This content must be incidental to the overall banner design and shall not cover more than ten percent of the total square footage of the banner, absent extraordinary circumstances. The square footage of the sponsorship is calculated by measuring the text font, logo, and/or color block of the content. The sponsorship name or icon font shall not be larger than the font of the event or identification name on the banner. (Ord. 3258-12 § 6, 2012)
13.40.070 Permit application.
Before a permit may be issued, the applicant shall file a complete permit application with public works permit services. A complete application shall include:
A. Indication of compliance with the design and construction standards and specifications for development relating to banners;
B. The proposed location and number of banners;
C. The proposed duration the banners will be displayed;
D. The proposed banner content (including a mock or visual representation);
E. Evidence of insurance;
F. Acknowledgement of the required removal bond or cash deposit; and
G. Written permission to install banners from the owner of the street light, telephone/utility pole, private bridge, or skywalk, if applicable.
Upon submission of a complete application, the applicant shall meet with the city’s cultural arts manager or designee to collaborate on a final design of the applicant’s banners. (Ord. 3258-12 § 7, 2012)
13.40.080 Insurance required.
Any applicant desiring to hang or suspend any banner on a street light, telephone/utility pole, private bridge, or skywalk within or spanning the public rights-of-way shall execute an agreement, in a form satisfactory to the city attorney, saving the city, its officers, employees, and agents harmless and agreeing to indemnify the city from any and all claims arising out of the applicant’s actions in connection with any approval granted by the city authorizing the hanging or suspension of any banner. The applicant will furnish a certificate of insurance showing that the applicant has liability and property damage insurance coverage in effect during the terms of the permit with an insurance company authorized to do business in the state of Washington with minimum limits for bodily injury or death to any one person in any one accident of one million dollars and a minimum limit of two million dollars for bodily injury or death to two or more persons in any one occurrence and a minimum limit of five hundred thousand dollars for property damage for each occurrence; provided further, that such insurance shall name the city, its officers, employees, and agents as an additional named insured. Such insurance shall be cancelable only after thirty days’ written notice to the city. Cancellation or voiding of applicant’s insurance policy by any means shall automatically cancel said applicant’s authority granted herein. (Ord. 3258-12 § 8, 2012)
13.40.090 Permit duration.
A. Permits for event banners may allow installation a maximum of thirty days prior to an event and must expire within five business days of the end date of the event. Events may last in duration up to six months.
B. Permits for identification banners may allow installation for a period of up to one year and may be renewed annually at the applicant’s request. (Ord. 3258-12 § 9, 2012)
13.40.100 Permit issuance.
A. All permits will be issued at the discretion of the public works director. A permit shall not issued if the public works director determines that the banners will damage city property, unreasonably interfere with the proper use of the public rights-of-way, or endanger public health, welfare, or safety.
B. The public works director may increase the number of blocks the permit includes, from the maximum of four, if the specific city block or blocks covered by the application do not include a representative number of eligible street lights or telephone/utility poles in comparison to a typical city block.
C. The public works director may require alternate size and placement of banners, if, in the public works director’s sole discretion, the proposed locations cannot accommodate the requested size or mounting heights.
D. Issuance of a city permit does not absolve the applicant of the need to gain authorization from the owners of any non-city-owned street lights, telephone/utility poles, private bridges, or skywalks. (Ord. 3258-12 § 10, 2012)
13.40.110 Removal bond required prior to installation.
No banner shall be installed pursuant to a permit until public works has on file a surety bond or cash deposit so conditioned as to assure that the city shall be reimbursed for any expense that may be incurred by the city in repairing or removing any banner or installation device installed pursuant to the applicant’s permit, in repairing damage to city-owned equipment resulting from the banner installation, or in otherwise enforcing any order, rule, or policy of public works. Upon the face of each application received, public works shall indicate the minimum amount of bond or cash deposit required for the requested permit, which shall be at the reasonable discretion of public works and shall be acknowledged by the applicant. The amount of the bond or cash deposit shall not be less than the amount so indicated. The applicant must provide public works evidence of the removal bond or provide the cash deposit ten days prior to installation of any banner. The unused portion of any cash or other deposit shall be returned to the applicant within thirty days of permit expiration or revocation. (Ord. 3258-12 § 11, 2012)
13.40.120 Installation location and method.
A. Regardless of permit authority, banners shall not be installed on poles with vehicular or pedestrian signal equipment.
B. The applicant may hire a private contractor to install its banners in locations as approved by the city. The applicant may pay the city, subject to the approval of the public works director, to install its banners. If the city performs the installation, the applicant shall reimburse the city for all costs incurred including overtime pay and employee benefits.
C. Installation of banners must conform to all city standards established by the public works director. The public works director is authorized to specifically allow deviations from the standards by identifying the deviations in the permit.
D. Installation of banners on, or removal from, city-owned poles may only be carried out by those installers approved by the public works director. (Ord. 3258-12 § 12, 2012)
13.40.130 Maintenance.
The applicant has the sole responsibility to maintain any banners or installation devices placed by the applicant in or spanning the public rights-of-way. The applicant must faithfully repair and replace all property damaged by its banners or the installation of its banners. Banners shall remain in a clean and attractive appearance at all times. The applicant is required to maintain its banners and installation devices in a manner that prevents them from becoming worn or unsightly and assures protection of property and protection of public health, welfare, and safety. (Ord. 3258-12 § 13, 2012)
13.40.140 Permit revocation.
Permits may be revoked by the public works director on one or more of the following grounds:
A. The applicant has failed to adequately maintain its banners or installation devices as required by this chapter;
B. The applicant failed or refused to observe any permit requirement, any provision of this chapter, or any rule promulgated by the public works director pursuant to authority granted by this chapter; or
C. The applicant made a material misrepresentation in the application. (Ord. 3258-12 § 14, 2012)
13.40.150 Banner removal.
A. Upon expiration of any permit, banners must be removed by the applicant within seventy-two hours, unless a renewal or written extension is granted by the public works director.
B. Upon revocation of any permit, all banners covered thereby must be removed on the day of revocation unless a written extension is granted by the public works director.
C. Notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter 1.20, any banner not removed by the applicant, as required herein, or placed in violation of this chapter, may be removed and disposed of by the city without notice to the applicant. Any banner which the public works director determines presents an immediate threat of harm to the public health, welfare, or safety may be removed immediately without notice to any party. (Ord. 3258-12 § 15, 2012)
13.40.160 Request for modification and appeals.
A. Requests for modification to the city’s standards may be made in writing when applying for an original permit, or upon renewal of an annual permit, to the attention of the public works director.
B. Any applicant who is denied a permit may appeal such denial to the city’s land use hearing examiner. The appeal must be in writing and comply with the procedures adopted by the hearing examiner. Such appeal must be filed with the hearing examiner within fourteen calendar days of the date of notification of the denial. The decision of the hearing examiner is final. (Ord. 3258-12 § 16, 2012)
13.40.170 Violation—Penalty.
Any person hanging or suspending any banner or decoration within or spanning the public rights-of-way of the city without complying with the provisions of this chapter, and any rules adopted pursuant thereto, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed one thousand dollars per day. Each day upon which a violation occurs or continues shall constitute a separate violation. The penalty provided in this section is in addition to the city’s rights to remove banners and recoup costs, as provided in this chapter, and the enforcement procedures of Chapter 1.20. (Ord. 3258-12 § 17, 2012)
13.40.180 City rights not affected.
The city is not constrained to follow the requirements of this chapter in displaying banners within the city. (Ord. 3258-12 § 18, 2012)