# Sign Regulations in Hawaiian Gardens, California

Sign permit rules, size and height limits, setbacks, and ordinance citations for Hawaiian Gardens, California, compiled by PermitPal from the jurisdiction's published municipal code.

- **Jurisdiction:** Hawaiian Gardens, California (CA)
- **Canonical page:** https://permitpal.io/sign-regulations/california/hawaiian-gardens
- **Data last verified:** 2025-03-26
- **Source:** [municode municipal code](https://library.municode.com/CA/Hawaiian_Gardens/codes/Municipal_Code?nodeId=TIT5BUTALIRE_CH5.90POSI)

## At a glance

Hawaiian Gardens, California regulates 4 sign types across 5 zoning districts. Wall Signs in the General Regulations For All Zones zoning district are capped at Subject to maximum building height for the zone tall and 100 square feet per business (Sec. 18.90.050 G). Most commercial signs in Hawaiian Gardens require a permit.

## Sign rules by zoning district (5 zones)

| Zoning District | Sign Types Regulated | Max Height | Max Area | Permit Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Residentially Zoned Property | 1 | — | 32 square feet | — |
| Residential Zones | 1 | — | 12 square feet | — |
| Nonresidential Zones | 1 | — | 16 square feet | — |
| C-2 (Downtown Commercial) | 1 | — | — | — |
| General Regulations For All Zones | 1 | Subject to maximum building height for the zone | 100 square feet per business | — |

## Zone-by-zone sign requirements (sample of 3 of 5 zones)

### Residentially Zoned Property

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Political Campaign Sign | — | 32 square feet | — | Must not be within 50 feet of intersection curb lines if obstructing visibility. | — | Private property | — | 5.90.010 B.5, 18.90.050 D.4.a |

### Residential Zones

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Real Estate Sign | — | 12 square feet | — | — | Maximum of two signs per lot | On property for sale or rent | — | 18.90.050 B.17 |

### General Regulations For All Zones

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Wall Sign | Subject to maximum building height for the zone | 100 square feet per business | — | — | One wall sign per building face on the street frontage | Parallel with and attached to the exterior wall of the building | — | 18.90.050 G |

## Prohibited signs in Hawaiian Gardens

- Signs that pose a hazard to public health or safety, as determined by the Uniform Building Code.
- Signs that make use of words such as 'Stop,' 'Look,' 'One-Way,' 'Danger,' 'Yield,' 'Slow, Children At Play,' 'Detour,' 'Road Construction' or any similar word, phrase, symbol, or light so as to interfere or be confused with pedestrian or vehicular public safety signs.
- Signs displaying obscenity, as per Chapter 5.44 of the Hawaiian Gardens Municipal Code.
- Signs that obstruct ingress or egress from fire escapes, doors, windows, or other exits or entrances.
- Signs attached to or placed on any stationary vehicle or trailer, whether operational or not, so as to be visible from a public right-of-way for the purpose of providing advertisement of services or products or for the purpose of directing people to a business.
- Off-premise signs.
- Rotating and revolving signs.
- Animated signs.
- Flashing lights, flashing signs or signs containing strobe lights that are visible beyond the property line.
- Abandoned signs.
- Roof-mounted signs.
- Permanent signs on undeveloped sites, except for subdivision signs.
- Outdoor, portable electric signs.
- Mobile readerboard signs except as a temporary sign.
- Signs on utility, traffic and light poles.
- Signs on the sign posts of traffic advisory signs.
- Grand opening displays and other displays of a carnival nature including: blinking or flashing lights, balloons, searchlights, flares, clusters of flags, strings of twirlers or propellers and seasonal decorations except as permitted as a temporary sign.
- Banners, except as approved as temporary signs.
- Balloons, except as approved as temporary signs.
- Changing message center signs, where the message changes more frequently than every five seconds, except for the display of time and temperature.
- Signs connected to visible overhead power lines.
- Signs with bare light bulbs of over 15 watts that are visible from the front of the sign or from beyond the property line.
- Any other type or kind of sign that does not comply with the terms, conditions, provisions, and intent contained in this section and other applicable City ordinances.
- Signs painted directly on any surface or building structure.
- Signs that project more than 12 inches from a wall.
- Signs that cover more than 25 percent of a window.
- Signs mounted on raceways.
- Signs in residential zones.
- A-board signs and sandwich board signs.
- Billboard signs.

## Signs exempt from permit in Hawaiian Gardens

- Temporary political signs (subject to Chapter 5.90 political signs of the Hawaiian Gardens Municipal Code).
- Legal notices, identification, traffic, or other signs erected or required by governmental authority under any law, statute or ordinance.
- Seasonal holiday decorations, not including any form of advertising or the name of a business and provided they are removed following the close of the holiday period.
- Parking lot painting of handicap symbols, striping, numbers, and notations of compact spaces.
- Signs on product dispensers permitted outside of a business. These signs may include signs on gas pumps.
- Professional nameplates not exceeding two square feet in area.
- Plaques, tablets or inscriptions indicating the name of a building, date of erection, or other commemorative information, that are an integral part of the building structure or are attached flat to the face of the building, that are non-illuminated, and that do not exceed four square feet in surface area.
- Signs of the State, City or public service companies indicating danger, aids to service or safety, traffic control or traffic direction signs or signs identifying programs such as the Adopt-A-Road Litter Control Program, etc.
- Address numbers or signs depicting a family name, such as 'Smith's Residence'.
- Signs on structures or improvements intended for a separate use, such as phone booths, charitable donation containers, and recycling boxes.
- Building addresses with numbers and letters not more than ten inches in height.
- Signs not oriented toward or intended to be legible from a right-of-way, other property, or from the air. Examples may include signs identifying rules for a swimming pool, signs identifying restroom facilities, and tow-away signs.
- Directional and parking lot signs with a maximum area of two square feet and maximum height of four feet, limited to one sign per driveway.
- Signs affected by stipulated judgments to which the City is a party, entered by courts of competent jurisdiction.
- Flags and commercial flags no larger than 24 square feet each and not exceeding three in number.
- Locally designated historic signs.
- Real estate signs, if less than 12 square feet in area within residential zones and 16 square feet within nonresidential zones and a maximum of two signs per lot.
- Incidental signs such as credit card, trading stamp, trade association, service station, or similar signs not exceeding one square foot.
- Banners and signs for City-sponsored events, holidays, and other special occasions.

## Sign plan & submission notes

- A conditional use permit is required for a master sign program.
- Signs in new shopping centers to be approved under one master sign program.

## Full detail

This page publishes an overview of every zoning district plus a sample of 3 districts in full. Complete zone-by-zone requirements for all 5 zoning districts in Hawaiian Gardens — every sign type, every field — are available with a free PermitPal account: https://app.permitpal.io/?address=Hawaiian+Gardens+CA&override=true&utm_source=landing&utm_medium=city-page&utm_campaign=city-hawaiian-gardens

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