# Sign Regulations in Pierce, Colorado

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

- **Jurisdiction:** Pierce, Colorado (CO)
- **Canonical page:** https://permitpal.io/sign-regulations/colorado/pierce
- **Data last verified:** 2025-05-08
- **Source:** [municode municipal code](https://library.municode.com/CO/Pierce/codes/Municipal_Code?nodeId=COOR_CH16ZO_ART10SICO)

## At a glance

Pierce, Colorado regulates 16 sign types across 10 zoning districts. Monument Signs in the Commercial District Low Intensity (C-1), Commercial District Medium Intensity (C-2) zoning district are capped at 10 ft. if street frontage abuts 200 ft. or more; 8 ft. otherwise tall and Up to 60 sq. ft. per sign face, with a 5 ft. from all property lines/sidewalk easements setback (Sec. Sec. 16-10-220 Table 16-10-220A). Most commercial signs in Pierce require a permit.

## Sign rules by zoning district (10 zones)

| Zoning District | Sign Types Regulated | Max Height | Max Area | Permit Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Single-Family Residential District (R-1) | 4 | 4 ft. | 18 sq. ft. per sign face | — |
| Multiple-Family Residential District (R-2) | 4 | 4 ft. | 18 sq. ft. per sign face | — |
| Commercial District Low Intensity (C-1), Commercial District Medium Intensity (C-2) | 6 | 10 ft. if street frontage abuts 200 ft. or more; 8 ft. otherwise | 85% of surface area of the awning used to display a sign (per sign) | — |
| Light Industrial District (I-1), Medium Industrial District (I-2) | 7 | 10 ft. if street frontage abuts 200 ft. or more; 8 ft. otherwise | 85% of area of surface of awning used to display sign (per sign) | — |
| Heavy Industrial District (I-3) | 1 | — | — | — |
| Agricultural District (A) | 1 | — | 3 sq. ft. | — |
| Estate District (E) | 4 | 4 ft. | 18 sq. ft. per sign face | — |
| Planned Unit Development (PUD) | 1 | — | — | — |
| General Regulations For All Zones | 6 | 5 ft. | 32 sq. ft. per sign, 64 sq. ft. total (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | — |

_1 additional zoning district is covered in PermitPal (free account)._

## Zone-by-zone sign requirements (sample of 3 of 10 zones)

### Commercial District Low Intensity (C-1), Commercial District Medium Intensity (C-2)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Wall Sign (Primary) | — | — | — | — | 1 per building elevation | Building wall | — | Sec. 16-10-210(a) Table 16-10-210A |
| Wall Sign (Secondary) | — | 18 sq. ft. | — | — | 1 per primary public entrance | At each primary public entrance | — | Sec. 16-10-210(a) Table 16-10-210A |
| Projecting Sign | — | 18 sq. ft. per sign face | — | — | 1 per street-facing facade | Per street-facing facade | — | Sec. 16-10-210(b) Table 16-10-210B |
| Window Sign | — | — | — | — | — | Window | — | Sec. 16-10-210(c) Table 16-10-210C; Sec. 16-10-130(d)(3) |
| Awning Sign | — | 85% of surface area of the awning used to display a sign (per sign) | — | — | 1 per awning | Awning | — | Sec. 16-10-210(c) Table 16-10-210C; Sec. 16-10-130(d)(2) |
| Monument Sign | 10 ft. if street frontage abuts 200 ft. or more; 8 ft. otherwise | Up to 60 sq. ft. per sign face | — | 5 ft. from all property lines/sidewalk easements | 1 per 200 ft. of street frontage or fraction thereof | — | — | Sec. 16-10-220 Table 16-10-220A |

### Light Industrial District (I-1), Medium Industrial District (I-2)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Wall Sign (Primary) | — | — | — | — | 1 per building elevation | Building wall | — | Sec. 16-10-210(a) Table 16-10-210A |
| Wall Sign (Secondary) | — | 18 sq. ft. | — | — | 1 per primary public entrance | At each primary public entrance | — | Sec. 16-10-210(a) Table 16-10-210A |
| Projecting Sign | — | 18 sq. ft. per sign face | — | — | 1 per street-facing facade | Per street-facing facade | — | Sec. 16-10-210(b) Table 16-10-210B |
| Window Sign | — | — | — | — | — | Window | — | Sec. 16-10-210(c) Table 16-10-210C; Sec. 16-10-130(d)(3) |
| Awning Sign | — | 85% of area of surface of awning used to display sign (per sign) | — | — | 1 per awning | Awning | — | Sec. 16-10-210(c) Table 16-10-210C; Sec. 16-10-130(d)(2) |
| Under-Canopy Sign | — | 8 sq. ft. | — | — | 1 per public building entrance | At public building entrance, only if building entrances are within 5 ft. of public sidewalk | — | Sec. 16-10-210(c) Table 16-10-210C |
| Monument Sign | 10 ft. if street frontage abuts 200 ft. or more; 8 ft. otherwise | Up to 60 sq. ft. per sign face | — | 5 ft. from all property lines and sidewalk easements | 1 per 200 ft. of street frontage or fraction thereof | — | — | Sec. 16-10-220 Table 16-10-220A |

### General Regulations For All Zones

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Temporary Sign - Yard Sign | 4 ft. | 6 sq. ft. per sign; 30 sq. ft. total per lot (R-1); 6 sq. ft. per sign; 12 sq. ft. total per lot (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | — | 2 ft. from property lines | Not limited (R-1); 1 per driveway (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | Set back at least 2 ft. from all property lines; installed in landscaped area | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320; Sec. 16-10-330 Table 16-10-330 |
| Temporary Sign - Site Sign | 5 ft. | 32 sq. ft. per sign, 64 sq. ft. total (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | — | — | 1 per frontage | Installed in a landscaped area | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320 |
| Temporary Sign - Swing Sign | 5 ft. | 5 sq. ft. | — | — | 1 per frontage | Installed in landscaped area | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320 |
| Temporary Sign - Sidewalk Sign | 3 ft. (R-2); 4 ft. (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | 6 sq. ft. (R-2); 8 sq. ft. (C-1, C-2, I-1, I-2) | — | — | 1 per frontage | Must leave at least 4 ft. clear sidewalk width for pedestrians, may not obstruct pedestrian path | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320 |
| Temporary Sign - Inflatable Sign | — | — | — | 2 ft. from property lines | 1 per property | Set back so that no part is within 2 ft. of any property line | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320 |
| Temporary Sign - Feather Flag | — | — | — | 2 ft. from property lines | 3 per frontage | Set back so that no part is within 2 ft. of any property line and does not obstruct building access or parking | — | Sec. 16-10-320 Table 16-10-320 |

## Prohibited signs in Pierce

- Signs with more than two sign faces are prohibited.
- Signs that simulate or imitate (in size, color, lettering or design) any traffic sign or signal so as to be a traffic hazard are prohibited.
- Animated or moving signs visible from public rights-of-way are prohibited, including moving, swinging, rotating, flashing, blinking, scintillating, fluctuating, or otherwise animated light (except as specifically permitted for Electronic Message Centers).
- Portable signs are prohibited, except as specifically permitted for temporary signs.
- Pole signs are prohibited, except as may be allowed in a Sign Design Program under specific circumstances at intersections.
- Abandoned signs are prohibited.
- Signs shall not incorporate sound, smoke, or odor emitters.
- Awnings that are backlit or made of plastic are prohibited.
- Stacked products (such as tires, soft drink cases, bagged soil or mulch) are prohibited as sign elements.
- Unfinished wood support structures are prohibited except for stakes in stake signs.
- Flags, banners, or comparable elements designed to move in the wind are prohibited when attached to a sign type, except when attached to flagpoles.
- Spinning or moving parts on signs are prohibited.
- Bare light bulbs are prohibited, except on holiday displays and certain permitted neon window signs.
- Flashing lights are prohibited, except on holiday displays as permitted.
- Motor vehicles may not be used as signs except if operational, regularly used as motor vehicles, currently registered, and the display of signage is incidental; and the vehicle is legally parked.
- Semi-trailers, shipping containers, or portable storage units may not be used as signs except if structurally sound, used for their primary purpose, registered as required, signage is incidental, and the unit is in a designated loading area or construction site.
- Signs shall not obstruct building ingress/egress, safety/utility equipment, or sight distance triangle as required.
- Signs are prohibited from being posted, installed, or mounted on trees/vegetation, utility poles/light poles (except small banners as described), or utility cabinets/pedestals (except exempt signs by the utility owner).
- Signs are prohibited in or over public rights-of-way, except signs posted by the Town or government, signs posted in connection with authorized work, or those on transit shelters/bus benches as authorized.
- Signs are prohibited in locations with less clearance from power lines than required by state law.
- Signs are prohibited within easements for overhead utilities unless authorized.
- Internal illumination of signs is not allowed in R-1 or R-2 zoning districts.
- Abandoned permanent signs are prohibited.
- No sign may be located so that the safety of a moving vehicle will be impaired by distracting the vision of the driver.
- No sign shall project above the roofline of any structure/building or exceed the building height limit of the zone district in which it is placed.
- Electronic Message Centers (EMCs) are prohibited on nonconforming sign structures and on property that contains a nonconforming pole sign structure or on a portable sign.
- EMCs and manual changeable copy message centers cannot both be included on the same sign.

## Signs exempt from permit in Pierce

- Signs required by law or regulation (including public duty or function, legal notices, building codes, or other laws) do not require a sign permit.
- Flags (up to three building- or ground-mounted flagpoles per property, each flag not exceeding 32 square feet and at least eight feet clearance) do not require a sign permit.
- Signs affixed to a building/structure that do not exceed one square foot in sign area (one per building elevation visible to the public) do not require a sign permit.
- Signs less than three-fourths square foot affixed to machines, equipment, fences, gates, walls, gasoline pumps, public telephones, or utility cabinets do not require a permit.
- Holiday decorations and signs clearly incidental, customary, and commonly associated with a holiday, displayed no more than 60 consecutive days or 60 total days in a calendar year, do not require a permit.
- Interior signs not visible from residential lots, abutting property, or public rights-of-way do not require a permit.
- Temporary signs complying with applicable requirements of the Temporary Signs section are exempt from a sign permit (may still require building/electrical permit if subject to code).

## Sign plan & submission notes

- A Sign Design Program (sometimes referred to as a master sign plan) may be approved by the Board of Trustees to allow for unified signage across a development and may allow deviation from normal sign standards (types, numbers, area, materials, etc.) per an approved Sign Design Program.
- Applications for a Sign Design Program must be submitted on a form approved by the Chief Administrative Official and are subject to public hearing and approval by the Board of Trustees.
- The Sign Design Program/master sign plan must set forth a master plan for signage, including boundaries, building elevations, sign types, dimensions, materials, illumination, a design theme, and must demonstrate improved aesthetics, reduced sign clutter, and mitigation of adverse impacts.
- Prohibited signs/elements in Section 16-10-120 cannot be included in a Sign Design Program, except in limited cases (for example, pole signs at intersections if justified).
- A sign permit is required prior to erection/installation/substantial modification of any sign that is not exempt as defined in the sign ordinance.
- All signs exceeding one square foot of surface for each three feet of lot frontage are subject to approval by the Board of Trustees according to the sign ordinance.
- If a Sign Design Program is approved, issuance of sign permits will be based on the approved program and may allow installation of certain sign types without further individual permits.
- Sign Design Program hearings are held at a public hearing before the Board of Trustees, and may not be tabled without the applicant’s consent.

## 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 10 zoning districts in Pierce — every sign type, every field — are available with a free PermitPal account: https://app.permitpal.io/?address=Pierce+CO&override=true&utm_source=landing&utm_medium=city-page&utm_campaign=city-pierce

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