# Sign Regulations in Morgantown, Indiana

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

- **Jurisdiction:** Morgantown, Indiana (IN)
- **Canonical page:** https://permitpal.io/sign-regulations/indiana/morgantown
- **Data last verified:** 2025-04-20

## At a glance

Morgantown, Indiana regulates 17 sign types across 4 zoning districts. Permanent Freestanding Sign (Option 2)s in the Non-residential District, Commercial District, Industrial District zoning district are capped at 25 ft tall, 100 sq ft, and 12 ft wide (Sec. § 153.51(D)(2)). Most commercial signs in Morgantown require a permit.

## Sign rules by zoning district (4 zones)

| Zoning District | Sign Types Regulated | Max Height | Max Area | Permit Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Residential District | 8 | — | 24 sq ft | — |
| Non-residential District, Commercial District, Industrial District | 9 | 25 ft | 300 sq ft | — |
| MXD District | 1 | — | — | — |
| General Regulations For All Zones | 4 | — | ≤ 50% of window area | — |

## Zone-by-zone sign requirements (sample of 3 of 4 zones)

### Residential District

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Name and Address Sign | — | 2 sq ft | — | — | 1 per resident or family | On residential property (not specified further) | — | § 153.51(B)(1) |
| No Trespassing Sign | — | 2 sq ft | — | — | — | On property being regulated | — | § 153.51(B)(2) |
| Real Estate Sign | — | 6 sq ft | — | — | 2 per property | On property for sale/lease | — | § 153.51(B)(3) |
| Instructional or Directional Sign | — | — | — | — | — | On-premises | — | § 153.51(B)(4) |
| Memorial Sign or Tablet / Date of Building Erection | — | 4 sq ft | — | — | — | — | — | § 153.51(B)(6) |
| Temporary Special Event Sign | — | 24 sq ft | — | — | — | — | — | § 153.51(B)(10) |
| Holiday Sign and Decoration | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | § 153.51(B)(11) |
| Subdivision or Entrance Sign | — | 12 sq ft | — | — | 1 per entrance | At entrance to subdivision | — | § 153.51(B)(13) |

### Non-residential District, Commercial District, Industrial District

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| No Trespassing Sign | — | 5 sq ft | — | — | — | On property being regulated | — | § 153.51(B)(2) |
| Real Estate Sign | — | 20 sq ft | — | — | 2 per property | On property for sale/lease | — | § 153.51(B)(3) |
| Instructional or Directional Sign | — | — | — | — | — | On-premises | — | § 153.51(B)(4) |
| Construction Contractor Sign | — | 6 sq ft | — | — | 1 per contractor | — | — | § 153.51(B)(9) |
| Temporary Special Event Sign | — | 24 sq ft | — | — | — | — | — | § 153.51(B)(10) |
| Permanent Wall Sign (Option 1) | — | — | — | — | 1 per wall fronting street/parking lot | On principal building wall | — | § 153.51(D)(1) |
| Permanent Freestanding Sign (Option 2) | 25 ft | 100 sq ft | 12 ft | — | 1 per lot | Per lot | — | § 153.51(D)(2) |
| Billboard | 15 ft | 300 sq ft | — | 50 ft minimum from right-of-way | — | Off-premises, commercial or industrial only | — | § 153.51(E) |

### General Regulations For All Zones

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Government Sign | — | — | — | — | — | Official purposes, as erected by government | — | § 153.51(B)(5); § 71.17 |
| Accessory Business Sign | — | 4 sq ft | — | — | — | Wall-mounted at/adjacent to building entrance | — | § 153.51(B)(7) |
| Temporary Window Sign | — | ≤ 50% of window area | — | — | — | Window of business | — | § 153.51(B)(8) |
| Farm Sign | — | — | — | — | — | Premises where crops are produced | — | § 153.51(B)(12) |

## Prohibited signs in Morgantown

- Signs which have any visible moving parts.
- Signs which incorporate in any manner flashing or moving illumination, animation, or illumination which varies in color, except time/temperature signs in the MXD District or any such sign shown on an approved development plan.
- Any sign or sign support which constitutes a hazard to public safety or health, including signs which by reason of size, location, content, coloring, manner, or illumination obstruct the vision of a driver or obstruct or detract from the visibility or effectiveness of any traffic control device, or which obstruct free ingress and egress, or which make use of words such as stop, look, one way, danger, yield, or any similar words, phrases, symbols, lights, or characters in such a manner as to interfere with, mislead, or confuse traffic.
- Portable signs.

## Signs exempt from permit in Morgantown

- Signs identifying the name and address of inhabitants of residential property, which shall be limited in number to one such sign per resident or family and shall not exceed two square feet in area.
- No trespassing signs, or other signs regulating the use of property on which they are located, which signs shall not exceed two square feet in area in any residential district or five square feet in area in any non-residential district.
- Signs advertising real estate for sale, and similar signs, shall be limited in number to two signs for each property to which they relate and shall not exceed six square feet in area in residential districts or 20 square feet in non-residential districts.
- Instructional or directional signs including, but not limited to, on-premises signs related to traffic, parking, or other functional activities, signs identifying restrooms and related or similar facilities, entrance and exit signs, and building functions and services signs.
- Signs erected by a unit of government for official purposes.
- Memorial signs or tablets and signs denoting the date of erection of buildings which shall not exceed four square feet in area.
- Accessory signs incidental to a business or profession conducted on the premises communicating hours of operation, forms of acceptable payment (e.g., credit cards, business affiliations, and the like), wall-mounted at or immediately adjacent to the entrance of the building, not to exceed a combined total of four square feet in area.
- Temporary signs in the window of a building, lawfully serving as the location of a business, that do not occupy more than 50% of the area of the window and that are not to be in place more than 30 days.
- Construction contractor’s signs, not to exceed one per contractor working on a construction project and not larger than six square feet each, and only during the period of construction.
- Temporary signs associated with special events, such as those sponsored by religious, public, or charitable organizations, which shall not exceed 24 square feet in area, posted no more than 14 days prior to the event and removed within 24 hours after the event.
- Holiday signs and decorations for no longer than 30 days prior to and 30 days after the date of the holiday to which they relate.
- Farm signs identifying crops produced on the premises.
- One subdivision or similar entrance sign, not to exceed 12 square feet in area, at each entrance to a subdivision.

## Sign plan & submission notes

- No general requirement for a master sign plan or sign plan is indicated in the provided ordinance text. Certain sign types require an improvement location permit prior to erection, as specified for commercial and industrial signs.

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

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