# Sign Regulations in Bryan, Texas

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

- **Jurisdiction:** Bryan, Texas (TX)
- **Canonical page:** https://permitpal.io/sign-regulations/texas/bryan
- **Data last verified:** 2025-08-06
- **Source:** [municode municipal code](https://library.municode.com/TX/Bryan/codes/Code_of_Ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_CH98SI)

## At a glance

Bryan, Texas regulates 33 sign types across 10 zoning districts. Sail Signs in the Office District (C-1), Retail District (C-2), Mixed Use District (MU-2) zoning district are capped at 10 ft tall, 25 sq ft, and 2.5 ft wide, with a 10 ft from back of curb setback (Sec. Sec. 98-44(6b)). Most commercial signs in Bryan require a permit.

## Sign rules by zoning district (10 zones)

| Zoning District | Sign Types Regulated | Max Height | Max Area | Permit Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Agricultural-Open District (A-O), Residential District-7000 (RD-7), Residential District-5000 (RD-5), Multiple-Family District (MF) | 5 | 10 ft | 60 sq ft | — |
| Office District (C-1), Retail District (C-2), Mixed Use District (MU-2) | 9 | 10 ft | 300 sq ft | — |
| Industrial District (I) | 4 | 10 ft | 300 sq ft | — |
| Commercial District (C-3) | 8 | 35 ft (50 ft on FM 2818/SH 6 East Bypass) | 300 sq ft | — |
| Downtown-North District (DT-N), Downtown-South District (DT-S), Downtown-Civic District (DT-C) | 9 | — | 20 sq ft | — |
| Midtown-Corridor District (MT-C), Midtown-High Density District (MT-HD) | 10 | 5 ft | 100 sq ft | — |
| Innovation Corridor-High-Density Residential (IC-HDR) | 3 | 15 ft | 400 sq ft | — |
| Innovation Corridor-Research and Development (IC-RD), Innovation Corridor-Retail Services (IC-RS) | 3 | 10 ft | 400 sq ft | — |
| Historic Preservation Overlay District (HP), Planned Development District (PD), Corridor Overlay District (CO), Residential - Neighborhood Conservation District (R-NC) | 1 | — | — | — |
| General Regulations For All Zones | 1 | — | Varies: Construction (16 or 32 sq ft), Real Estate (16 or 32 sq ft), Incidental (2 sq ft), others as specified | — |

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

### Office District (C-1), Retail District (C-2), Mixed Use District (MU-2)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Freestanding Sign | Variable: 5 to 35 ft by frontage | Variable: 25 to 300 sq ft by frontage | — | Varies: 10 - 65 ft, see Table 1; never closer than 10 ft to curb/pavement. | 1 per property; additional for strip centers as above | On premises, see setback | — | Sec. 98-44(2), Table 1 |
| Low Profile Sign | 5 ft | 100 sq ft | — | 10 ft from curb | 1 per frontage | On premises, min 10 ft from curb | — | Sec. 98-44(2) |
| Wall Sign | — | 300 sq ft | — | — | 1 per occupancy per frontage | On building facing main street | — | Sec. 98-44(3,4) |
| Under Canopy Sign | — | — | — | — | One per elevation | Under canopy | — | Sec. 98-44(7) |
| Awning Sign (C-1 and MU-2) | — | — | — | — | — | On awning | — | Sec. 98-44(8) |
| Awning Sign (C-2) | — | — | — | — | — | On awning | — | Sec. 98-44(8) |
| Banner Sign (On-Premises Temporary) | — | As for freestanding signs | — | Same as freestanding | — | On-premises only | — | Sec. 98-44(6a) |
| Sail Sign | 10 ft | 25 sq ft | 2.5 ft | 10 ft from back of curb | 2 per business (single-tenant); 2 per property (multi-tenant) | On-premises only | — | Sec. 98-44(6b) |

### Commercial District (C-3)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Signs Allowed Without Permit | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Sec. 98-46(1), Sec. 98-7 |
| Freestanding Sign | 35 ft (50 ft on FM 2818/SH 6 East Bypass) | See Table 1, up to 300 sq ft (max 50 ft high on certain highways) | — | 10-65 ft (standard), 100 ft min on FM 2818/SH 6 E Bypass | 1 per premises, 1 per 1000+ ft of main street frontage (min separation 200 ft) | Premises, see setbacks, per Table 1. | — | Sec. 98-46(2,6), Table 1 |
| Wall Sign | — | Option 1: 300 sq ft; Option 2 (on highway): 300 sq ft | — | — | One per occupancy per frontage | On building facing main or highway frontage | — | Sec. 98-46(3) |
| Roof Sign | — | 300 sq ft | — | — | One per premises | On roof | — | Sec. 98-46(4) |
| Awning Sign | — | — | — | — | One per occupancy | On awning | — | Sec. 98-46(5) |
| Projecting Sign | — | 100 sq ft | — | — | One in lieu of another sign | Projecting from building | — | Sec. 98-46(8) |
| Banner Sign (On-Premises, Temporary) | — | — | — | — | — | On premises only | — | Sec. 98-46(9), 98-44(6a) |
| Sail Sign | 10 ft | 25 sq ft | 2.5 ft | 10 ft from curb | 2 per property | On-premises only | — | Sec. 98-46(10), 98-43(e) |

### Midtown-Corridor District (MT-C), Midtown-High Density District (MT-HD)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Wall Sign (Ground Floor Commercial Use) | — | 100 sq ft | — | — | 1 per occupancy | On building; must not cover window, sill, or transom | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Wall Sign (Upper Floor Commercial Use) | — | 100 sq ft | — | — | 1 per upper floor tenant per frontage | Upper floor facade | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Freestanding Sign (includes ground/monument/pole/pylon) | 5 ft | 60 sq ft | — | — | 1 per property | Ground mounted, monument, pole or pylon | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Blade Sign | — | 100 sq ft | — | — | 1 per building | Perpendicular to building or hung under soffit/awning/canopy | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Banner Sign | — | 60 sq ft | — | — | — | On premises | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Portable Sign | — | 8 sq ft | — | — | 1 per business/suite | Within 10 ft of entrance; on sidewalk if 4 ft clear space remains | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Directory Sign | — | 6 sq ft | — | — | 1 per building | On facade | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |
| Awning Sign | — | — | — | Min 2 ft from curb (if encroaching) | — | On awning | — | Sec. 98-181, Table 3 |

## Prohibited signs in Bryan

- No sign shall be placed, posted, displayed or carried at a location or in such manner so as to obstruct or interfere with, or pose the threat of obstructing or interfering with, vehicular or pedestrian travel or pose a danger to any person.
- The following types of signs are prohibited in all districts within the corporate limits and within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city: Abandoned signs; Banners (except as specifically allowed); Billboard signs; Signs imitating or resembling official traffic or government signs or signals; Snipe signs or signs attached to trees, utility poles, public benches, or streetlights; Signs placed on vehicles or trailers which are parked or located for the primary purpose of displaying said sign (except signs/lettering on buses, taxis, or vehicles in normal course of business); Off-premises signs; Portable signs; Signs painted on rooftops; Signs and displays with flashing, blinking, or traveling lights, or erratic or other moving parts, oriented and visible to vehicular traffic (except time and temperature signs under strict size/setback limits); Any sign which emits sound, odor or visible matter; Pennants, searchlights, and festoons.
- No signs shall be erected, constructed or maintained so as to obstruct any fire escape, required exit, window or door opening used as a means of egress.
- No sign shall be attached in any form, shape, or manner which will interfere with any opening required for ventilation, except as allowed by relevant building/fire code.
- No portion of a sign or sign structure shall project into any public alley unless said portion is a minimum of 18 feet in height above grade.
- No sign shall be placed so that it obstructs the view for traffic movement at an intersection.
- No sign regulated by this chapter may utilize an exposed incandescent lamp with an external reflector and without a sunscreen or comparable diffusion.
- No sign regulated by this chapter may utilize an exposed incandescent lamp in excess of 50 watts unless a screen or diffuser is used or wattage does not exceed ten watts, except as allowed for lane, open or close designation.
- No sign regulated by this chapter may utilize any revolving beacon light, flashing light, or strobes.
- No person may engage in the business of erecting, altering, relocating, constructing or maintaining signs without all required state and federal licenses, and a city sign contractor's license.
- Portable signs are prohibited in all districts, except as specifically permitted under special district rules (Downtown, Midtown).
- Abandoned signs are prohibited in all districts.
- Billboard signs are prohibited in all districts.
- Off-premises signs are prohibited in all districts.
- Flashing, blinking, or traveling lights or moving parts oriented and visible to vehicular traffic are prohibited on all signs.
- Snipe signs or signs attached to trees, utility poles, public benches, or streetlights are prohibited.

## Signs exempt from permit in Bryan

- This chapter shall not apply to signs of a local, state, or federal government or signs required to be placed on private property by local, state, or federal law.
- Signs installed prior to 1960 are exempt from regulations in the downtown district.
- On-premises signs not exceeding the limits defined for address, closed/open, hours, credit card logos, real estate signs, menus, and now hiring signs in Midtown district are exempt from window sign limitations.
- Vehicular signs (signs placed on a vehicle in the normal course of business or transportation) are exempt from requires for permits.
- Signs required by local, state, or federal law are exempt from the provisions of the chapter.
- Nonconforming (exempt) signs in place on the effective date of the chapter are allowed if maintained, permitted or covered by variance, and were lawfully in place at the time the chapter took effect, but must comply with maintenance, safety, and repair provisions.

## Sign plan & submission notes

- A permit application must include a site plan showing the proposed location of the sign along with the locations and square footage of all existing signs on the same premises (Sec. 98-124).
- For sail signs (e.g., temporary vertical flag-type), a sign placement plan indicating sail sign locations on the property shall be submitted with each permit application (Sec. 98-43(e)(7)).
- Establishing unique sign standards in midtown district (size, color, type, design, location) requires staff review and approval by the city council. Such unique sign standards would likely need to be documented and justified as part of a master sign plan submission (Sec. 98-181).
- Variance applications constitute a formal procedure including hearings and appeals and may require submittal of written justification and supporting documents for each case (Secs. 98-128, 98-163).
- Signs in the historic district require approval by the historic landmark commission prior to the issuance of a permit (Sec. 98-119).

## 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 Bryan — every sign type, every field — are available with a free PermitPal account: https://app.permitpal.io/?address=Bryan+TX&override=true&utm_source=landing&utm_medium=city-page&utm_campaign=city-bryan

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