# Sign Regulations in Ashland, Virginia

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

- **Jurisdiction:** Ashland, Virginia (VA)
- **Canonical page:** https://permitpal.io/sign-regulations/virginia/ashland
- **Data last verified:** 2025-11-10
- **Source:** [other municipal code](https://ashland.municipalcodeonline.com/book?type=code#name=ARTICLE_XX_SIGNS*)

## At a glance

Ashland, Virginia regulates 24 sign types across 10 zoning districts. Freestanding Signs in the Highway Commercial (B-2), Neighborhood Commercial (B-4), Limited Industrial (M-1), Planned Shopping Center (PSC) zoning district are capped at 18 feet tall and 60 square feet, with a Minimum 10 feet from any property line setback (Sec. Sec. 21-208(e)). Most commercial signs in Ashland require a permit.

## Sign rules by zoning district (10 zones)

| Zoning District | Sign Types Regulated | Max Height | Max Area | Permit Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| General Regulations For All Zones | 1 | — | — | — |
| Rural Residential (RR-1), Residential, Restricted (R-1), Residential, Limited (R-2), Planned Mobile Home (PMH) | 5 | 6 feet | 16 square feet; or 24 square feet for a monument sign | — |
| Residential, Medium (R-3), Residential, Medium-High (R-4), Residential, Multifamily (R-5) | 8 | 6 feet | 25 square feet | — |
| RO-1 District | 9 | 6 feet | 40% of the total area of the window or door | — |
| Higher Education (HE), Planned Unit Development (PUD) | 9 | 6 feet | 40% of the total area of the window or door | — |
| Highway Commercial (B-2), Neighborhood Commercial (B-4), Limited Industrial (M-1), Planned Shopping Center (PSC) | 19 | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — |
| Planned Office-Business (POB) | 32 | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — |
| Central Business District (B-1), Central Business District - Downtown (B-1D) | 15 | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — |
| Central Business District (B-1) | 15 | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — |
| Central Business District - Downtown (B-1D) | 15 | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — |

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

### Highway Commercial (B-2), Neighborhood Commercial (B-4), Limited Industrial (M-1), Planned Shopping Center (PSC)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 60 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) |
| Monument Freestanding Sign | 8 feet | 75 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) |
| Electronic Changeable Copy Sign | 8 feet | Up to 40% of the total area of a monument sign | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | See monument sign | Part of monument sign | — | Sec. 21-208(e) and Sec. 21-207.1(29) |
| Electronic Graphic Display Sign | 8 feet | Up to 40% of the total area of a monument sign | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | See monument sign | Part of monument sign | — | Sec. 21-208(e) and Sec. 21-207.1(33) |
| Directional Sign | 5 feet | 4 square feet | — | Not located within 10 feet of any street line or other property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) |
| Shared Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 for abutting properties with common driveway | On lot or abutting lots with common driveway | — | Sec. 21-208(e) and Sec. 21-207.1(57) |
| Monument-Type Freestanding Sign | 8 feet | 75 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) |
| Shared Sign | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 for abutting properties with common driveway | Freestanding on same lot or abutting lots with common driveway | — | Sec. 21-208(e) and Sec. 21-207.1(57) |

### Planned Office-Business (POB)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 60 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) |
| Monument Freestanding Sign | 8 feet | 75 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) |
| Electronic Changeable Copy Sign | 8 feet | Up to 40% of the total area of a monument sign | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | See monument sign | Part of monument sign | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) and Sec. 21-207.1(29) |
| Electronic Graphic Display Sign | 8 feet | Up to 40% of the total area of a monument sign | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | See monument sign | Part of monument sign | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) and Sec. 21-207.1(33) |
| Directional Sign | 5 feet | 4 square feet | — | Not located within 10 feet of any street line or other property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) |
| Shared Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 for abutting properties with common driveway | On lot or abutting lots with common driveway | — | Sec. 21-208(e) (applied to POB as commercial) and Sec. 21-207.1(57) |
| Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 60 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) applied |
| Monument-Type Freestanding Sign | 8 feet | 75 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(e) applied |

### Central Business District (B-1), Central Business District - Downtown (B-1D)

| Sign Type | Max Height | Max Area | Max Width | Setback | Signs Allowed | Location | Permit Required | Ordinance Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Wall Sign | — | 120 square feet | — | — | Two per street frontage | Attached flat against wall or vertical surface of building | — | Sec. 21-208(f) and Sec. 21-209(5) |
| Monument Freestanding Sign | 8 feet | 30 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(f) and Sec. 21-209(5) |
| Electronic Changeable Copy Sign - Fuel Price Display | 8 feet | Up to 40% of the total area of a monument sign | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | See monument sign | Part of monument sign | — | Sec. 21-208(f), Sec. 21-209(5) and Sec. 21-207.1(29) |
| Directional Sign | 5 feet | 4 square feet | — | Not located within 10 feet of any street line or other property line | 1 per lot | On lot | — | Sec. 21-208(f) and Sec. 21-209(5) |
| Fuel Pump Sign | — | 2 square feet | — | — | 1 per each face of a fuel pump | Directly on or attached to fuel pump | — | Sec. 21-208(f) and Sec. 21-209(5) |
| Shared Freestanding Sign | 18 feet | 120 square feet | — | Minimum 10 feet from any property line | As allowed | On lot or abutting lots with common driveway | — | Sec. 21-208(f), Sec. 21-209(5) and Sec. 21-207.1(57) |
| Traffic Control Sign | 5 feet | 4 square feet | — | — | 2 per entrance | Freestanding or attached on premises | — | Sec. 21-208(f) and Sec. 21-209(5) |
| A-Frame Sign | 3 feet | 6 square feet | 2 feet | — | 1 per lot | On sidewalk or primary pedestrian path, not more than 4 feet from entrance or edge of main building if no street frontage; on sidewalks min 60 inches wide, allow 36 inches for wheelchair passage | — | Sec. 21-208(f), Sec. 21-209(5) and Sec. 21-207.1(19) |

## Prohibited signs in Ashland

- Billboards
- Unsafe signs
- Portable signs
- Roof signs
- Attention getting devices (pennants, banners, streamers, etc., except national flags, governmental flags, civic organization flags, corporate flags, and limited temporary permits for holidays, civic events, or grand openings)
- Flashing signs
- Vehicle signs
- Video display signs
- Signs with fluctuating illumination
- Multi-vision signs
- Animated signs
- Inflatable signs
- Off-premise signs (except shared signs as permitted)
- Signs erected within the right-of-way of any roadways (including those attached to regulatory signs, trees, power poles, or fences)
- Signs mounted on unapproved structures (trees, utility poles, street sign poles, or other unapproved supports, except temporary permits if deemed appropriate)

## Signs exempt from permit in Ashland

- National flags, flags of political subdivisions, flags of bona fide civic, charitable, fraternal, and welfare organizations, and corporate flags (displayed without permit in accordance with standards)
- Displays, graphics, artwork, or any otherwise lawful noncommercial messages that are not for the purpose of directing attention to a business operated for profit or to a commodity or service for sale (not considered 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 10 zoning districts in Ashland — every sign type, every field — are available with a free PermitPal account: https://app.permitpal.io/?address=Ashland+VA&override=true&utm_source=landing&utm_medium=city-page&utm_campaign=city-ashland

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