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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.3 Temporary Non-Commercial Signs Enforcement STAFF REPORT CITY COUNCIL Page 1 of 5 Agenda Item 8.3 DATE: September 2, 2025 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers FROM: Colleen Tribby, City Manager SUBJECT: Temporary Non-Commercial Signs Enforcement Prepared by: Amy Million, Assistant Director of Community Development, Marsha Moore, City Clerk, and Gregory Shreeve, Chief Building Official EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The City Council will receive a report on the City’s regulation of political campaign signs and potential amendments to strengthen the enforcement of those regulations. The City Council requested this Report under Item 9 at the November 5, 2024, Regular City Council Meeting. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Receive the report and direct Staff to implement a sign retrieval fee, adjust the sign display time limit, and require a consent form for placement of signs on private property. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The financial impact of implementing the recommendations is anticipated to be minimal. DESCRIPTION: At the November 5, 2024 meeting, the City Council directed Staff to return with a report regarding the City’s regulation of political signs, along with suggestions to strengthen the enforcement of those regulations. Background The Dublin Municipal Code (DMC) classifies temporary political campaign signs as “Temporary Non-Commercial Signs”. Temporary Non-Commercial Signs are signs for short-term display that do not include a “Commercial Message,” such as signs that reference activities conducted by nonprofit organizations, clubs, groups, or associations, including political campaigns. These signs are exempt from a sign permit provided the responsible party has written permission from the property owner and they comply with the following Sign Regulations (DMC Section 8.84.140.K): 127 Page 2 of 5 1. Be displayed for no more than 60 consecutive calendar days. 2. Be placed on private property. 3. Be no more than 16 square feet per side in area per individual sign and up to 80 square feet of maximum aggregate area per lot. 4. Not be placed within the public right-of-way or within 660 feet of and visible from the right-of-way of Interstate 580 or Interstate 680. Staff actively seeks to educate political campaigns and encourage voluntary compliance with the Sign Regulations. For instance, Staff holds a pre-candidate workshop prior to the start of the nomination period and provides information about the Sign Regulations. Additionally, Staff holds individual appointments with candidates to receive nomination papers and again share information about the Sign Regulations. Enforcement of the Sign Regulations occurs on both a proactive and reactive basis. Code Enforcement Officers regularly canvass the City for code violations and remove signs in the public right-of-way or those on private property that are in clear violation (e.g., too large). Additionally, Staff is made aware of potential violations through citizen complaints received via SeeClickFix, phone call, or email. In a typical election year, Code Enforcement removes around 60 political signs from the public right-of-way. Last year, they collected two signs that were larger and of a higher quality design that a candidate may want back; all other signs collected were standard lawn signs. Code Enforcement documents the violation though the creation of a code enforcement case and then typically discards the signs. The time associated with removing illegal signs and the associated administrative tasks are handled through the normal work of the existing Code Enforcement Officers and does not cost the City additional funds. However, it does require the allocation of time that impacts other code enforcement activities during active campaign periods. The DMC permits the issuance of administrative citations for violations of the Sign Regulations. However, it is often difficult to identify the individual responsible for a sign. While signs often identify the name of a candidate, organization, or event, the signs may be installed by third parties, such as supporters, volunteers, or opponents. As a result, the individual or entity identified on the sign may not always be responsible for its placement. Enforcement actions must be directed at the person or party in violation of the regulations. In short, this is very difficult to prove so it has not been used as an enforcement tool. On September 1, 2020, the City Council received a report on the City’s regulation and enforcement practices pertaining to temporary political signs. At that time, the City Council directed Staff not to amend the DMC as it pertains to the Sign Regulations, and to discard signs that are removed from public property rather than storing them. The City Council further directed Staff to utilize the administrative citation process in cases involving repeat violations. Analysis For reference, Staff researched examples of regulations related to political signs in other cities. The following is a selection of what nearby cities are doing in terms of enforcing regulations: 128 Page 3 of 5 City Fine or Fee? Procedures Pleasanton Fee for the expense of removal and storage, not to exceed $5, unless unusual effort is required. Signs are collected and notice is provided to the responsible party. Signs are held for at least 20 days. Payment of the fee is required to retrieve the sign, or the City will bill the party responsible if no return of the sign is requested. Walnut Creek $92.50 to retrieve sign, based on City’s Fees and Charges Schedule. The City notifies the owner of the sign and informs them of the procedure to retrieve the sign. To retrieve the sign, the owner can pay the fee. Signs not retrieved may be disposed of after 15 days. Concord Storage fee of $30, as determined by Master Fees and Charges Schedule. Signs are collected and destroyed if not claimed within 15 days. Any person claiming a sign within the 15-day period is subject to a fee for the cost of removal and storage. The Code also allows penalties for violations of the section of the code. San Leandro Person responsible is liable for the cost incurred for removal of signs. The City will give the responsible party a chance to remove the sign first. The City also requires the candidate/campaign to sign an agreement that must be filed with the City Clerk two days prior to installing signs. The following Alameda County cities that responded to an inquiry do not have a fine or fee: Livermore, Piedmont, Alameda, Hayward, and Union City. The City of Berkeley allows signs on public property, so they are not included in the comparison. In addition, the following cities require the party responsible for the sign to obtain permission from the property owner before placing the sign on their property: Concord, San Leandro, Walnut Creek, Albany, Alameda, Piedmont, and Pleasanton. Most cities operate on a complaint basis and will contact the responsible party to obtain p roof that permission was received or tell the property owner to remove their sign if permission was not received. Policy Considerations The information below is presented for discussion purposes. Any modifications to the regulation of Temporary Non-Commercial Signs would apply uniformly to all signs within this category. Fines and Fees As discussed above, the City would likely face challenges in linking the cited individual or entity to the specific sign violation. Therefore, the City may lack the legal basis to cite an individual or entity. Based on this, Staff does not recommend assessing fines to candidates/campaigns through the administrative citation process. Alternatively, the City Council could consider implementing a fee to recover the costs associated with collecting and storing signs that are displayed on public property. Staff would 129 Page 4 of 5 store signs that are collected from public property for 15 days. During that time, candidates could contact the City to retrieve their sign(s). The fee would be charged on a per sign basis to candidates that choose to recover their signs. Staff estimates an average cost of $25 per sign to perform this service. Display Period The current regulations limit the display for Temporary Non-Commercial Signs to a period of no more than 60 consecutive calendar days. However, this is difficult to track because these signs are exempt from permitting and Staff does not always know when they are first displayed. Staff recommends amending the Sign Regulations to include an additional requirement to limit the display to a maximum period of 60 consecutive calendar days and to remove the sign within seven days following the conclusion of the event, whichever occurs first. Private Property Owner Authorization As noted above, Temporary Non-Commercial Signs on private property do not require a sign permit but do require the property owner’s written permission. To further strengthen this requirement, Staff recommends creating an Owner Authorization Form for the responsible party to use to document the property owner’s written permission to display a sign on their property. If the City receives a complaint, Staff will contact the campaign and request a copy of the property owner’s written permission. The property owner would be responsible for removing signs from their property that are placed without their permission. Other Improvements In addition to implementing any direction provided by the City Council, Staff is already planning to enhance the educational materials provided to candidates and outreach activities conducted during campaign season. This includes the following: Creating a Sign Placement Infographic: To further enhance proactive enforcement efforts, Staff will update informational materials and graphics to clearly explain the permitted placement of signs, especially where City right-of-way is adjacent to private property. Conducting Additional Outreach: Staff will contact the Alameda County Registrar of Voters Office and Secretary of State to obtain a list of non -City candidates and ballot measure committees that overlap with the City limits that may be placing signs within the City. Information about the City’s Sign Regulations will also be sent to those candidates and committees. Next Steps Based on the City Council’s direction, Staff will prepare the appropriate regulations and policies to implement that direction. Any amendments to the Sign Regulations require the Planning Commission to review and make a recommendation to the City Council prior to consideration by the City Council. 130 Page 5 of 5 STRATEGIC PLAN INITIATIVE: None. NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH: The City Council Agenda was posted. ATTACHMENTS: None. 131 Temporary Non-Commercial Signs Enforcement September 2, 2025 132 Background •November 5, 2024 – Item 9 Request •September 2020 – City Council provided direction to discard signs and use the administrative citations for repeat violations. •Temporary Non-Commercial Signs (Dublin Municipal Code (DMC) Section 8.84.140.K). 133 Background, 2 •Current Enforcement •Through complaint or proactive enforcement. •No additional cost to the City to enforce, however forces reallocation of Staff. •Current Education •Educate local campaigns and potential candidates. •Emails also sent as reminders. 134 Analysis •Fines and Citations •Currently permitted in DMC. •Potential challenges in linking cited individual or entity to the specific sign violation. •Fees •An option as an alternative to a fine. •To recover costs incurred by Code Enforcement Officers. •Other Jurisdictions 135 Policy Considerations •Fines and Fees •Display Period •Private Property Owner Authorization •Proactive Staff Improvements 136 Staff Recommendation Receive the report and direct Staff to do the following: •Implement a sign retrieval fee; •Adjust the sign display time limit; and •Create a consent form for the responsible party to obtain written permission for placement of signs on private property. Questions? 137 Other Jurisdictions Procedures Fine or Fee?City Signs are collected and notice is provided to the responsible party. Signs are held for at least 20 days. Payment of the fee is required to retrieve the sign, or the City will bill the party responsible if no return of the sign is requested. Fee for the expense of removal and storage, not to exceed $5, unless unusual effort is required. Pleasanton The City notifies the owner of the sign and informs them of the procedure to retrieve the sign. To retrieve the sign, the owner can pay the fee. Signs not retrieved may be disposed of after 15 days. $92.50 to retrieve sign, based on City’s Fees and Charges Schedule. Walnut Creek Signs are collected and destroyed if not claimed within 15 days. Any person claiming a sign within the 15-day period is subject to a fee for the cost of removal and storage. The Code also allows penalties for violations of the section of the code. Storage fee of $30, as determined by Master Fees and Charges Schedule. Concord The City will give the responsible party a chance to remove the sign first. The City also requires the candidate/campaign to sign an agreement that must be filed with the City Clerk two days prior to installing signs. Person responsible is liable for the cost incurred for removal of signs. San Leandro 138