§ 12.1. Purpose and scope.

The purpose of this article is to provide standards to safeguard public health, property, and welfare by regulating the location, size, illumination, construction, erection, maintenance, and quality of materials of all exterior signs, and to ensure that signs will not confuse, mislead, or obstruct the vision necessary for traffic and pedestrian safety.

The City of Ellijay ("city") acknowledges, too, that preservation of the health, safety, morals, and welfare of the citizenry of the city requires the preservation and protection of the visual attractiveness and aesthetic characteristics of existing streets and neighborhoods throughout the community. Signage controls are included in this article to further the aesthetic values of the community by: 1) protecting neighborhood property values, 2) maintaining the traditional character of historic neighborhoods and districts; 3) avoiding the visual degradation of the city's irreplaceable scenic and environmental resources, and 4) promoting city's continued economic growth by encouraging high quality commercial development.

Reasonable, orderly, and effective display of signs provides vital support for economic development and helps create a positive community image that will attract desirable business and industry to the Ellijay area. The uncontrolled use of signs with their variable sizes, heights, and illumination demand attention to help avoid potential dangers to moving traffic and pedestrians. In addition, uncontrolled sign placements can be destructive to adjacent property values so that clutter replaces the intrinsic values of the property and diminishes the effectiveness of the signs as they compete with each other. Absent regulations, competition among competing sign owners for visibility of their signs undermines the sign owner's original purpose of presenting a clear message to the public.

For these reasons, it has become necessary in the public interest to regulate the sizes, heights, locations, types, and other pertinent physical features of exterior signs in the city while simultaneously acknowledging free speech as a First Amendment constitutional right. Balancing the rights of individuals to convey their messages through signs, while protecting the right of the public against unrestricted proliferation of signs is acknowledged as the goal of the city. Such reasonable regulations also further the policy implementation of the city's adopted comprehensive plan, especially regarding impacts on quality land use development in the area.

( Ord. of 3-17-2014, Art. I )