Lacey, WA Holiday Decorations: Lawn Ornament Rules (2026)

The City of Lacey, in Thurston County, Washington, has no stand-alone ordinance on lawn ornaments or holiday yard displays. The rules sit inside Chapter 16.75 of the Lacey Municipal Code, the sign code, which applies under § 16.75.030(A) to all signs "of whatever nature and wherever located, within the city." Section 16.75.030(C) lists the signs that do not require a sign permit, and two items on that list reach yard displays.

Item 7 exempts decorations, or signs in the nature of a decoration, that are clearly incidental and customary and commonly associated with any national, local or religious holiday. Item 9 exempts sculptures, fountains, mosaics and design features that do not incorporate advertising or identification. A garden statue, a yard fountain or a mosaic with no business name on it falls in that second category.

The preface to the list spells out what exempt status means. The display needs no sign permit, and its area and number are not counted against the signs permitted for the site or use. The same preface adds that exemption does not relieve the owner from responsibility for erection and maintenance or from compliance with the rest of the chapter or any other law or ordinance. The code does not carve decorations out of the chapter's location rules, so § 16.75.050 stays in play: it prohibits any sign that interferes with safe sight distance at an intersection, and it bars attaching signs to utility poles, street lights, trees, fences, park benches or statues on public property.

As printed, item 7 sets no display dates and no size limit. A display that stops being a decoration and starts advertising a business meets the sign definition in § 16.75.020(KK) and needs a permit under § 16.75.040(A)(1). The administrator of the sign code is the director of community and economic development, who is authorized to inspect any premises where a sign is located during business hours unless an emergency exists.