Martin County, FL Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)

Billboards are permitted only on general commercial or general industrial zoned land under LDR Sec. A, capped at 18 feet in height and 100 square feet per face, and their lighting is governed by the same illumination standard that applies to every permitted sign type in Article 4, Division 16. LDR Sec. C allows direct or indirect illumination unless a specific provision bans it, and requires that overhead illumination near residential districts be shielded so the light source doesn't point at adjacent homes. Backlit cabinets, individually illuminated letters and internally lit panels are all expressly allowed under Sec.

C for wall, freestanding, monument and fixed projecting sign types, a category that covers billboard structures once permitted. Separately, LDR Sec. 5 bans intermittent lighting, animation, and moving or rotating light effects on any sign in the county, a blanket prohibition that applies to billboards the same as any other sign face; the only carve-out is for government traffic signals and devices. A billboard's lighting also has to clear the county's sign safety review: Sec. E requires the Building Director or County Engineer to confirm a sign's location, including its lighting, doesn't create a hazard for drivers, bicyclists or pedestrians, and any applicable sight triangle must comply with the Florida Department of Transportation's Design Manual.

A billboard applicant must also hold any required Florida Department of Transportation outdoor advertising permit before the county's Building Director will issue a local sign permit under Sec. 11.