Alexandria, VA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

Alexandria's zoning code, Article IX (Signs), defines a billboard in Sec. 9-100(A) as any single panel surface larger than 100 square feet installed as an independent structure or mounted on a building where the sign and its location are sold, rented, or leased to a user who isn't the property's own business owner. Sec. 9-203 then lists prohibited signs citywide, and subsection (K) simply states "Billboards," making the ban absolute: there is no permit, variance, or special use permit process that authorizes a true billboard anywhere in the city, on any lot, in any zone.

Digital signs are a separate, narrower category. Sec. 9-100(B) defines a digital sign as one that can change its content by electronic or mechanical means, including images projected onto a building, televisions, monitors, and other screens. Unlike billboards, digital signs aren't flatly banned, but Sec. 9-202(B) places them on the list of signs that "may be allowed with administrative approval" under Sec. 11-513, alongside signs that exceed the normal number, height, or area limits and temporary signs posted longer than 120 days without interruption. A business cannot simply build a digital display; it must apply for an administrative special use permit and show the director the installation fits the intent of Article IX.

Existing signs that predate a zoning change keep some protection: Sec. 9-402 lets a lawfully erected nonconforming sign continue indefinitely, but the owner bears the burden of proving it was lawfully in place when built, and any modification or relocation must bring it into full compliance with the current article. Sign rules apply on every lot, in every zone, and in every required yard under Sec. 9-201, so there's no residential carve-out that would let a homeowner host billboard advertising on private land.