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Colorado Springs, CO Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

Heavy Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Digital changing signs
Banned unless an on-site EMC
EMC restriction
On-site business messaging only
Max new billboard size
245 sq ft
Billboard faces
2 per structure, max
Billboard zones
MX-L, LI, GI, BP (conditional use)
Billboard spacing
1,000 ft apart (400 ft in GI)

Summary

Colorado Springs' sign code has no digital-billboard track: Section 7.4.1308.C bans any sign whose digital message changes "except those permitted by this part," and the only changing-message signs the code permits, EMC signs, are restricted to on-site business advertising, which off-premise billboards by definition are not.

C. Any sign with a digital electronic message that changes in any manner, except those permitted by this part. ... h. EMC signs shall be limited to the commercial messaging of any commercial business or commercial activity taking place on the subject property where the sign is located. ... B. Area, Height, And Face Standards: ... 1. Sign Area: ... New billboards shall be a maximum of two hundred and forty-five (245) square feet. ... 3. Faces: There shall be no more than two (2) billboard faces per supporting structure.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-21: Code current through: Ord. 26-23, passed June 9, 2026).

Full Breakdown

Colorado Springs regulates electronic message center (EMC) signs and off-premise billboards as two separate, non-overlapping sign types, and neither pathway authorizes a digital billboard. 13-C, which sets a message hold time of 10 seconds, a one-second maximum transition, a 500-nit nighttime brightness cap, and mandatory automatic dimming. " A true billboard is, by definition, off-premise advertising for a business not located on the sign's parcel, so an EMC-style changing digital display on a billboard structure falls outside the only carve-out the prohibited-signs section allows. 1310 (Off Premises Advertising/Billboards) sets the actual standards new billboards must meet, capped at 245 square feet, no more than two faces per structure, height limited to the freestanding-sign maximum for the zone district, minimum 1,000-foot spacing between billboards (400 feet in the GI zone), and conditional-use approval limited to the MX-L, LI, GI, and BP zones, and that section contains no provision for an EMC, digital, or changing-message face on a billboard. 13.

Violations & Fines

A sign erected with a changing digital face that does not qualify as an on-premise EMC violates the prohibited-signs bar in Section 7.4.1308.C. The Building Official or Manager may order the sign repaired, brought into compliance, or removed under Sections 7.4.1308 and 7.4.1309, and an unpermitted billboard structure is also subject to denial or revocation of the conditional use permit required under Section 7.4.1310.C.2 for any new off-premise sign.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a new billboard in Colorado Springs have a digital or changing message?
No. Section 7.4.1308.C prohibits any sign with a digital electronic message that changes "except those permitted by this part," and the code's only changing-message exception, EMC signs, is limited by Section 7.4.1307.A.7.h to on-site business advertising, not off-premise billboard content.
What's the difference between an EMC sign and a billboard here?
An EMC (electronic message center) sign under Table 7.4.13-C is a wall or freestanding sign advertising the business located on that property, capped at a 10-second message hold time. A billboard under Section 7.4.1310 is off-premise advertising for a business elsewhere, and the code gives it no digital or EMC option.
How big can a new billboard be, and where can it go?
New billboards are capped at 245 square feet with no more than two faces per structure, and are allowed only as conditional uses in the MX-L, LI, GI, and BP zone districts under Section 7.4.1310.C.1-2, with height limited to the freestanding-sign maximum for that zone.
How far apart must billboards be spaced in Colorado Springs?
Section 7.4.1310.C.3.a requires at least 1,000 feet between billboards, reduced to 400 feet for billboards in the GI zone, with distances measured horizontally along the road and existing billboards and approved conditional-use locations counted.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Colorado Springs

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All Colorado Springs rules

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