Duluth, MN Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Districts allowed
- MU-C, MU-B, I-G only
- Offset requirement
- 3x sign area in credits or removed sf
- Minimum message duration
- 8 seconds, no scrolling/flashing
- Max billboard area
- 700 sq ft (Section 50-27.7.E.2)
- Approval path
- Exception credit under Section 50-38.7
Summary
Electronic billboards are allowed only in Duluth's MU-C, MU-B and I-G zoning districts, and only if the owner offsets the new sign with exception credits or removed nonconforming billboard square footage worth three times its size. Each message must hold static for at least eight seconds, and scrolling or flashing displays are banned.
6. Electronic billboards are permitted only in the MU-C, MU-B, and I-G districts. Electronic billboards are subject to the following regulations: (a) An electronic billboard may only be erected if one of the following criteria is met: (i) The electronic billboard is constructed using exception credits. The number of exception credits, in square footage, must equal three times the square footage of the electronic billboard to be constructed; (ii) Nonconforming billboards of a total square footage are removed in an amount equal to three times the square footage of the electronic billboard to be constructed; (b) Each message displayed on an electronic billboard must be static or depicted for a minimum of eight seconds. Any scrolling, flashing or movement of the message is prohibited;
Full Breakdown
E. Electronic billboards are permitted only in the MU-C, MU-B and I-G zoning districts. Before erecting one, an owner must satisfy one of two offset tests: build using exception credits equal, in square footage, to three times the new electronic billboard's area, or remove nonconforming billboard square footage elsewhere in the city equal to three times that area. Once erected, an electronic billboard's content is restricted along with its lighting: each message or image must be static or depicted for a minimum of eight seconds, and any scrolling, flashing or movement of the message is prohibited.
6(c) apply on top of the siting and offset rules. Because a digital billboard is still a billboard, it also inherits the general billboard standards: a 700-square-foot maximum sign area, a 25-foot height limit adjacent to on-grade roads, and the requirement that billboards along most highways sit at least 500 feet apart. 7 allows an electronic billboard to be built at all; there is no by-right path to a digital billboard anywhere in the city.
Violations & Fines
Erecting an electronic billboard without the required exception credits or nonconforming-removal offset, or running content that scrolls, flashes or changes faster than the eight-second minimum, is a Chapter 50 violation and public nuisance under Section 50-39.1, enforced by the building official. The city issues a correction order with at least a ten-day compliance period for sign violations, and after that the owner faces abatement, an administrative citation under Chapter 12, or a court action.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Duluth
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