Franklin Township, PA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

Franklin Township has no ordinance written specifically for 'digital billboards' or 'electronic message centers'; instead, § 27-2001, General, the opening section of the Signs part of the zoning chapter, reaches the same result through a district-wide performance standard. B bars any sign that 'may have a distracting effect on motorists on adjacent highways,' expressly including signs which flash, move, oscillate or rotate, and that prohibition applies in every zoning district, not just along the commercial corridor. D separately bars any sign that uses an artificial light or reflecting device that could be mistaken for a traffic signal, which reaches the colored, high-brightness LED modules used on many digital boards.

F additionally bans roof signs and any sign projecting above a building's main cornice line, closing off one common mounting location for large electronic displays. Because § 27-2001 applies to 'all districts,' there is no commercial, industrial or highway-corridor carve-out for a digital billboard that changes messages by flashing or moving; the ordinance turns on the motion or distraction effect of the display, not on whether the sign is digital versus painted. A sign that is allowed to fall into disrepair triggers a separate 30-day remedy notice from the Zoning Officer under § 27-2002, after which the Township can remove it at the owner's expense.