Mount Pleasant, SC Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- § 156.813(N)
- Electronic readerboard signs
- Prohibited townwide
- Digital kiosks/displays
- Exempt, not "signs"
- Static readerboards allowed
- Max 25 sq ft (§ 156.816(B))
- Off-premises (billboard) signs
- LI District only (§ 156.828)
- Penalty
- Up to $500 fine / 30 days jail
Summary
The Town of Mount Pleasant expressly prohibits electronic readerboard signs townwide under Town Code § 156.813(N), a category that includes digital, changeable-message billboard-style displays. Interactive digital kiosks and displays are carved out and not treated as signs, but any other electronically-lit changeable-message sign is banned outright with no permit path around it.
The following signs are hereby expressly prohibited unless specifically otherwise allowed. ... (N) Electronic readerboard signs. However, interactive digital kiosks and displays are not considered signs.
Full Breakdown
813, in Chapter 156's Subchapter G (Signs), lists signs that are 'hereby expressly prohibited unless specifically otherwise allowed,' and subsection (N) names electronic readerboard signs, while carving out interactive digital kiosks and displays, which the ordinance says are not considered signs at all and so fall outside sign regulation entirely. 816(B), which allows a non-electronic readerboard incorporated into a sign's design, capped at 25 square feet and letters four to eight inches tall. 813(N) applies on top of that district limitation, so a digital or LED billboard has no compliant location anywhere in town, LI District included.
811(C)-(D) makes it unlawful to construct, install, operate, or display a prohibited sign, or to change its copy, in any manner the subchapter forbids. These sign standards were adopted in the town's 1-14-2025 zoning rewrite and are administered by the Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Department.
Violations & Fines
Installing, operating, or displaying an electronic readerboard sign violates §§ 156.811 and 156.813(N) and is enforced as a Chapter 156 zoning violation under §§ 156.1576-156.1577: a misdemeanor with a fine of not more than $500 and/or imprisonment for not more than 30 days, with each day the sign remains a separate offense. The Zoning Administrator issues written notice with a minimum 15-business-day cure period before pursuing further enforcement or ordering the sign's removal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business put up a digital billboard in Mount Pleasant?
Are digital menu boards or interactive kiosks banned too?
Can I still have a changeable-letter reader board on my business sign?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Mount Pleasant
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