Waukesha County, WI Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

The Downtown Okauchee District's illumination standards, found in Section 33(h)4 of the Waukesha County Shoreland Protection Ordinance, draw a hard line against digital signage anywhere in the district. or at closing, whichever is later. Subsection B then names the specific technologies that are barred entirely, not merely restricted: digital message boards, internally illuminated signage, and blinking or flashing lights. That places electronic billboards in the same prohibited category as internally lit box signs and animated lighting, regardless of size, brightness or content. The ban sits inside a broader sign package for the district that otherwise permits wall signs up to 50 square feet, freestanding signs up to 35 square feet and 10 feet tall (one per lot, set back 10 feet from the sidewalk), projecting signs up to 20 square feet, and sandwich boards up to 8 square feet during business hours.

All signage, including any request to deviate from these standards, is submitted to the Plan Commission and Zoning Administrator for review under the site plan/plan of operation process. Section 33(h)5 allows exceptions to sign size or location for unique design features such as high-quality materials or artistic treatments, but that exception process does not reach subsection B's illumination bans, which are stated as flat prohibitions rather than standards subject to waiver.