Washington County, OR Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Where allowed
- General Commercial District only
- Max face area
- ~300 sq ft per face
- Max structure height
- 35 feet
- Residential buffer
- 250 feet from residential parcel
- Brightness cap
- 0.3 foot-candles over ambient at 150 ft
- Governing provision
- CDC §§ 414-2.2.G, 414-7.4
Summary
Digital billboards in unincorporated Washington County are allowed only in the General Commercial District under Community Development Code Section 414-2.2.G, held to a roughly 300-square-foot face and a 35-foot structure height, and must display only static messages under the operating standards of Section 414-7.4.
G. Outdoor Signs: Outdoor signs, including digital billboards and excluding bench signs (see Section 414-5.2), shall be permitted only in the General Commercial (GC) District. Such signs shall not exceed t300 square feet per face, nor shall the face exceed a length of 25 feet or a height, excluding foundation and supports, of 12 feet. ... 414-7.4 Digital billboards allowed pursuant to Section 414-2.2 G shall: A. Display only static messages that remain constant in illumination intensity and do not have movement or the appearance or optical illusion of movement; B. Not operate at an intensity level of more than 0.3 foot-candles over ambient light as measured at a distance of 150 feet; C. Be equipped with a light sensor that automatically adjusts the intensity of the billboard according to the amount of ambient light; D. Be designed to either freeze the display in one static position, display a full black screen, or turn off in the event of a malfunction; and E. Provide evidence that best industry practices for eliminating or reducing uplight and light trespass were considered.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Community Development Code: Supplement 2 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 25).
Full Breakdown
C. G(1) keep billboards away from interchanges and each other: 500 feet minimum from an interstate highway interchange, 500 feet minimum spacing between signs on a limited-access freeway plus 1,000 feet between signs on the same side, and 500 feet minimum spacing on other roads. G adds a residential buffer found nowhere else in the sign chapter: no portion of a digital billboard shall be located within 250 linear feet of the property line of a parcel with a residential land use designation that fronts on the same street and within the line of sight of the billboard face.
4 controls how the display itself operates. 3 foot-candles over ambient light as measured at a distance of 150 feet, must carry a light sensor that automatically adjusts the intensity of the billboard according to the amount of ambient light, and must default to a frozen image, a full black screen, or shut off entirely if it malfunctions.
Violations & Fines
A digital billboard sited outside the General Commercial District, within 250 feet of a residential parcel's frontage, or without the required ambient-light sensor and malfunction fail-safe under Section 414-7.4 will not receive sign approval, and Section 414-8.3 separately bans blinking, flashing or fluttering lights on any sign except a digital billboard operated within these static-display limits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a digital billboard go up anywhere along a commercial street in the county?
How close can a digital billboard be to a house?
Can a digital billboard show scrolling or animated ads?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Washington County
Compare Washington County to another location·View the Oregon sign regulations overview
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