Catawba County, NC Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

Catawba County permits digital billboards as part of its off-premises sign standards in Sec. 44-563. Subsection (t) allows an off-premises sign to be upgraded or constructed, where permitted, utilizing LED technology, but only within the districts where billboards are allowed at all: highway commercial (HC) and the light and general industrial districts (LI and GI) under subsection (f). Two numeric limits apply specifically to LED billboards: an LED off-premises sign must be separated from another LED off-premises sign by 1,200 feet, and it must hold a static message for a minimum of eight seconds, which bars fast-changing or scrolling digital copy.

LED billboards must also comply with every other standard in Sec. 44-563 that applies to conventional billboards: a maximum face area of 380 square feet along I-40 or 250 square feet on other roads, a height cap of 50 feet on limited-access highways and 35 feet elsewhere, a minimum 400-foot setback from any residentially zoned property, park, school or hospital, and a prohibition on flashing or strobe lights, though subsection (s) separately allows tri-vision sign faces. Off-premises signs, including LED billboards, are barred outright along the Highway 321 corridor on 321-ED-zoned land and along NC Highways 150, 127, 10, 16 and 70 under subsection (g).

An applicant needs a zoning authorization permit for any off-premises sign, supported by a notarized lease-agreement letter from the property owner and a letter of intent from a prospective advertiser under subsection (j), before the county approves an LED conversion or new LED billboard.