Whittier, CA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)

140, Table 9, item K, set the rules for electronic reader board and changeable-copy signs, the city's stand-in for digital billboards. 020(32), fronting a minor or major arterial street, and limited to one reader board or changeable-copy sign for the entire development regardless of how many buildings or tenants it contains. Each sign face is capped at 30 square feet. Content changes are tightly controlled: every message must display for a minimum of five seconds, and fading in or out, or scrolling text, are the only permitted transition effects, ruling out flash-cut or animated transitions.

, directly limiting nighttime glare into nearby homes. The signs cannot display neon or day-glo colors, incandescent lighting, or any illumination resulting in light spillover or excessive glare, and flashing or blinking messages or lights, and any sound, are flatly prohibited. Every reader board must carry nighttime dimmer capability that the city can direct the operator to adjust to control sign intensity, and any new LED reader board's brightness level requires the Director of Community Development's review and approval before a building permit is finalized.

Reader boards may not be used for commercial advertising and remain subject to all of the code's general permanent-sign provisions unless this section specifies otherwise.