Bakersfield, CA Sign Regulations: Freeway-Facing Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Max sign area
- 350 sq ft (one on-site pylon only)
- Max sign height
- 75 feet
- Eligible zones
- C-1, C-2, C-C, PCD, M-1, M-2, M-3
- Qualifying interchanges
- 9 mapped Highway 99 intersections
- Approval authority
- Building director determines eligibility
Summary
Bakersfield lets one freeway-oriented sign per site rise above the normal zone size and height caps, up to 350 square feet and 75 feet, but only for businesses supplying food, lodging or vehicle services next to Highway 99, and only inside mapped 2,000-by-3,000-foot rectangles centered on nine specific freeway interchanges under Bakersfield Municipal Code § 17.60.070.D.
D. Freeway-Oriented Signs. Freeway-oriented signs identify premises where food, lodging and places of business engage in supplying goods and services essential to the normal operation of motor vehicles, and which are directly dependent upon an adjacent freeway. These signs shall be subject to the following regulations: 1. Signs shall be within the C-1, C-2, C-C, PCD, M-1, M-2 or M-3 zone districts; and shall also be within one of the rectangular areas two thousand feet in width and three thousand feet in length... 2. Only one of the allowable on-site pylon signs permitted in the zone districts specified in this section shall be allowed to exceed both the area and height limitations imposed by the particular zone district provided no such sign exceeds an area of three hundred fifty square feet and a height of seventy-five feet. All other sign regulations of the particular zone district shall apply to this sign and the specific business. 3. The building director shall determine if the location of the business and the service offered satisfy the criteria and intent of this section and the definition of a freeway-oriented sign.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 5221, passed July 15, 2026).
Full Breakdown
' The privilege is narrow: the site must sit within the C-1, C-2, C-C, PCD, M-1, M-2 or M-3 zone districts, and it must also fall inside one of nine mapped rectangles, each 2,000 feet wide by 3,000 feet long, centered on the intersection of State Highway 99 with a cross street, Olive Drive, Airport Drive (extended south to Gilmore Avenue), the State 58/178 interchange at Rosedale Highway/24th Street (extended north to Gilmore Avenue), California Avenue, Ming Avenue, White Lane, Panama Lane, Hosking Avenue and State Highway 119 (Taft Highway).
Within those rectangles, only one of the site's allowable on-site pylon signs may exceed the area and height limits that would otherwise apply under the zone district, and even then it cannot exceed 350 square feet of area or 75 feet in height. Every other sign standard of the underlying zone district, setbacks, illumination, spacing, still applies to that pylon and to the business generally. The building director makes the threshold call on whether a given business and the service it offers actually satisfy the freeway-oriented-sign definition before the oversized allowance can be used, so an ordinary retailer near the highway does not automatically qualify just because of its location inside a rectangle.
Violations & Fines
Signs erected without meeting these criteria are treated like any other nonconforming or illegal sign under §§ 17.60.110–17.60.120: the building director can order repair or removal within ten days of written notice, and an unremoved sign becomes a public nuisance subject to summary abatement at the owner's expense, with costs recoverable as a lien against the property. The building director may also suspend or revoke a permit issued in error, and the city attorney can seek injunctive relief in superior court.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can any business near Highway 99 put up an oversized freeway sign in Bakersfield?
How big can a freeway-oriented sign be?
What happens if a freeway sign doesn't qualify?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bakersfield
California rules heatmap·Compare Bakersfield to another location·View the California sign regulations overview
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