Bartow County, GA Sign Regulations: Freeway-Facing Signs (2026)

Bartow County's sign code sets a stricter setback for property that fronts Interstate 75 than for property along ordinary roads. Under the general rule in Sec. 1(C), a sign on private land may stand in the front setback area but must be at least 10 feet back from the road right-of-way, and no part of it may overhang the right-of-way or a neighbor's property. Subsection (D) overrides that baseline for the interstate: no sign on private property may be erected closer than 50 feet to the right-of-way of Interstate Highway 75, a distance five times the ordinary road setback.

Subsection (E) fixes how the distance is measured, from whichever part of the sign structure sits closest to the right-of-way, whether that is the base, the sign face, or the supporting structure itself, so a sign cannot be positioned to game the setback by angling its face away from the highway. The county's Engineering Department and Road Department also review and approve any sign placed within 20 feet of a right-of-way under subsection (C) for compliance with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), a review that applies with extra weight along I-75 frontage given the higher speeds and sight-distance concerns the corridor presents.

The 50-foot interstate setback applies regardless of zoning district and stacks on top of, rather than replaces, the underlying zoning ordinance's side and rear setback requirements under Sec. 1(B). Property owners planning any ground sign, entrance sign, or freestanding sign along the I-75 corridor in unincorporated Bartow County need to measure from the interstate right-of-way line, not the frontage road or exit ramp, before finalizing a sign location.