Memphis, TN Sign Regulations: Freeway-Facing Signs (2026)

Section 4.9.8 of the Memphis and Shelby County Unified Development Code governs permanent off-premise signs, the billboards oriented to be read from the freeway rather than advertising an on-site business. Subsection A limits where they can go: the lot must sit in the CMU-3, CBD, EMP or IH zoning district, lie within 300 feet of a U.S. Interstate highway, take its legal access from a street other than the interstate itself, and not share the lot with any other principal or accessory use. Subsection B caps the gross surface area of any such sign at 672 square feet, and Subsection D sets a minimum setback of 20 feet for supporting columns, or the setback of the nearest nonresidential building within 200 feet if that is less.

Spacing is strict under Subsection E: only one billboard, attached or detached, is allowed per 1,000 feet of frontage along the same side of the same road, and that gap doubles to 2,000 feet if more than 11 percent of the sign face uses automatic changeable copy video. At an interchange of two interstates, the same 1,000/2,000-foot separation applies along the connecting ramp route. Digital billboards exceeding the 11 percent video threshold must also secure a Tennessee Department of Transportation permit before Construction Code Enforcement will issue the local building permit.

Height is measured separately under Section 4.9.6.B: for a permanent off-premise sign oriented to an interstate, the baseline is the crown elevation of the interstate itself, perpendicular to the sign's support poles, not the elevation of whatever local street fronts the lot, and a multi-level ramp or flyover uses the lowest roadway level as the starting point. The UDC is the joint zoning code adopted by both the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Board of Commissioners, so these standards bind billboards inside Memphis city limits directly, not just the unincorporated county.