Colorado Springs, CO Sign Regulations: Holiday Displays (2026)
Key Facts
- Residential use
- Inflatable displays not permitted
- Display duration
- 14 days per event
- Annual permit cap
- 2 permits per property per year
- Setback
- 1.5x the display's height
- Sound system
- Not allowed
- Wind-dancer/billboard inflatables
- Prohibited in all zone districts
Summary
Colorado Springs treats inflatable displays as temporary signage, not decoration. Under City Code § 7.4.1307.E.3, a non-residential business can run an inflatable display up to 14 days per event, with no more than two permits issued per property per calendar year. Inflatables are barred outright at residential uses, can't attach to fences or poles, need a 1.5x-height setback, and can't carry a sound system.
E. Additional Standards For Temporary Signs: ... 3. Inflatable Displays: a. Inflatable displays are not permitted for residential uses. b. Inflatable displays may be displayed for fourteen (14) days per event. c. No more than two (2) permits for inflatable displays may be issued to a business, development, or property during a calendar year starting January 1. d. Inflatable displays must not be attached to fences, landscaping, utility poles, or light poles. e. Ground mounted inflatable displays must be set back from the property line one and one-half (1.5) times the height of the inflatable display. f. Inflatable displays must not have a sound system. g. Inflatable displays that wave, lightly or rapidly, in an irregular manner, and portable inflatable billboards, are prohibited in all zone districts.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-21: Code current through: Ord. 26-23, passed June 9, 2026).
Full Breakdown
13-E rather than as unregulated holiday decor. 3 sets seven rules. Inflatable displays 'are not permitted for residential uses' at all, the category is limited to non-residential tenants, businesses, developments and properties. Where allowed, a display 'may be displayed for fourteen (14) days per event,' and 'no more than two (2) permits for inflatable displays may be issued to a business, development, or property during a calendar year starting January 1,' so a single site can run at most two 14-day inflatable events annually. 5) times the height of the inflatable display', a 10-foot-tall inflatable therefore needs a 15-foot setback.
' Finally, inflatables 'that wave, lightly or rapidly, in an irregular manner, and portable inflatable billboards, are prohibited in all zone districts', meaning even a permitted, correctly sized inflatable can't be the wind-dancer 'tube man' style display, and true inflatable billboards are banned citywide regardless of permit status. 13-E's entry caps size at the maximum height of the applicable zone district and limits placement to one per tenant per event.
Violations & Fines
An inflatable display at a residential use, one exceeding 14 days, a third permit in the same calendar year, a wind-dancer 'tube man' style unit, or one lacking the 1.5x-height setback is a Sign Code violation citable under the City's general UDC compliance authority, § 7.1.106, and can result in an order to remove the display.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put an inflatable holiday display in my yard at home?
How long can a business run an inflatable display?
Can an inflatable display have music or sound effects?
How far from the property line does an inflatable have to sit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Colorado Springs
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