Acworth, GA Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)

The sign chapter defines a window sign in Sec. 74-2 as any sign installed inside a window and intended to be viewed from outside the premises. Sec. 74-3 then places window signs on the short list of signage that is exempted from formal permitting, alongside nameplates of two square feet or less that are fastened directly to a building and decorative flags mounted at least eight feet above grade. That exemption is from the permit application process only. The ordinance is explicit that exempted signs must still conform to every other requirement of the chapter, so a window sign remains subject to Sec.

74-5's maintenance standard requiring signs to stay free of cracking, peeling paint, warping and rust, and to Sec. 74-15's illumination limits, which cap light spill at one-half footcandle at an adjacent residential property line and two footcandles at a public right-of-way. Commercial signs in residential sign districts cannot be illuminated at all. Sec. 74-14 also bars rotating, animated or flashing displays (except clocks, time or date signs) and any lighting exposed directly to view, both of which reach a lit window display. Notably, the code sets no separate percentage cap on how much of a storefront window a sign may cover; the only numeric limits that apply to window signs are the general illumination and construction standards that apply to every sign type in the chapter. Enforcement of all of this, including window signs, runs through the city's code compliance officer and zoning administrator under Sec. 74-19.