Rochester Hills, MI Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)

Section 134-8 governs both permanent and temporary window signs, defined in Section 134-3 as any sign located inside a building and visible through a window, or affixed to the interior or exterior window face. Window signs are only permitted in the city's non-residential zoning districts; there is no allowance for window signs on single-family or other residential uses. The core limit is 25 percent of the total window glazed area of a given building facade, applying to temporary and permanent window signage combined rather than to each category separately, and etched or applied lettering within the lower eight inches of a ground-floor window is excluded from that calculation as long as it does not exceed 80 percent of the width of the window it is on.

Upper-story tenants are treated more strictly: their window signs cannot exceed 20 percent of the total window area tied to their own floor space, five points below the ground-floor standard. Every window sign, temporary or permanent, must display a static message; Section 134-8(d) bars flashing, scrolling or any appearance of movement or intermittent change, which also rules out an electronic message component in a window sign since Section 134-4(5) confines electronic displays to freestanding monument signs.