Royal Oak, MI Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)

Royal Oak's sign ordinance divides the City into three sign areas, and window-sign rights differ by area. In Sign Area 2, City Code § 607-6C allows one window sign per window with a maximum area of 15% of that window's glass. In Sign Area 3, which covers Main Street's pedestrian-oriented downtown, § 607-7C tightens the same one-sign-per-window rule to a 10% area cap, reflecting the historic streetscape's stricter storefront standards. Sign Area 1, the City's more suburban commercial zone covered by § 607-5, permits only wall and monument signs and does not list window signs among its permitted sign types, so a business there has no separate window-sign allowance under Chapter 607.

Every window sign counts toward the chapter's overall sign regulation even though it needs no separate permit beyond compliance with the area cap; the Building Department's enforcement official may inspect any sign under § 607-17 for compliance. A sign that exceeds the percentage cap is treated as an unpermitted, oversized sign subject to the chapter's escalating civil-infraction penalties. Electronic message centers and awning signs are addressed separately in §§ 607-6D and 607-4, and a window sign may not be doubled up with an awning sign under the same conditions imposed on window signs.

Because the percentage is measured against each individual window rather than the whole facade, a storefront with several windows can display several qualifying signs so long as none exceeds its own window's cap.