1.1 In this By-law:
(a) “abandoned sign” means an advertising device erected on a lot, building or structure that has become vacant or unoccupied for a period of 30 days or more, or any advertising device that advertises a time, event or purpose that, in the opinion of the Clerk or Chief Building Official, has been completed for more than 30 days;
(b) “advertising device” means any device or object creating a design, that is erected on any lot, building or structure for the purpose of advertising and shall include signs, flags, banners, pennants, paint, lights, holograms or any other object intended for advertising purposes;
(c) “alter” means making a material change to an advertising device, but does not include the normal maintenance and repair of an advertising device or a change in the message or contents being displayed by an advertising device;
(d) “applicant” means the person who applies for a license for an advertising device or a variance pursuant to this By-law;
(e) “awning” or “canopy” means a retractable or fixed cover made of canvas or other suitable material, which normally extends over a doorway or window of a building with lettering (other than civic address number) on or affixed to it and may have supports on the ground;
(f) “banner sign” means an advertising device made from cloth, plastic, canvas or similar light-weight non-rigid material;
(g) “billboard” means a third-party ground sign displaying sign copy that is periodically replaced;
(h) “building” means a structure consisting of a wall, roof and floor or a structural system serving the function thereof;
(i) “Building Code Act” means the Building Code Act, 1992, S.O. 1992, c. 23, and its regulations;
(j) “By-law” means this Sign By-law;
(k) “Campaign Advertisement” means an advertisement in any broadcast, print, electronic or other medium purchased by or under the direction of a Candidate or Registered Third Party; (Added by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(l) “Campaign Office” means a building or structure, or part of a building or structure, used as part of an election campaign by a Candidate or Registered Third Party; (Added by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(m) “Campaign Vehicle” means a vehicle that displays Campaign Advertisements; (Added by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(n) "Candidate" means a person who is nominated under the Canada Elections Act, the Election Act or the Municipal Elections Act, 1996; (Amended by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(o) “Chief Building Official” means the Chief Building Official appointed by Council pursuant to the Building Code Act and any person authorized by him or her to carry out the duties of the Chief Building Official under this By-law;
(p) “Clerk” means the municipal clerk appointed by Council pursuant to section 228 of the Municipal Act, 2001 and any person authorized by him or her to carry out the duties of the Clerk under this By-law;
(q) “Council” means the Council of the Town;
(r) “County” means the County of Simcoe;
(s) “directional sign” means a sign erected on private property for the purpose of directing traffic upon the property with a sign face not greater than 0.5 square metres (5.4 square feet);
(t) “directory sign” means an advertising device displaying the unit numbers, names and/or business names of tenants or occupants on a lot or within a building;
(u) “Election Sign” means any Sign:
(i) Advertising or promoting a Candidate in a federal, provincial or municipal election; or
(ii) Intended to influence persons to vote for or against any Candidate, referendum, political viewpoint, or
any question submitted to the electors under the Canada Elections Act, Election Act, or the Municipal
Elections Act, 1996; (Amended by By-law 2018-30)
(v) “enforcement officer” means any person appointed or designated by the Town to enforce its by-laws, including any peace officer and any persons appointed under the Building Code Act;
(w) “erect” means to attach, affix, display, paint, post, project, construct, place, locate or install;
(x) “farm building” means a building or part thereof which does not contain a residential occupancy and which is associated with and located on land devoted to the practice of farming and is used essentially for the housing of equipment or livestock, or the production, storage or processing of agricultural and horticultural produce or feeds;
(y) “fascia sign” means a wall sign;
(z) “first-party sign” means an advertising device that identifies, advertises, promotes or directs attention to a business, service or activity available at or in the lot, building or structure where the sign is located;
(aa) “frontage” means the linear length of a lot or building that abuts a highway, save and except for the frontage of a shopping centre which shall be deemed to comprise the entire linear length of the shopping centre even if it is comprised of more than one lot;
(bb) “grade” means the average elevation of the surface of the ground where it meets the sign, the average elevation of the surface of the ground where it meets the structure on which the sign is erected, or the average elevation of the surface of the ground where it meets the wall of the building upon which the sign is erected;
(cc) “ground sign” means a freestanding sign that is permanently affixed to the ground and not supported in any manner by a building, including a billboard;
(dd) “height” means the vertical distance from grade to the highest point of the sign, including the sign structure;
(ee) “heritage property” means a building or area that is designated by a by-law passed by the Town pursuant to the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. O.18;
(ff) “highway” means a common and public highway or portion thereof, which is under the jurisdiction of the Town, County or Province, and includes any street, lane, bridge, trestle, viaduct or other structure that forms part of the highway and all lands along the lateral boundaries of the highway, including road allowances;
(gg) “hologram” means a three-dimensional image that is projected, displayed or reproduced;
(hh) “illuminate” means the act of lighting up an advertising device by way of an artificial light source located within, on or external to the sign, the brightness and intensity of which are measured in lux (being a unit of illumination equal to one lumen or candela per square metre that is measured by the power and size of the source) and nits (being a unit of illumination equivalent to one candela per square meter that is measured by the power and size of the source and the distance and size of the object being illuminated);
(ii) “inflatable sign” means an instrument filled with air or gas and tethered to the ground, a vehicle, a building or any structure, and shall include any balloon being used as an advertising device;
(jj) “intersection” means the area embraced within the prolongation or connection of the lateral curb lines or, if none, then of the lateral boundary a line of two or more highways that join one another at an angle, whether or not one highway crosses the other;
(kk) “landowner” means the person who is the registered or beneficial owner of real property;
(ll) “license” means the form of approval or permission that is issued under this By-law;
(mm) “licensee” means a person who holds a valid, non-expired license issued under this By-law;
(nn) “lifestyle sign” means visual imagery depicting how people live, spend time and money which seeks to affect a person’s activities, interests and opinions but that does not contain verbal messages or specified products or services;
(oo) “lot” means a parcel of land, described in a deed or other document legally capable of conveying land, or shown as a lot or block on a registered plan of subdivision;
(pp) “menu board” means a sign erected as part of an approved drive-through facility and used to display and order products and services available in association with the said drive-through facility;
(qq) “mobile sign” means an advertising device designed to be capable of being readily moved from one location to another, is usually built on a trailer or other solid platform and may include wheels but excludes a licensed motor vehicle or trailer that is stationary or immobile for longer than seventy-two (72) consecutive hours;
(rr) “official sign” means an advertising device required by, or erected under, any federal or provincial legislation or by-law or other directive of any federal, provincial or municipal government or agency thereof;
(ss) “owner” means any person who owns or operates a particular advertising device;
(tt) “parapet” means an extension of the wall above the actual roof level;
(uu) “person” means an individual, business, firm, body corporate, corporation, association, partnership, or municipality;
(vv) “portable sign” means a free-standing sign erected on but not permanently anchored to the ground and includes, but is not limited to, signs commonly referred to as A-frame, T-frame, or sandwich board, but shall not include a banner sign, inflatable sign or mobile sign;
(ww) “pre-menu board” means a sign erected as part of an approved drive-through facility and only used to display products and services available in association with the said drive-through business;
(xx) “projected display sign” means an advertising device that is formed by light projected onto any surface and includes holograms but excludes illuminated sign boxes;
(yy) “projecting sign” means an advertising device erected on and entirely supported by the wall of a building and projects more than 0.60 metres from the wall of the building;
(zz) “public office” means any position to which a person is elected by general election and without limiting its generality, includes a member of the Parliament of Canada, a member of the Legislative Assembly for the Province of Ontario, a member of a council of a municipality, or a member of a board of school trustees; (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(aaa) “real estate sign” means a temporary non-illuminated sign advertising real property for sale, rent or lease that is located on private property, and does not include a portable or mobile sign;
(bbb) “Registered Third Party” shall mean any person or entity, an individual, corporation or trade union that is not a Candidate, who incurs expenses with respect to promoting, supporting or opposing:
(i) a candidate; or
(ii) a "yes" or "no" answer to a question, referendum, or an issue associated with a person or political party participating in an election, under the Canada Elections Act, the Election Act, or the Municipal Elections Act, 1996; (Added by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(ccc) “road allowance” means the allowance for a public road and includes the traveled and untraveled portions of the road allowance, the road shoulders, ditches, boulevards and sidewalks;
(ddd) “roof” means the top of a building and includes a fin, mansard roof or parapet;
(eee) “roof sign” means an advertising device located entirely on a roof;
(fff) “shopping centre” means a group of commercial establishments, whether or not under one ownership, having a common parking area;
(ggg) “sign” means any device, fixture or medium, including the sign structure, that displays sign copy to attract attention or convey information of any kind;
(hhh) “sign copy” means any colour, graphic, logo, symbol, word, numeral, text, image, message, picture or combination thereof displayed on a single sign face;
(iii) “sign face” means the opaque, transparent, or translucent surface of an advertising device upon, against, or through which the sign copy is displayed, including any frame or border, whether connected or separate to the main sign face, and also including the portion of any surface upon which an advertising device is projected or painted;
(jjj) “sign structure” means the supports and framework for an advertising device, its sign face, its lighting fixtures and all other component parts;
(kkk) “third-party sign” means an advertising device that advertises, promotes, or directs attention to businesses, goods, services, matters or activities that are not available at or related to the lot, building or structure where the sign is located;
(lll) “Town” means The Corporation of the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury;
(mmm) “Voting Day” means the day on which the final vote is to be taken in an election; (Amended by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(nnn) “Voting Period" means a day during an advance poll on which an eligible voter may cast their vote, including Voting Day, and shall include all hours between 12:00 a.m. and 11:59 p.m.; (Amended by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(ooo) “Voting Place” means the lot upon which electors cast paper ballots and includes the building located thereon, and
(i) in the case of electronic voting, any location that has been established as a Voter Help Centre or Mobile Voter Help Centre by the Clerk, and
(ii) when the Voting Place is located on private property, includes all of the common elements of the
private property. (Amended by By-law 2018-30) (Removed by By-law 2026-28)
(ppp) “wall” means the exterior surface of a building extending from grade to the roof but shall not include windows;
(qqq) “wall area” means the total horizontal and vertical dimensions of the exterior surface of a wall of a building onto which an advertising device is erected or installed;
(rrr) “wall sign” or “fascia sign” means an advertising device erected on and entirely supported by the wall of a building and shall include sign copy displayed on an awning or canopy; and
(sss) “window sign” means an advertising device erected or projected onto the inside or outside of any part of a window, an advertising device located within or in place of the glass of a window, or any other sign erected or displayed in a manner so as to be visible through the window from the exterior of the building, including a fascia sign, but does not include an advertising device that forms part of a window display provided the sign is not more than 25% of the size of the window.