Golden, Colorado Sign Code & Sign Permit Guide
Wall, monument, and freestanding sign limits for Golden by zoning district — cited to the exact code section, with the sign permit process. Every number is checked against the published code text before it ships.
Nonresidential zones (Commercial, Corridor & Industrial)
Zones like C-1
§18.32.050 Nonresidential Signs — one flat table applies uniformly across all nonresidential zone districts (no per-district variation). Zones are C-1/C-2 (Commercial), CC1/CC2 (Community Corridor), M-1/M-2 (Industrial), NC (Neighborhood Center); R-C (Limited Residential Commercial) is excluded as ambiguously residential-primary by name, not explicitly enumerated as nonresidential in the code.
Percent-of-wall and flat caps, not frontage-linear: Wall-sign area is 10% of the wall (per storefront or whole building), and freestanding/monument signs are flat caps (32 sf) rather than scaling with street frontage. Awning and EMC signs DO scale with business frontage (1 sf/lf) up to their own caps. Read the exact figures from the cards above; the frontage calculator doesn't apply to the wall-sign number.
Wall signs
§18.32.050 · Table| Wall sign | 10% of wall area per store frontage (multi-tenant) or of the entire wall (single-tenant); 1 per building or store frontage; may not extend above the wall it's mounted on. |
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Overall sign length can't exceed the tenant's storefront width, and must generally align with adjacent businesses' signs on the same block face. Mutually exclusive with awning/canopy signs on the same elevation — pick one. Projection off the wall capped at 18 in.
Freestanding sign (monument/pylon)
§18.32.050 · Table| Monument sign | 1 per entrance; max 32 sf per face; max height 8 ft. |
|---|---|
| Freestanding (pole) sign | 1 per lot frontage; max 32 sf per face (multi-tenant projects may add +32 sf/face for tenant ID on the same sign); max height 10 ft. |
| Near I-70 (ROW > 200 ft wide) | Max height 40 ft; max area 100 sf per face. |
Projecting signs
§18.32.050 · Table| Projecting sign | 1 per building or store frontage; max 20 sf per face; min 7 ft 6 in clearance above grade; projects ≤ 6 ft from the building face. |
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Awning, canopy & covered walkway signs
§18.32.050 · Table| Awning / canopy / covered walkway sign | 1 per frontage; 1 sf per linear ft of business frontage, max 50 sf; min 7 ft 6 in clearance; awning projects ≤ 5 ft from the wall. Allowed only on first-story frontages, IN PLACE OF a wall sign (mutually exclusive). |
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| Sign suspended below the awning/canopy/walkway | ≤ 4 sf per sign face; limited to 1 per awning/canopy/walkway. |
Window signs
§18.32.050 · Table| Window sign | 1 per business; max 35% of window OR door area (not both). |
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Portable / sandwich board signs
§18.32.050 · Table| Sandwich board sign | 1 per tenant; max 8 sf, 4 ft tall, 2 ft wide. Must be placed directly in front of the tenant's space, keep 72 in. of sidewalk clear, and stay ≥ 30 ft from a corner intersection. |
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Digital electronic message board
§18.32.030(i) · §18.32.050| Number & size | 1 per building tenant; 1 sf per linear ft of business frontage, max 40 sf within 10 ft of a property line, 80 sf total; max height 8 ft; monument/freestanding signs only. |
|---|---|
| Message content | ≤ 50% of the sign face; static messages, ≥ 8 second hold; no flashing, rotating, scintillating, strobing, video, or animation. |
| Brightness | ≤ .3 footcandles above ambient light; automatic dimmer software or solar sensors required. |
| Location restriction | Not permitted within 300 ft of I-70 or any state/federal highway in Golden. |
See the exact numbers
Height, setback, area, count, and lighting limits for Nonresidential zones (Commercial, Corridor & Industrial) — cited to the code section, ready to quote from.
Get notified at launch- The Downtown Area (§18.32.075, boundary defined in Ch. 18.40 Div. VI — not on the zoning GIS layer) adds restrictions on top of these numbers: wall-mount-only illumination, digital EMCs prohibited entirely, and awning/canopy/covered-walkway signs capped at 12 sf instead of 50 sf. Confirm with the city if the address is in the downtown core.
- Total sign area for any one property may not exceed 500 sq ft, regardless of how the per-type allowances below add up.
Residential (R-E, R-1, R-1A, R-2)
Zones like R-E
§18.32.040(a) — the whole of Golden's low-density residential sign standard. A single flat allowance per lot, no permit required, and no illumination allowed at all — the simplest (and most restrictive) residential standard of any covered city so far.
Flat per-lot allowance, no frontage formula: Golden's low-density residential districts get a flat 24 sq ft aggregate sign allowance per lot (6 sq ft per face) — not a per-linear-foot calculation, and no illumination is allowed at all.
Residential sign (any type)
§18.32.040(a)| Sign area | 6 sq ft per sign face; 24 sq ft aggregate total per lot or parcel |
|---|---|
| Max height | 4 ft; otherwise subject to the same locational restrictions as fences and shrubs in the same district |
| Illumination | Not allowed |
| Permit | Not required |
Double-faced signs count only one face toward the area limit. Both temporary and permanent signage count toward the same 24 sq ft total allowance.
See the exact numbers
Height, setback, area, count, and lighting limits for Residential (R-E, R-1, R-1A, R-2) — cited to the code section, ready to quote from.
Get notified at launch- No permit is required for a compliant sign under this section — but it must still meet the size, height, and no-illumination limits.
Residential R-3
Zones like R-3
§18.32.040(b) — R-3 gets its own, more permissive standard: area scales with street frontage rather than a flat per-lot cap, and illumination is allowed (subject to §18.32.060(c) and a no-spillover-onto-adjacent-residential restriction).
Frontage-based allowance (per 150 ft), not a flat cap: Unlike Golden's other residential zones, R-3 scales with street frontage: 24 sq ft per 150 ft of frontage, illumination allowed (with a no-spillover restriction onto neighboring residential property).
Residential sign (any type)
§18.32.040(b)| Sign area | 24 sq ft total per 150 ft of street frontage |
|---|---|
| Max height | 4 ft; otherwise subject to the same locational restrictions as fences and shrubs in the same district |
| Illumination | Allowed, subject to §18.32.060(c); may not project onto any adjacent residential premises |
| Permit | Not required |
Both temporary and permanent signage count toward the same per-150-ft allowance.
See the exact numbers
Height, setback, area, count, and lighting limits for Residential R-3 — cited to the code section, ready to quote from.
Get notified at launch- No permit is required for a compliant sign under this section — but it must still meet the size, height, and illumination-spillover limits.
- Illumination may not project onto any adjacent residential premises (§18.32.060(c)).
Sign permits in Golden
City of Golden Building Division — (303) 384-8151 (sign/building permits); Planning — (303) 384-8097 (sign review)
Golden sign code FAQ
What is the sign code for Golden, Colorado?
Golden's sign regulations are set by Ch. 18.32 Signs · Municode, and vary by zoning district. Sightline tracks 3 verified zone families for Golden below, each with wall, freestanding, and other sign-type limits cited to the exact section.
Do I need a permit for a sign in Golden?
In nearly every Colorado municipality, including Golden, permanent signs — wall signs, channel letters, cabinets, monument signs — require a sign permit. Golden's permit process is linked below. Always confirm with the authority having jurisdiction before finalizing a design.
Look up an exact address in Golden
Get the live zoning district and the sign limits that apply to a specific parcel, with a frontage calculator and a permit-ready citation.
Get notified at launch