What to know about digital signage in Scottsdale
A screen within three feet of a window is a window sign
Scottsdale treats a screen or sign placed within three feet of a window pane as a window sign. That would cover a menu board or promo screen set behind storefront glass. The rule sits in an older section of the code, so we confirm with the city.
Source: Scottsdale Zoning Ordinance, Art. VIII (Sign Requirements)
Window signs are small and limited
Permanent window signs are limited to one per business and two square feet, lit only internally, and must be inside the building. Temporary window signs may cover at most 25 percent of a pane larger than four square feet. An older section also limits window copy to business identification and a graphic symbol, but newer sections may supersede it, so ask the city which one governs a lit window screen.
Source: Scottsdale Zoning Ordinance, Art. VIII (Sign Requirements)
Drive-through menu boards are barred downtown
Drive-through signs are not allowed in the Downtown or Downtown Overlay districts. Elsewhere, where they are allowed, they are limited to two per lane and 45 square feet each, and the code says they must be screened from the street, subject to Development Review Board approval.
Source: Scottsdale Zoning Ordinance, Art. VIII (Sign Requirements)
Sign permits have a base fee and a size fee
A sign permit is required before installing any sign the ordinance regulates. The FY26-27 fee is $237 per application plus $26 to $363 per sign by size, and starting before the permit is issued doubles the fees. Signs of six square feet or less are exempt unless the building or fire code requires a permit.
Source: City of Scottsdale, FY26-27 miscellaneous permit fees
Inside the room is simplest
A menu board above a counter, a directory in a lobby or a promo screen over a retail display, none of it visible from outside, is an AV job without a sign question. Signs not visible from another lot or street are exempt from a sign permit, although electrical work still needs one where the building code requires it.
What goes on the screens
Menu boards, specials, event calendars, wayfinding and promotions all run from the same kind of system: a screen, a small media player behind it and software you use from a laptop or phone. You change a price once and it changes on every screen.
We set up the content software, build the first layouts with you and show your staff how to update them. Schedules let breakfast turn into lunch without anyone touching a screen.
Screens that suit the room
A commercial display is built to run all day, which a consumer TV is not. For storefront and patio locations, brightness matters because daylight washes out a standard screen. Landscape and portrait both work. Portrait suits lobby directories and retail.
Power and network come to each screen, so we plan the cabling at the same time. Players can be hidden behind the display or run from a rack, which makes later service easier.
- Commercial displays rated for long hours.
- High-brightness screens where sun reaches them.
- Wall-mounts with a service gap for cables.
- A wired network connection for every player when possible.
Lighting rules for permanent signs
Permanent signs in Scottsdale may be lit only by internal, internal-indirect or indirect lighting, unless the code says otherwise. Illuminated signs get an electrical inspection, and exposed LEDs on signs are prohibited unless used for indirect lighting. If your screen faces out, those lines come into play.
Commercial signs must be installed by an Arizona general contractor or sign contractor. For a screen that counts as a sign, we plan the permit and the contractor before we order equipment.
From walkthrough to live screens
- Walk the space and pick screen spots, noting which ones can be seen from outside.
- Ask the city about any screen near glass or facing the street.
- Mount and cable the screens, usually after hours.
- Set up players, software and first layouts.
- Train your staff. Service runs Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
Sharing a rack
Signage often shares a rack and network with TV and video distribution, and a larger feature screen may be an LED video wall. The Scottsdale page has the full list. Call (602) 769-7992 and tell us which screens face a window.
