A. No sign permit shall become valid until the applicant has paid to the director of finance administration a permit fee for fees in an amount or amounts as may have been established by resolution of the council.
B. No fee shall be required for graphics, murals, etchings, or stained or painted glass that has no name, logo, symbol, or commercial identification attached or associated therewith, or for signs for the public safety and convenience, or for the signs described in section 10-4-202 of this article and subsection 10-4-806C of this chapter.
C. Whenever any sign for which a permit fee is required pursuant to subsection A of this section has been installed, replaced, or altered without first having obtained a permit, a special investigation shall be made before a permit may be issued for such work. An investigation fee, in addition to the permit fee, shall be collected, whether or not a permit is then or subsequently issued. The investigation fee shall be five (5) times the amount of the permit fee required pursuant to this code and shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00). The payment of such investigation fee shall not exempt any person from compliance with all other provisions of this code nor from any penalty prescribed by law. (Ord. 80-O-1775, eff. 12-5-1980; amd. Ord. 04-O-2457, eff. 11-30-2004; Ord. 05-O-2459, eff. 1-5-2005; Ord. 05-O-2476, eff. 7-5-2005; Ord. 05-O-2480, eff. 9-2-2005)