(a) Owners, lessees or holders of permits for existing billboards shall, within sixty days of the effective date of this chapter, apply to the Building Commissioner on forms provided by the Building Department for an inspection of each billboard under their responsibility. The application shall include:
(1) The age and original cost of the billboard;
(2) The name and address of the billboard owner and of the owner or lessee of the property on which the billboard is located;
(3) A copy of all permits, licenses or variances issued for the billboard by the City of Brook Park, the Department of Transportation of the State of Ohio, or any other governmental entity;
(4) A copy of the certificate of insurance covering the billboard;
(5) Plans which include the information set out in Section 1124.08(d)(3); and
(6) Photographs of the front and back of the complete billboard structure.
(b) Any existing billboard, if under permit and found on inspection to be in conformance with the Planning and Zoning Code and the Building Code of the City of Brook Park effective at the time of the original erection of the billboard, shall be classified as a legal nonconforming billboard. If an existing billboard is found to have been erected without a permit, or in violation of regulations applicable at the time of erection without an authorized variance therefor, it shall be classified as unlawful and a public nuisance. Notice of such unlawful status shall be provided to the owner of the billboard.
(c) Any unlawful billboards shall be removed within one year from the date of notice of unlawful status, or the City shall cause it to be removed at the owner's expense.
(d) Any legal nonconforming billboard shall, if otherwise found to be in like-new condition and good repair, be granted a permit.
(e) No maintenance, repair, modification or other work shall be performed on any legal nonconforming billboard which would increase the degree of nonconformance of such billboard.
(f) Maintenance, repair, modification or other work on any legal nonconforming billboard costing more than fifty percent of the billboard's replacement value will result in the City's cancellation of the legal nonconforming permit and the issuance of an order requiring the billboard to be removed or brought into conformity with this chapter.
(g) Voluntarily discontinuing use of any legal nonconforming billboard for six months or longer will result in the City's cancellation of the legal nonconforming permit and the issuance of an order for removal. The use of a legal nonconforming billboard shall be considered voluntarily discontinued when the billboard has been modified to conform to the requirements related to size, color, illumination and other construction requirements under this chapter, or when the intent of the permittee to discontinue use is otherwise apparent in the condition of the billboard. Evidence of such intent shall include, but is not limited to, billboards which have ceased to display advertising matter, which display obsolete advertising messages, which require repairs costing more than fifty percent of the replacement value of the billboard or for which neither the billboard owner nor the landowner claims any responsibility.
(Ord. 11139-2019. Passed 1-21-20.)