The Cal. Business and Professional Code, Subsection 5499.1, identifies the appropriate procedure for removal of on-premises illegal or abandoned signs. Therefore, the following shall regulate such signs.
(a) Abandoned Commercial Freestanding Signs. A sign shall be determined to be abandoned when the business, use, or service it advertises has been discontinued for a period of more than 90 calendar days. Removal of text used to advertise a business and continued maintenance of the sign structure does not constitute abandonment. If a sign has been abandoned, it shall be removed from the lot or building site on which it is located pursuant to the following procedure:
(1) The City shall prepare a notice of intent to adopt a resolution declaring specific signs to be a public nuisance. Such notice shall be sent ten days prior to the hearing to all sign owners and/or responsible parties stating the time, place and date of the hearing and the nature of illegality of the sign(s).
(2) Following adoption of the resolution, the City shall post subject properties requiring abatement of signs noticing the time, date, and place of hearing on objections. The notice shall be in the following form:
NOTICE TO REMOVE ILLEGAL ADVERTISING DISPLAY
Notice is hereby given that on the ____ day of _______, 20__, the City Council of the City of Canyon Lake adopted a resolution declaring that an illegal advertising display is located upon or in front of this property which constitutes a public nuisance and must be abated by the removal of the illegal display. Otherwise, it will be removed, and the nuisance abated by the City.
The cost of removal will be assessed upon the property from or in front of which the display is removed and will constitute a lien upon the property until paid. Reference is hereby made to the resolution for further particulars. A copy of this resolution is on file in the office of the clerk of the legislative body.
All property owners having any objection to the proposed removal of the display are hereby notified to attend a meeting of the City Council of the City of Canyon Lake to be held (give date, time, and place), when their objections will be heard and given due consideration.
Dated this _________ day of ______, 20______
____________________________________
(Title)
City of Canyon Lake, CA
(3) The City Council shall hold the hearing and adopt the abatement process directing the owners and/or responsible parties to remove the sign(s) by a certain date.
(4) An owner and/or responsible parties may submit an appeal of the City Council's actions within ten calendar days after the date of the decision by the City Council, an appeal in writing may be made on the form provided by the Planning Department and which shall be accompanied by a filing fee as set forth in Chapter No. 671. Upon receipt of a completed appeal the Planning Director shall set the matter for hearing and mail notice thereof to the applicant and the appellant. City Council's action on the appeal shall be considered final.
(5) The owner and/or responsible party shall be responsible for all costs of abatement, including the costs of the application. If an owner and/or responsible party fails to remove the sign within the specified time frame, the City shall cause the sign to be removed and the cost shall be assessed to the owner and/or responsible party as provided by Cal. Business and Professions Code Section 5499 et seq.
(b) Illegal Signs. Any sign erected without a permit and/or erected in contravention to regulations in existence at the time of its erection or placement is considered to be an illegal sign. Illegal signs shall be abated pursuant to the same procedure identified for removal of abandoned signs, in this Section (subsections (a)(1) through (a)(4) above).
(c) Legal Nonconforming Signs.
(1) A legal nonconforming sign shall not be:
(A) Structurally altered to extend its useful life that may include but is not limited to repainting and other maintenance tasks.
(B) Expanded, moved or relocated.
(C) Reestablished after a business has been discontinued for a continuous period of 90 days.
(D) Reestablished after damage or destruction of more than 50% of the sign.
(E) Reestablished after a change in use of the property or business to which the sign relates.
(2) Any permanent sign which was properly erected pursuant to laws and regulations in existence at the time of its erection of placement, but which does not meet the requirements of this Chapter, shall be allowed to be brought into conformance, in accordance with Section 9.25.040 of this Code.
(3) Any legal nonconforming sign shall be required to be brought into conformance or abated in advance of the requirements of Section 9.25.040 in conjunction with any conditional use permit or development permit which is hereafter granted on the same site.
(Ord. 221, passed 7-6-2022)