(a) The property owner shall maintain all signs in a safe and attractive condition for the intended use. For the purposes of this Chapter, a sign is not legally maintained if any of the following occur: the appearance of rust, cracks, electrical defects, fraying, chipped paint or other materials, structural defects or other defects. Such factors shall cause it to be presumed that a sign is not being legally maintained.
(b) The property owner of such a sign may receive notice from the Zoning Inspector to return the sign to its original satisfactory condition within sixty (60) days of the date of maintained in accordance with this Zoning Code or other applicable regulations of the City, are hereby declared to be a nuisance contributing to visual blight and are hereby determined to be in violation of this Zoning Code. The property owner also has a continuing obligation to comply with the Ohio Basic Building Code.
(c) If the sign is deemed by the Zoning Inspector to be in an unsafe condition, the owner of the property shall be immediately notified, in writing, and shall, within 48 hours of such notification, correct such unsafe condition or remove the sign. If the correction has not been made within 48 hours, the Zoning Inspector may remove such unsafe sign or cause such unsafe sign to be removed, repaired or maintained at the expense of the property owner. To recover the costs from the property owner, the City may certify the total cost, together with a proper description of the land, to the Hamilton County Auditor to place such costs upon the tax duplicate, or the City may commence a civil action against the property owner for the costs.
(d) All lighting of signs shall be fully functional as designed or the lighting shall be turned off until such time as such non-functioning lighting has been fixed.
(e) Whenever any sign, either conforming or nonconforming to this Chapter, is required to be removed for the purpose of repair, re-lettering or repainting, the same may be done without obtaining a permit or paying fees, provided that all of the following conditions are met:
(1) There is no alteration or remodeling to the structure or the mounting of the sign itself.
(2) There is no enlargement or increase in any of the dimensions of the sign or its structure.
(3) The sign is accessory to a legally permitted or legally nonconforming use.