(a) Except as otherwise provided in this article, no person shall construct, erect, operate, use, maintain or cause or permit to be constructed, erected, operated, used or maintained any advertising structure, outdoor advertising sign or outdoor advertisement in the City without first obtaining a permit therefor from the City and paying the annual fee therefor, as herein provided. The City shall not issue such a permit to any person who has not obtained the license provided in Section 1731.04.
(b) A separate application for a permit shall be made for each separate advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure, on a form furnished by the City, which application shall be signed by the applicant or his representative duly authorized in writing to act for him, and shall describe and set forth the size, shape and the nature of the proposed advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure and its actual or proposed location with sufficient accuracy to enable the city to locate and identify it. Every application shall be accompanied by a fee of seven dollars and fifty cents ($7.50) for each advertising sign, display or device, which shall be retained by the Council if the permit is issued. In addition, a nonrefundable inspection fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) shall be charged for each proposed new location of a structure along all public roads. An annual permit renewal fee of seven dollars and fifty cents ($7.50) shall be charged for renewal of each sign, display or device annually. Each portion or side of an advertising structure upon which an advertisement is posted or displayed shall constitute a separate advertising structure for the purposes of this section. If the permit is refused, the City shall refund one-half the fee to the applicant. Each application shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant or his agent that the owner or other person in control of possession of the real property upon which such advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure is to be constructed, erected, operated, used, maintained, posted or displayed has consented thereto. Application shall be made in like manner for a permit to operate, use, maintain or display any existing advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure. Permits issued hereunder shall expire on June 30 of each year and shall not be prorated, and may be renewed upon the payment of the same fee required to be paid upon application for a permit. No application shall be required for a renewal of a permit.
(c) If more than one side of an advertising structure is used for advertising, a fee for each such side shall be required. Advertisements sculptured in the round shall be treated as using three sides.
(d) The holder of a permit shall, during the term thereof, have the right to change the advertising copy on the structure or sign for which it was issued without payment of any additional fee.
(e) The City may, after thirty days’ notice in writing to the permittee, revoke any permit issued by it under this section upon repayment of a proportionate part of the fee in any case where it shall appear to the City that the application for the permit contains knowingly false or misleading information or that the permittee has violated any of the provisions of this article, unless such permittee shall, before the expiration of such thirty days, correct such false or misleading information and comply with the provisions of this article. If the construction, erection, operation, use, maintenance and display of any advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure, for which a permit has been issued by the City and the permit fee has been paid as above provided, shall be prevented by any zoning board, commission or other public agency which also has jurisdiction over the proposed advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure, or its site, the fee for such advertisement, advertising sign or advertising structure shall be returned by the City and the permit revoked. However, one-half the fee shall be deemed to have accrued upon the erection of an advertising sign or advertising structure or the display of an advertisement followed by an inspection by the City or its representatives.
(f) Any person aggrieved by any action of the City in refusing to grant or in revoking a permit under this section, may, within thirty days from the date of such refusal or revocation, appeal from the decision of the City to the Circuit court of the County by presenting to the Court or the judge thereof in vacation, after five days’ notice in writing to the City, an affidavit made by such person or by his duly authorized agent or attorney, setting forth the fact of such refusal or revocation, as the case may be, and that the action of the City was without cause.
(Amended 6-30-08.)