(a) All signs erected following the effective date of this legislation shall comply with all the provisions of this legislation. The City Manager shall make a complete study and catalog of all legal signs conforming and nonconforming, including a photograph of each sign. All legal nonconforming signs in existence at the time of the enactment of this Chapter shall be so designated and may continue to exist. The owner, lessee, or operator of the business utilizing such nonconforming signs shall be so advised. Such nonconforming signs may be repaired and maintained in the configuration that exists at the time of the enactment of this Chapter.
(b) Signs that do not conform to the provisions of the regulations or whose use has been discontinued for a minimum of ninety (90) days by virtue of the business being discontinued or the sign being removed, or whose appearance has become dilapidated, unreadable or obsolete, shall be removed by the owner, lessee or operator of the business upon which such sign is located, within thirty (30) days after the expiration of such ninety (90) day period or upon the happening of one of the aforesaid events. The procedure for enforcement of such removal shall be the same as is provided in Section 1331.18. Use of the sign to advertise the premises for sale or lease or use of the sign for a commercial message related to a business no longer conducted at the premises after the thirty (30) day period allowed under Section 1331.11 shall not be considered a "use" of the sign for purposes of maintaining its lawful nonconforming status under this Section.
(c) Provided, however, that any sign that has been damaged by an act of God or by any act beyond the control of the owner, lessee or operator of the business upon which such device is located, shall be entitled to be repaired to its configuration prior to the damage, provided that such repair is completed within sixty (60) days of such damage unless such time frame is otherwise extended in writing by the City Manager.
(d) The mere sale of a business or business premises or the change of occupancy on a business premises shall have no effect on the nonconforming status of a sign, except where the sign remains unused for the period specified in subsection (b) of this Section, in which case subsection (b) shall apply.
(e) If at any time the owner or occupant of a non-residential premises on which a nonconforming sign is located applies for a permit for a new sign, except for a temporary sign in accordance with Section 1331.04 (h) (2) hereof, issuance of the permit shall be conditioned on the owner bringing the nonconforming sign into conformance with this Chapter during the course of the other work covered by the permit. If the premises are occupied by multiple tenants, this subsection shall apply only to a sign actually used or controlled by the applicant for the permit, not to signs used or controlled by other tenants or occupants.
(Ord. 13-2012. Passed 10-15-12; Ord. 12-2016. Passed 11-21-16.)