The following requirements and provisions shall be applicable to all sign installations as regulated by this chapter, both on-site and off-site, whether permanent or temporary.
(A) Construction and installation standards. All signs, sign structures and other components including electrical features, shall be designed, constructed and installed in accordance with the requirements of all applicable codes, ordinances and regulations previously adopted, or subsequently adopted, by the city. Those codes and ordinances shall dictate such standards as the means of structural support, allowable stresses, construction materials, wind loads, vibration resistance, seismic loads, electrical wiring and the like.
(B) Sign label. The building permit number as required by the City of Yuma Building Safety Division shall be permanently affixed to each sign installation, whether permanent or temporary, for which a building permit is required under this chapter. Any temporary signage for which no permit is required under this chapter shall be affixed with the telephone number of the sign owner. Such information shall be affixed by a weatherproof label, inscription or other permanent means, in a manner legible upon close inspection.
(C) Maintenance. Every sign shall be maintained in a safe, presentable and good structural condition at all times, including the replacement of defective parts, repainting, cleaning and other acts necessary for the maintenance of said sign. If the sign is not made to comply with adequate safety standards, the City Building Official may require its removal in accordance with the provisions of division (E) below of this chapter.
(D) Damaged or deteriorated signage. Any sign or structure which is damaged or has deteriorated to an extent that the cost of repair equals 50% or more of the replacement value of the sign if sound, shall either be rebuilt or replaced in conformance with the standards and requirements of this chapter, or be removed altogether.
(E) Sign removal. The Building Official shall cause the repair or removal of any sign that endangers the public safety, such as materially dangerous, electrically or structurally defective sign or an abandoned sign, according to the following provisions. The following provisions pertaining to notice, appeal and reoccurrence shall also apply to all signage which is temporary signage extending beyond the permitted time limits according to the criteria specified by § 154-17.03(D) of this chapter.
(1) Notice. Written notice shall be sent to the owner of the sign if it is an off-site sign, or to the owner of the premises upon which an on-site sign is situated. Such notice shall identify any hazards, defects and deficiencies of the sign or sign structure, and the specific section(s) of this chapter or other applicable building code or ordinance adopted by the city to which the violations pertain. Said notice shall further indicate what repairs or other action, if any, would correct the violation(s) as noted, and shall specify a period of 30 days for either the repair or removal to be accomplished.
(2) Appeal. The owner of the sign, or the owner of the building or property, upon which it is situated, may appeal the order of the Building Official for removal or repair, by filing a written notice with the Building Official within ten days after receipt of the notice, for final consideration by the appropriate city board. The Board of Appeals shall consider appeals pertaining to the building code; the Electrical Advisory Board shall consider appeals pertaining to the electrical code; and the Board of Adjustment shall consider appeals pertaining to removal of abandoned signage, as well as any appeals from any interpretation made by the Zoning Administrator.
(3) Emergency. Should the Building Official determine that the sign or structure causes imminent danger to the public safety, contact shall be made with the owner to require immediate removal or correction. In the event that contact cannot be made with the owner, or the owner fails to correct the danger, the Building Official shall correct the danger by ordering the sign removal. Any sign removed by the Building Official pursuant to such emergency shall be disposed of in the manner deemed appropriate by City Council, upon recommendation by the Building Official. All costs associated with removal of such sign by the city, including all incidental costs, shall be considered a debt owed to the city by the owner of the sign if it is an off-site sign, or the owner of the property if it is an on-site sign, and shall be recovered in the following manner.
(a) The Building Official shall submit a report to the City Clerk for public hearing by the City Council. Such report shall include a description of the work done, an itemized account of all expenses incurred, a legal description of the property upon which the signage is or was located, and the name(s) and address(es) of the property owner and/or sign owner, if reasonably ascertainable.
(b) The City Clerk shall cause notice of the public hearing to be posted on the property involved, published once in a newspaper of general circulation within the city, and served by certified mail to the owner of the property if it is an on-site sign, according to the names and addresses shown on the county assessment roll, and to the owner of the sign if it is an off-site sign if such name and address are reasonably ascertainable. Such notice as specified herein shall be given at least ten days prior to the hearing, and shall further specify the day, hour and place for the hearing.
(c) At the conclusion of the public hearing, the City Council shall confirm or deny the report, with or without any modifications as it deems appropriate, and shall determine whether the charges are to be recovered by personal obligation of the property owner. Should Council order that the charges shall be a personal obligation of the property owner and/or the sign owner, the City Attorney shall be authorized to collect the same by use of all appropriate legal remedies.
(F) Locations within right-of-way. No sign shall be located within any existing or prospective public street right-of-way as classified by the circulation element of the Yuma General Plan, nor shall any portion of a sign or sign structure overhang such right-of-way, except as provided in this code.
('80 Code, App. A, § 161) (Ord. 583, passed 9-16-1952; Ord. 2193, passed 3-21-1984; Ord. 2243, passed 12-19-1984; Ord. O2005-91, passed 10-5-2005) Penalty, see § 154-999
(G) Balloons and inflatable devices. The following applies to the use of balloons and other inflatable devices used as signs.
(1) Individual balloons/inflatable devices or strings of balloons shall not be higher than the building located on the site.
(2) Individual balloons/inflatable devices or strings of balloons shall be tethered to the ground a distance from the property line equal to the balloon height.
(3) Individual balloons/inflatable devices or strings of balloons are required to be maintained solely on the property of the business for which it is advertising.
(4) Individual balloons/inflatable devices or strings or balloons are not allowed to cross into the right-of-way, whether in the air or on the ground.
(5) Individual balloons/inflatable devices or strings of balloons are not allowed to be cut loose or to blow away. The maintenance and disposal of the balloons is the responsibility of the business that they are advertising. Balloons must be removed and disposed of properly.
(6) The provision of § 154-14.02(C)(3) development standards in the AutoCenter Overlay District does not apply to balloons and inflatable devices.
('80 Code, App. A, § 161) (Ord. 583, passed 9-16-1952; Ord. 2193, passed 3-21-1984; Ord. 2243, passed 12-19-1984; Ord. O2005-91, passed 10-5-2005; Ord. O2007-52, passed 10-3-2007; Ord. O2010-09, passed 2-3-2010; Ord. O2010-32, passed 7-7-2010) Penalty, see § 154-999