19.23.140 Sign removal.

(A) The following signs shall be subject to removal:

(1) Prohibited signs: any sign prohibited by this chapter;

(2) Illegal signs: any sign erected or altered in violation of any ordinance or regulation in effect at the time of its erection or alteration;

(3) Abandoned signs: a sign which advertises or identifies a business, lessor, owner, product, service, or activity which has been discontinued on the premises for a period of thirty days or more and which is hereby declared a public nuisance;

(4) Damaged signs: any nonconforming sign which has been more than fifty percent damaged, and the damage cannot be corrected simply by copy replacement;

(5) Any sign which is or may become a danger to the public or is unsafe;

(6) Any sign which constitutes a traffic hazard not created by relocation of streets or highways or by acts of any city or county;

(7) Any sign failing to comply with the design, construction and maintenance standards.

(B) The community development director shall remove or cause the removal of any sign constructed, altered or maintained in violation of this chapter.

(1) Except for subsection (A)(6) above, such removal may occur fifteen days after the date of mailing of registered or certified written notice to the owner of the sign, if known, at the last known address or to the owner of the property as shown on the latest assessment roll, or to the occupant of the property at the property address. The notice shall describe the sign and specify the violation involved, and indicate that the sign will be removed if the violation is not corrected within fifteen days.

(2) If the owner disagrees with the opinion of the director, the owner may, within the fifteen-day period, request a hearing before the planning commission to determine the existence of a violation.

(3) In addition to other remedies hereunder, the city shall have the right to recover from the owner or person placing such a sign the full costs of removal and disposal of such sign.

(4) When it is determined that the sign in question poses an imminent safety hazard or dangerous condition or constitutes a traffic hazard not created by relocation of streets or highways or by acts of any city or county, such sign may be removed immediately and stored by the community development director. As soon as possible following removal, the owner, if known, shall be given a notice of violation and the right to a hearing by requesting such hearing within five days of receipt of the notice of removal. The hearing shall be held before the community development director or designee within ten days of receipt of the written request for the hearing. The owner and the city shall be permitted to present evidence and cross examine each other's witnesses. At the conclusion of the hearing, the community development director or designee shall prepare a written decision. This decision shall be delivered to the owner personally or by certified mail within ten days of the hearing. The owner may appeal the decision in accordance with subsection (B)(2). If the owner establishes such removal to be improper, the owner shall be entitled to a return of the signs without charge. In all other cases the sign will be returned to the owner only upon payment of removal and storage costs. If the sign is not claimed within thirty days after the decision becomes final, the sign may be destroyed.