§ 10.7. Preexisting nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising.

(a)

[Deadline for removal.] All existing off-premises outdoor advertising structures, which are nonconforming according to the provisions of this article, shall be discontinued and removed within ten (10) years of the effective date of this article and after receiving notice as provided for herein.

(b)

[Enlargement or extension prohibited.] No nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising structure shall be enlarged or extended whatsoever.

(c)

Enforcement of nonconforming signs. At the end of ten (10) years from the effective date of this article, the owner of any nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising structure, other than those nonconforming due to spacing requirements only as per subsection 10.5.(d) above, shall be notified by certified mail to commence removal of said off-premises outdoor advertising structure within thirty (30) days of the date of said notice, with said removal to be completed within sixty (60) days. If, at the end of this sixty-day time period allotted for removal of said advertising structure, the owner fails to remove said structure, the City of Patterson is authorized to enter upon the property where the sign is located and to dismantle and remove said structure from the premises at the risk of the sign owner, to store the sign, and collect from the sign owner the cost of dismantling, removing, transporting, and storing the sign.

(d)

Substandard nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising. Those signs in the categories described below shall be removed within thirty (30) days from the effective date of this article or within thirty (30) days of the date such sign deteriorates or is damaged as described below:

(1)

A nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising sign structure which becomes a safety hazard or dangerous under any applicable ordinance and for which the cost of placing such structure in lawful compliance with the applicable ordinance exceeds fifty (50) percent of the value of the damaged or deteriorated sign structure; or

(2)

A nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising structure damaged in any manner and from any cause whatsoever to the extent of more than fifty (50) percent of the value of the damaged or deteriorated sign structure; or

(3)

A nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising structure which is not maintained in a state of good repair.

(e)

Enforcement of substandard nonconforming off-premises outdoor advertising. The city shall serve thirty (30) days notice, by certified mail with return receipt, to the owner of such sign, to remove the same. In the event that the owner of an unlawful advertising sign fails or refuses to remove said sign after the thirty (30) days notice from the City of Patterson, as specified above, the city is authorized to enter upon the property whereupon the sign is located and to dismantle and remove the unlawful sign from the premises at the risk of the sign owner, to store the sign, and to collect from the sign owner the cost of dismantling, removing, transporting, and storing the sign.

(Ord. No. 565, § 7, 7-2-2002)