Section 28.2 Procedures and Enforcement
The Planning and Zoning Administrator is responsible for enforcing this chapter pursuant to Sections 21.2.B.7 and 21.4.B.9. The Planning and Zoning Administrator is hereby authorized and empowered to ensure that all provisions of this chapter are met in fact and intent. The Planning and Zoning Administrator may appoint a designee to assure code compliance. The procedures to be followed in exercising this authority are outlined in Sections 28.2.C through F.
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Review Process |
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Application |
Formal |
Staff Review |
Administrative |
Planning and |
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Sign Permit |
X |
X |
X |
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Sign Criteria |
X |
X |
X |
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Master Sign Program |
X |
X |
X |
X |
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((O)17-05, 06/07/17)
A. Sign Permits, Fees, and Application Procedures
1. A sign permit shall be required in order to erect, install, relocate, modify, or change any sign within the Town of Oro Valley.
2. Approval of all temporary sign permits shall be at the discretion of the Planning and Zoning Administrator or his/her designee.
3. The Planning and Zoning Administrator or his/her designee shall authorize issuance of permits for permanent signs after applications have been reviewed by staff for code compliance. Any proposed Master Sign Program, amendments thereto, or PAD exemption is subject to review by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Once sign applications have been approved, any issuance of sign permits shall meet the approved sign standards for that development.
4. All electrical work associated with the sign installation must conform to the currently adopted versions of the National Electrical Code and must be reflected on the application.
5. Permit Fees
a. Upon approval of an application for the sign permit, the applicant shall be advised of the applicable fee. Permits will not be issued until all applicable fees have been collected. Fees shall be assessed according to a schedule adopted by the Town Council.
b. Exception: The owner of a nonconforming sign shall not be required to pay a fee for a permit to bring an existing sign into conformance with this Code.
6. Application shall be in accordance with Town policy.
7. Permit Expiration
a. All permits issued under this chapter, unless otherwise stipulated, shall expire by limitation and become null and void if the work authorized by such permit is not completed within one hundred eighty (180) days from the date of such permit. Prior to expiration of the permit, the applicant may request an extension of the expiration date at the discretion of the Planning and Zoning Administrator and/or his/her appointee. Once the permit has expired, before such work can recommence, a new permit shall first be obtained and the fee shall be fifty percent (50%) of the amount required for a new permit for such work, provided no changes have been, or will be, made to the original plans and specifications.
b. Any sign for which renewal fees have not been paid, and said remittance is delinquent for fourteen (14) or more days, is deemed to be an illegal sign, and said sign must be removed in accordance with the requirements of this chapter.
B. Sign Criteria and Master Sign Program
Sign Criteria and Master Sign Programs are official documents that regulate signage within a multi-business site or development. An approved Sign Criteria or Master Sign Program is required prior to issuance of a sign permit for: (1) nonresidential multiple-occupancy buildings; (2) commercial, office, resorts, and/or industrial centers.
Any development, including single-occupancy developments within and/or adjacent to an existing development that share access and/or parking with that development, must: (1) follow the approved Sign Criteria or Master Sign Program for the existing development; or (2) submit a Sign Criteria or Master Sign Program. If the owner elects to follow the criteria or program of the existing center, no additional approvals are required prior to review and issuance of the sign permit.
1. Sign Criteria
a. A Sign Criteria is a set of proposed sign standards for a development that complies with the provisions of this chapter and Addendum A, Design Guidelines. Sign Criteria for areas within a PAD (Planned Area Development) shall comply with the provisions of the PAD.
b. A Sign Criteria requires review and approval by the Planning and Zoning Administrator.
2. Master Sign Program
a. A Master Sign Program is a set of proposed sign standards for a development that proposed alternatives to the provisions of this chapter, and is intended to provide latitude in order to achieve variety and good design.
b. Master Sign Programs shall be based on the provisions of this chapter and shall conform to the purpose and intent of this chapter and to Addendum A, Design Guidelines.
c. Master Sign Programs shall include only those sign types permitted herein and may allow adjustments to the standards of those types, provided they are justifiable.
d. Master Sign Programs are intended to allow adjustments to the standards of multiple sign types and shall not be used for single-occupancy developments.
e. Master Sign Programs require review by the Planning and Zoning Commission and approval by the Town Council.
f. Compliance with these provisions does not guarantee approval by the Town Council.
3. Review of Sign Criteria and/or Master Sign Program shall be guided by the following:
a. Overall character of the entire development, including landscaping, architecture, topography, uses, and design.
b. Compliance with the criteria specified in Addendum A, Design Guidelines A-C.4 and the purpose statements of this chapter.
c. Any other applicable information that may be useful in the overall presentation of the proposed criteria for the development.
4. Consistency of typeface, illumination, and color is preferred if Sign Criteria or Master Sign Program have been approved, and then all requirements of that criteria or program must be utilized.
5. Application for Sign Criteria and/or Master Sign Program shall be updated in accordance with subsection A.5 of this section, Application, by the Planning and Zoning Administrator.
C. PAD Exemption
In the event that a Planned Area Development District (PAD) has established its own sign requirements, the owner of lands within the PAD, as determined by the Planning and Zoning Administrator, may elect to operate under all or a portion of this Chapter 28, Signs, in accordance with the procedures set forth below:
1. A letter requesting exemption from the specific PAD sign regulations must be submitted by the property owner within the PAD with a list of all homeowner/master associations within the affected area. The request shall be reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
2. Not less than thirty (30) days prior to the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, Town staff shall verify the list of homeowners’ associations for accuracy and completeness and shall notify them by first class mail of the Planning and Zoning Commission hearing date.
3. The Planning and Zoning Commission shall forward a recommendation to Town Council. The Town Council shall approve, conditionally approve, or deny the request.
D. Violations
1. Revocation of Permit
The Planning and Zoning Administrator may, in writing, suspend or revoke a permit issued under provisions of this section whenever the permit is issued on the basis of a material omission or misstatement of fact, or is in violation of this chapter or the Oro Valley Town Code.
2. Signs Placed in the Public Right-of-Way
In the event that the requirements for temporary signs in the right-of-way are violated, the following procedures will be followed:
a. First Violation
The sign owner will be notified of the violation, the sign will be confiscated, and a recovery fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per sign will be assessed.
b. Second Violation by the Same Sign Owner
The sign owner will be notified of the violation. The sign will be confiscated and the sign owner will be assessed a fine of fifty dollars ($50.00) per sign.
c. Third Violation by the Same Owner Within One Year
The sign owner will be notified of the violation. The sign will be confiscated and the sign owner will be assessed a fine of one hundred dollars ($100.00) per sign.
d. A maximum of five hundred dollars ($500.00) in fines may be assessed to a sign owner per calendar year.
e. Additional Violations
i. Any additional violation by the same sign owner is subject to revocation of the sign permit.
ii. If a sign permit is revoked due to a violation, the permit fee shall not be refunded.
3. Sign Lighting
Documentation from the sign and/or sign lighting manufacturer, proving compliance with the lighting standards, shall be required at the time of permit submittal. Those documents will be kept on file at the Town as evidence of code compliance for follow-up inspections and complaints.
E. Abandoned, Illegal, Prohibited, or Inadequately Maintained Signs
If an abandoned, illegal, prohibited, or inadequately maintained sign is located within the Town, the Planning and Zoning Administrator shall be empowered to issue a citation. The Planning and Zoning Administrator may also require removal or repair of the sign and shall advise the owner of said sign, or as an alternative, the owner of the property where said sign has been posted, to correct whatever violation or inadequacy he/she deems to exist. All actual costs and expenses of any such removal or repair shall be borne by the property owner of such sign.
F. Emergency Removals and/or Repair
1. The Planning and Zoning Administrator is authorized to cause the immediate removal or repair of any sign or signs found to be unsafe or defective to the extent that it creates an immediate and emergency hazard to persons or property. The Planning and Zoning Administrator shall make reasonable effort to notify the property owner and/or lessee that the unsafe or defective sign must be removed or repaired immediately. The Planning and Zoning Administrator may cause any sign or advertising structure which is an immediate peril to persons or property to be removed immediately after an attempt is made to reach the owner of the sign and the owner of the property, and without notice if the peril does not allow time for additional notice.
2. All actual costs and expenses of any sign removal or repair shall be borne by the owner of such sign and by the owner of the premises on which the sign is located. Each of them shall be jointly and severally liable therefor, and an action for recovery thereof may be brought by the Town upon proper documentation of such cost and/or expenses by the Planning and Zoning Administrator. The Planning and Zoning Administrator shall provide written notification to the property owner prior to the Town placing a lien on the property with the Pima County Assessor’s Office.