Yesterday Billboard Insider noted that some states and municipalities require you to get a permit to take down a billboard. Out of home legal expert Richard Rothfelder, the author of Rothfelder and Falick on Billboard Law will address this issue next week. In the meantime, California out of home attorney Richard Hamlin says this about California:
I am unaware of any case where any governmental agency, or any lessor, has prosecuted or sued a billboard company for removing a billboard without a demolition permit. I also asked Protégé, Lexis’ AI, and Claude, our generic AI. Neither found any reported or unreported case. The prosecutions all went in the other direction, for construction of a billboard without a permit.
In Los Angeles, the requirement for a demolition permit is part of the same code section that requires a permit to erect a structure, Los Angeles Municipal Code, Sec. 91.106.1.1. It reads as follows.
“91.106.1.1. Building Permits. No person shall erect, construct, alter, repair, demolish, remove or move any building or structure, nor shall any person commence any liquid washing, compressed air cleaning or steam cleaning of exterior surfaces of any building unless said person has obtained a permit therefor from the department. A separate permit shall be obtained for each separate building or structure except that a group of temporary structures erected on one site for a limited period of time may be included on one permit. (Remaining provisions omitted.)”
The section that applies specifically to billboards is Los Angeles Municipal Code, Sec. 91.6201.4. It reads as follows.
“91.6201.4. Violations. It shall be unlawful for any person to erect, construct, install, enlarge, alter, repair, move, remove, convert, demolish, use or maintain any sign or sign support structure or cause or permit those actions to be done, in violation of any of the provisions of this division.
“Any person who violates or causes or permits another person to violate any of the provisions of this division is guilty of a misdemeanor.”
The most common treatment of a code violation is to issue a Notice to Comply. Typically, compliance requires obtaining the required permit, paying the related fees, and then calling for an inspection. The penal provisions usually come into play only if the violator ignores the Notice to Comply.
Even if a lease is silent on the time to remove a sign, the most likely issue will be whether the billboard company abandoned the sign. If it removes the sign within a “reasonable” time, it is unlikely that the lessor will be able to claim it.
Often, what is “reasonable” is subject to debate. On the other hand, if the lease spells out a specific deadline and the operator misses it, the lessor may have a stronger case. As with every legal question, the only correct answer is, “It depends.”
You can reach Richard Hamlin at rhamlin@hamlinlaw.com, 310-216-2165.
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