Board grants jurisdiction in dispute over removed wall sign; 15‑day appeal period opens

The Board of Appeals granted jurisdiction on a dispute over an outdoor advertising wall sign at 317520 Fourth Street after the property owner’s agent said the owner, Virginia Ramos, did not authorize a lease termination that led to sign removal.

Janet (Jana) Farrell, representing the owner, said the owner is not literate in English and that the termination letter attached to CBS/CVS Outdoor’s file does not bear her true authorization. CVS/CBS Outdoor’s regional real‑estate manager, Brian Fleisher, said the company had an owner authorization attached to its building‑permit application, applied for a permit to remove the sign on Nov. 12 and removed the sign on Jan. 22, 2010, after the planning department issued a letter indicating the sign was not legalized under the in‑lieu process.

Planning staff explained the City had initiated an inventory and legalization process for a set of wall signs; some signs were found to lack evidence of legality, and the in‑lieu procedure required an additional step (a building permit) to legalize them. Planning said it had sent courtesy notices in some cases where owner authorization was unclear, but that in this case the permit file contained explicit owner authorization.

The board granted jurisdiction 5–0 and ordered that a new 15‑day appeal period open the following day so the matter can be fully heard. Commissioners expressed concern for owners with limited English proficiency and recommended stronger courtesy notification when signs are removed; Planning staff acknowledged the point and said it would likely implement expanded notice practices.

Next steps: Jurisdiction is granted and a 15‑day appeal period is open; parties will have the opportunity to litigate ownership, the validity of any termination letter, and whether the removal and permit actions complied with city procedures.