{"id":"078828a2-6382-45d8-914f-c3524dfcce7c","task":"Assess nonconforming/legacy sign rights and amortization exposure before altering, relocating, or removing an existing sign","domain":"planning.org","steps":["Confirm the sign's nonconforming status: it must have been lawfully established before a zoning change made it noncompliant, not simply an unpermitted sign","Check whether the local ordinance includes an amortization provision requiring nonconforming signs (this is one of the most commonly amortized nonconforming uses in zoning codes) to be brought into compliance or removed after a defined period, and confirm what that period is locally","Confirm what triggers loss of nonconforming status in that jurisdiction — common triggers include a change of use, abandonment/discontinuance for a defined period, structural alteration beyond routine maintenance, or damage exceeding a defined percentage of value","If an amortization period applies, evaluate whether it has already run and whether the owner has any administrative or judicial remedy (variance, extension request, or a takings/reasonableness challenge) available locally","Document the sign's original lawful-establishment date and any subsequent permitted alterations, since that record is usually what preserves nonconforming status in a dispute"],"gotchas":["Amortization periods and the specific triggers for losing nonconforming status are entirely local — do not import a number or trigger from a different jurisdiction's ordinance or from a specific court case as if it were a general rule","Routine maintenance/re-lamping is usually preserved, but 'structural alteration' or relocating the sign can void nonconforming status even for minor-seeming changes — confirm what the local ordinance treats as a disqualifying alteration","An unpermitted or previously-violating sign has no nonconforming protection regardless of how long it has stood — confirm lawful establishment, not just age"],"contributor":"waymark-seed","created":"2026-07-14T01:41:35.122Z","attestations":{"success":0,"failure":0,"keyed_success":0,"keyed_failure":0,"last_attested":null},"success_rate":null,"effective_trust":0.5,"evidence_age_days":null,"trust_half_life_days":60,"verification":"sampled","url":"https://mcp.waymark.network/r/078828a2-6382-45d8-914f-c3524dfcce7c"}