A WOMAN PHOTOGRAPHS the Trump Tower sign on a former mine tower on Iron Mountain’s northside. The city has ordered the sign be removed because its size violates local ordinances. (Betsy Bloom/Daily News photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — A violation notice has been issued against a “Trump Tower” sign on a former mine tower on the city’s northside, raising the potential for $500 daily fines if it’s not removed.

The sign, which city officials say appears to exceed 900 square feet, was installed on the privately owned structure Oct. 9. A notice of a sign ordinance violation was sent out two days later to property owner Francis Rittenhouse, City Manager Jordan Stanchina said.

Last week, city officials pointed out the largest sign allowable in the residential district is 32 square feet.

The city has received numerous comments both for and against the display, but that has no bearing on the city’s action, Stanchina said. “It’s not the message that’s even being considered here,” he said.

Under the city’s ordinance, the sign is considered a banner, Stanchina said. Banners are only allowed as temporary signs and by permit. Failure to obtain a permit is a civil infraction.

If fines are triggered, the first-day offense is $100; second day, $300; and each day after is $500. As of Thursday, the city had not received a response to the violation notice.

The red-and-white sign on Kimberly Avenue spells out TRUMP vertically, with TOWER underneath horizontally.

The tower structure is known as the Hamilton Shaft smokestack, one of the few remaining remnants of the Chapin-Ludington-Hamilton Mine dating to the late 1800s.

In an interview last week with WJMN-TV, Dan Rittenhouse said he and his brother Francis have owned the tower for several years. He said he believed it was built by Hamilton Mine Company in 1928 and served as a venting tower for the mines.