(A) Permit required. Except as otherwise provided in this code, no person or public right- of-way user may obstruct or excavate any public right-of-way or install or collocate a small wireless facility or support structure without first having obtained the appropriate permit from the city unless another reporting process is approved by the Director or his/her designee.
(1) An excavation permit is required for any excavation. An obstruction permit is required for any obstruction in connection with the installation, relocation, operation or maintenance of a utility service.
(2) Any public right-of-way user which owns or controls a facility within any public right-of-way, or any portion thereof, on the effective date of this chapter, that subsequently excavates or otherwise obstructs any public right-of-way, or any portion thereof, shall first obtain a permit therefor as required under this chapter.
(3) A person seeking to install a new wireless support structure for the siting of a small wireless facility in a right-of-way in a district or areas zoned for or allowing single family residential uses, or in an established historic district, is also required to apply for and obtain a conditional use permit under Chapter 155 of this code.
(B) Permit applications.
(1) An application for a permit shall be on a form furnished by the city and completed and submitted to the city with the following information:
(a) The applicant's name; Gopher One-Call registration certificate number; address; e-mail address; telephone number; and facsimile number.
(b) The local representative's name; address; e-mail address; telephone number; facsimile number; and current information regarding how to contact the local representative in an emergency.
(c) The name, Gopher One-Call registration certificate number, address and telephone number of the person(s) or entities, other than the applicant, to perform the project work or any portion thereof.
(d) A certificate of insurance or self-insurance verifying the coverage as required in this chapter.
(e) All mapping data and information in form and substance as required in this chapter, except a registrant who is not applying for an excavation or obstruction permit need not provide this information.
(f) A detailed description and drawing to a scale as required by the city of the proposed project and project work, including identification of the obstructions to be placed, the size and depth of any excavation, the schedule for commencement and completion of the proposed project, and the location and size of any trees impacted in the designated work area.
(2) Permits for multiple telecommunications facilities, including small wireless facilities, may be filed in consolidated applications as required by M.S. § 237.163 subd. 3a. Permit applications that propose collocation of facilities shall indicate, to the extent practicable, the owner of the other facility or facilities, and if the city is the owner of those facilities, the application shall include a request for a collocation agreement using a form and providing such information as required by the city.
(C) Issuance of permit.
(1) Except as otherwise provided herein for small wireless facility permits, if the applicant has satisfied the requirements of this chapter, the city shall issue a permit within ninety 90 days of receiving a completed application, or shall provide written reasons for denial of the application if the city believes the requirements have not been satisfied, unless that time period is extended or tolled as specified in state law, (M.S. § 237.163, Subd. 3c). If the city receives applications within a single seven-day period from one or more applicants seeking approval of permits for more than 30 facilities, the city may extend the 90-day deadline by an additional 30 days. If the city elects to invoke this extension, it must inform in writing any applicant to whom the extension will be applied.
(2) For applications related to placement of small wireless facilities, the deadline for the city's action on each application will be in accordance with FCC rules and regulations. As in effect as of December 31, 2018, the city will review and act on an application for collocation of a small wireless facility on an existing support structure no later than 60 days from date of receipt of complete application and an application for placement of a small wireless facility on a new support structure no later than 90 days from date of receipt of complete application. If the applicant has satisfied the requirements of this section, then a permit will be issued; otherwise the city shall provide written reasons for denial of the application.
(3) The city may deny a permit for the following reasons:
(a) The applicant failed to fully comply with the application requirements herein.
(b) The city has initiated revocation of a prior permit issued under this chapter against the applicant.
(c) The applicant has violated within the past two years any requirements of this chapter.
(d) The time schedule for the project will conflict or interfere with a community exhibition, celebration, festival, or any other similar community event in the area of the project.
(e) The time schedule for the project conflicts with scheduled public improvement of the public right-of-way.
(f) The proposed project violates a provision of this code.
(g) The proposed project is adverse to the public health, safety, and welfare by interfering with the safety and convenience of ordinary travel over the public right-of-way, or endangers the public right-of-way and its users based on one or more of the following factors:
1. The extent of public right-of-way area available.
2. The competing demands for the particular proposed area space in the public right-of-way.
3. The availability of other locations in the public right-of-way or in other public rights-of-way for the facility(s) or equipment of the permit applicant.
4. The applicability of an ordinance or other regulation that affects the location of a facility or equipment in the public right-of-way.
5. The applicant's prior compliance with the terms and conditions of its franchise, this section and other applicable ordinances and regulations.
6. The condition and age of the public right-of-way and the city's scheduled reconstruction thereof.
7. The costs of disruption to the public and damage to the public right-of-way balanced against any benefits to the public served by an expansion into additional parts of the public right-of-way for facilities or equipment.
(h) The facilities proposed to be placed or deployed shall meet all conditions of the permit as set forth elsewhere in this chapter.
(D) Any denial of a right-of-way or small wireless facility permit must be made in writing and must set forth the basis for the denial. The city must notify the applicant in writing within three business days of the decision to deny or revoke a permit. If a permit application is denied, the applicant may cure the deficiencies identified by the city and resubmit its application. If the applicant resubmits the application within 30 days of receiving written notice of the denial, it may not be charged an additional filing or processing fee. The city must approve or deny the revised application within 30 days after the revised application is submitted.
(E) (1) Permit applications that propose collocation of facilities on city-owned poles, buildings, or other structures owned or under the control of the city shall be authorized by the Council upon terms and conditions established by the Council. A wireless service provider that is granted authority to collocate small wireless facilities on wireless support structures owned or controlled by the city and located within the public roads or rights-of-way is required to enter into a standard small wireless facility collocation agreement, but not an individual license, franchise, or other similar agreement with the local government unit or any other entity.
(2) Any initial engineering survey and preparatory construction work associated with collocation must be paid by the cost causer in the form of a onetime, nonrecurring, commercially reasonable, nondiscriminatory, and competitively neutral charge to recover the costs associated with a proposed attachment.
(Ord. 715, passed 5-23-02; Am. Ord. 1038, passed 2-8-18; Am. Ord. 1056, passed 3-14-19)