A. Placement of wireless communication facilities.
1. Wireless communication facilities shall be located in the following order of preference:
a. Co-located with other wireless communication facilities.
b. On existing structures such as buildings, communication towers, and utility facilities.
c. In industrially zoned districts.
d. In commercially zoned districts.
2. Wireless communications facilities shall be located where the existing topography, vegetation, buildings, or other structures provide the greatest amount of screening.
3. Ground-mounted wireless communication facilities shall be located in close proximity to existing above ground utilities, such as electrical towers or utility poles (which are not scheduled for removal or undergrounding in the next eighteen (18) months), light poles, trees of comparable heights, and in areas where they are otherwise visually compatible and will not detract from the appearance of the city.
4. For all ground-mounted communication facilities, the support structures shall be set back from all residential property lines a distance equal to and no less than, the height of the highest point of the wireless communication facility.
5. Wireless communication facilities shall not be located within 1,000 feet of any communication facility except when located on an existing building, structure or wireless facility. For the purpose of this section, all distances shall be measured in a straight line without regard to intervening structures, from the nearest point of the proposed major wireless communication facility to the nearest property line of any residential land use, or to the nearest point of another major wireless communication facility.
B. Design standards.
1. Wireless communication facilities shall not bear any signs or advertising devices other than certification, warning, or other legally required seals or signage.
2. Accessory equipment shall meet the following standards:
a. All accessory equipment associated with the operation of the wireless communication facility shall be located within a building, enclosure, or underground vault that complies with the development standards of the zoning district in which the accessory equipment is located, subject to City approval.
b. Accessory equipment permitted to be located above ground shall be visually compatible with the surrounding buildings and include sufficient landscaping to screen the structure from view.
c. Accessory equipment enclosures shall be limited to the housing of radio, electronic and related power equipment, and shall not be used for any other purpose, including storage.
3. Wireless communication facilities shall have subdued colors and non-reflective materials which blend with surrounding materials and colors.
4. All screening for building-mounted facilities shall be compatible with the existing architecture, color, texture and or materials of the building.
5. The monopole foundation and structures upon which antenna are to be mounted, shall be no greater in diameter or cross sectional dimension than is necessary for the proper functioning of the wireless communication facility. However, such facility shall be designed to accommodate at least two antennas.
6. In considering an application for any wireless communication facility, the Planning Commission and the City Planner shall consider the cumulative visual effects of existing wireless communication facilities in determining the location of an additional facility and in imposing conditions on the facility, all as necessary to minimize negative visual impacts of the applied for facility.
7. Security fencing, if permitted or required, shall conform to the following:
a. No fence shall exceed seven feet in height.
b. The fencing material shall be compatible with the underlying zoning requirements. Chain link fencing shall not be permitted.
c. Security fencing shall be screened from view through the use of appropriate landscaping material.
C. Height standards.
1. Major wireless communication facilities utilizing a free-standing support structure shall be limited to the maximum building height for the applicable zoning district.
a. In zoning districts with no maximum height limits, the wireless communication facility shall not exceed 35 feet in height above the ground.
2. Building-, façade-, wall-, or roof-mounted minor wireless communication facilities shall be limited to ten (10) feet above the existing building height or maximum height permitted for the applicable zone, whichever is greater.
3. The Planning Commission may consider approval of facilities proposed to exceed the maximum height limit subject to the review and approval of a variance application consistent with § 20.412.010 of the Zoning Code.
D. Noise. A noise generating equipment shall meet the requirements of the Brea Noise Ordinance as set forth in Chapter 8.20 of the Brea City Code.
E. Co-location.
1. All applicants shall cooperate in good faith with existing wireless communication facilities operators in co-locating additional antennas on support structures and/or on existing buildings provided the existing operator has received a permit for such use at said site from the city.
2. All applicants shall exercise good faith in cooperating in co-locating with other providers and sharing the permitted site, provided such proposed shared use does not prevent or unreasonably interfere with the existing use (i.e., significant interference in broadcast or reception capabilities as opposed to competitive conflict or financial burden). Such good faith cooperation shall include sharing technical information necessary to evaluate the feasibility of co-location. In the event a dispute arises as to whether a provider has exercised good faith in accommodating other users, the city may require a third party technical study at the expense of either or both the applicant and the existing operator as to the feasibility of co-locating.
3. Failure to comply with the co-location requirements of this chapter may result in the denial of a permit request or revocation of an existing permit.
(Ord. 996, passed 8-5-97; Am. Ord. 1247, passed 3-19-24)