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PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICE FACILITIES
(A) The purpose of this subchapter is to provide specific regulations for the placement, construction and modification of personal wireless service facilities. The provisions of this subchapter are not intended to and shall not be interpreted to prohibit or to have the effect of prohibiting the provision of personal wireless services, nor shall the provisions of this subchapter be applied in such a manner as to unreasonably discriminate between providers of functionally equivalent personal wireless services. To the extent that any provision or provisions of this subchapter are inconsistent with or in conflict with any other provision of the city code or any section of the city, the provisions of this subchapter shall be deemed to control.
(B) In the course of reviewing any request for any approval required under this subchapter made by an applicant to provide personal wireless services or to install personal wireless service facilities, the Zoning Board of Appeals, Plan Commission or the City Council, as the case may be, shall act within a reasonable period of time after the request is duly filed with the city, taking into account the nature and scope of the request. Any decision to deny such a request shall be in writing and supported by substantial evidence contained in a written record.
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999)
For the purpose of this subchapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ANTENNA. Any exterior apparatus or apparatuses at a fixed location designed for telephonic, radio, data, internet or other communications through the sending and/or receiving of electromagnetic waves, including equipment attached to a tower or building for the purpose of providing personal wireless services, including, for example, cellular, paging, low power mobile radio and personal communications services telecommunications services, and their attendant base stations.
ANTENNA HEIGHT. The vertical distance measured from the base of the antenna support structure at grade to the highest point of the structure even if said highest point is an antenna. Measurement of tower height shall include antennas, base pad and other appurtenances and shall be measured from the finished grade of the site. If the support structure is on a sloped grade, then the average between the highest and lowest grades shall be used in calculating the antenna height.
ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURE. Any pole, telescoping mast, tower, tripod or other structure which supports a device used in the transmitting or receiving of radio frequency signals.
CELL SITE. A tract or parcel of land that contains the personal wireless service facilities including any antenna, its support structure, accessory buildings and parking, and may include other uses associated with and ancillary to personal wireless services.
FAA. The Federal Aviation Administration.
FCC. The Federal Communications Commission.
GOVERNING AUTHORITY. The governing authority of the city, namely the City Council.
PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICES and PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICE FACILITIES. Shall be defined in the same manner as in 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C), as they may be amended now or in the future.
TOWER. Any structure that is designed and constructed primarily for the purpose of supporting one or more antennas, including self-supporting lattice towers, guy towers or monopole towers. The term encompasses personal wireless service facilities, radio transmission towers, microwave towers, common-carrier towers, cellular telephone towers or personal communications services towers, alternative tower structures and the like.
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999)
(A) Purpose. The purpose of this subchapter is to establish general guidelines for the siting and size of towers and antennas.
(B) Goals. The goals of this subchapter are to:
(1) Minimize the total number of towers throughout the city;
(2) Encourage strongly the joint use of new and existing tower sites;
(3) Encourage users of towers and antennas to locate them, to the extent possible, in areas where the adverse impact on residential areas of the city is minimal;
(4) Encourage users of towers and antennas to configure them in a way that minimizes the adverse visual impact of the towers and antennas; and
(5) Enhance the ability of the providers of personal wireless services to provide such services throughout the city quickly, effectively and efficiently.
(C) Necessity. Accordingly, the City Council finds that the promulgation of this subchapter is warranted and necessary:
(1) To direct the location of towers in the city;
(2) To protect residential areas and land uses from potential adverse impacts of towers through proper engineering and siting of antennas and their support structures;
(3) To minimize adverse visual impacts of towers through careful design, siting, landscape screening and innovative camouflaging techniques;
(4) To accommodate the growing need for towers; and
(5) To promote and encourage shared use/co-location of existing and new towers as a primary option rather than construction of additional single-use towers, and to reduce the number of such structures needed in the future.
(D) New uses. All new towers and antennas shall comply with this subchapter after the date of passage.
(E) Existing uses.
(1) All towers and antennas existing on the date of passage of this subchapter shall be allowed to continue their usage as they presently exist.
(2) Routine maintenance shall be permitted on such existing towers and antennas.
(3) New construction other than routine maintenance on existing towers and antennas shall comply with the requirements of this subchapter.
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999)
(A) (1) In recognition of the need to designate appropriate areas for the siting of personal wireless service facilities, a zoning overlay district known as the Personal Wireless Service Facilities Overlay District is hereby created.
(2) All new antennas and/or support structures shall be located in areas designated on the overlay district map.
(3) Should a personal wireless services provider find that facilities are required in an area not designated as part of the overlay district, the provider may petition the City Council to have the proposed site added to the overlay district.
(B) (1) Given the visual impact of towers on their surrounding environment, no antenna support structures may be constructed on a speculative basis.
(2) Applications for permits will only be processed when the applicant is either an FCC licensed personal wireless services provider (if so required to be licensed by the FCC), or has in place agreements with an FCC licensed personal wireless services provider (if so required to be licensed by the FCC) for use or lease of the support structure, proof of which must be offered by the applicant.
(C) (1) Personal wireless service facilities should be located and designed to minimize any adverse effect they may have on residential property values and to minimize the impact of the site on the surrounding neighborhood.
(2) Sites should be placed in locations where the existing topography, vegetation, buildings or other structures provide the greatest amount of screening.
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999)
(A) Wireless telecommunications facilities that meet the definition of personal wireless service facilities, as referenced in § 159.151, shall be considered a permitted use in the Personal Wireless Service Facilities Overlay District, provided that the proposed facilities meet the requirements of this subchapter, as well as the requirements of the individual district in which the facility is proposed to be located.
(B) Micro wireless facilities and small wireless facilities as defined in § 98.141 shall be considered a permitted use provided that the proposed facilities meet the requirements of § 98.142.
(C) New personal wireless service facilities will not be permitted in any area other than those areas contained within the overlay district, which are as follows:
Overlay District A | Portions of OR-2 as highlighted on Attachment A-1 |
Portions of B-1 as highlighted on Attachment A-2 | |
Portions of R-4 as highlighted on Attachment A-3 | |
Portions of OA as highlighted on Attachment A-4 | |
Overlay District B | Portions of R-4 as highlighted on Attachment B |
Overlay District C | Portions of R-4 as highlighted on Attachment C |
Overlay District D | Portions of R-1 and GR-3 as highlighted on Attachment D-1 |
Portions of R-4 as highlighted on Attachment D-2 | |
Portions of R-5 as highlighted on Attachment D-3 | |
Overlay District E | Portions of R-4 as highlighted on Attachment E |
Overlay District F | Portions of R-1, R-2, and B-2 as highlighted on Attachment F |
Overlay District G | A portion of B-2 as highlighted on Attachment G |
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999; Ord. 2018-33, passed 7-16-2018)
The installation of personal wireless service facilities, as defined in § 159.151, are permitted by right in the Personal Wireless Service Facilities Overlay District, subject to the provisions enumerated below.
(A) The personal wireless service facility is located in one of the districts referenced in § 159.154, Districts (A) through (F);
(B) The personal wireless service facility conforms to all standards of this subchapter, and also conforms to all applicable federal laws and regulations concerning use and operation;
(C) The personal wireless service facility is affixed to the walls or roof of an existing structure pursuant to the requirements of § 159.158, and the height of the antennas do not exceed ten feet above the parapet of the roof of the existing structure; or, if a freestanding antenna support structure, the support structure is designed to accommodate additional users and the height above grade of the antennas and support structure does not exceed the height limit noted below for each district:
District A | Height limit of 160 feet |
District B | Height limit of 120 feet |
District C | Height limit of 90 feet |
District D | No freestanding antenna support structure shall be permitted |
District E | Height limit of 110 feet |
District F | No freestanding antenna support structure shall be permitted |
District G | Replacement or extension of roof top antennas that existed as of February 1, 1999 shall be permitted. A maximum height of 50 feet above the primary roof surface shall be permitted |
(D) If the proposed personal wireless service facility meets the requirements of divisions (A) through (C) above, then the facility is permitted by right, and no special use permit hearing is required.
(E) If the proposed personal wireless service facility meets the requirements of divisions (A) and (B) above, but is either not designed to accommodate additional users or is proposed for a height in excess of the limit established in division (C) above, then the facility may be permitted only by special use permit.
(F) (1) In Overlay Districts A and B, proposed antennas may co-locate on to existing towers; provided such co-location is accomplished in a manner consistent with the provisions contained in this subchapter, then such co-locations are permitted by right and new or additional special use approval is not required. To provide further incentive for co-location as a primary option, towers in Districts A and B that are in existence as of the date of passage of this subchapter may be modified or reconstructed to accommodate the co-location of additional antennas, provided the additional antennas shall be of the same type as that on the existing tower.
(2) This is permitted by right, subject to the following criteria being met.
(a) Height. An existing tower may be modified or rebuilt to a taller height, not to exceed 20 feet over the tower’s existing height, to accommodate the co-location of additional antennas. The height increase permitted under this provision allows the total height to exceed the height limit of the overlay district.
(b) On-site location. A tower which is being rebuilt to accommodate the co-location of additional antennas may be moved on-site within 50 feet of its existing location so long as it remains within the same zone and complies with the other provisions of this subchapter.
(Ord. 97-4, passed 3-20-1997; Ord. 98-6, passed 2-2-1998; Ord. 99-16, passed 3-2-1999)
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