A. Permit Required: No small wireless facility shall collocate on a utility pole or similar structure or other wireless support structure without first filing an application with the Highway Commissioner and obtaining one or more permits from the Township therefor, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
B. Permit Application: All applications for permits pursuant to this chapter shall be filed on a form provided by the Township and shall be filed with the Highway Commissioner in such number of duplicate copies as the Township may designate. Duplicate copies shall be submitted to the Township Engineer. Applicants shall submit applications, the supporting information, and notices to the Township to the Highway Commissioner by personal delivery, by regular mail postmarked on the date due or by any other commonly used means, i.e., overnight mail, or by e-mail.
C. Minimum General Application Requirements: A wireless provider shall provide the following information to the Township, together with the Township’s permit application, as a condition of any permit application to collocate small wireless facilities on a utility pole or wireless support structure:
1. Site specific structural integrity and, for a Municipal utility pole, make-ready analysis prepared by a structural engineer, as that term is defined in section 4 of the Structural Engineering Practice Act of 1989;
2. The location where each proposed small wireless facility or utility pole would be installed and photographs of the location and its immediate surroundings depicting the utility poles or structures on which each proposed small wireless facility would be mounted or location where utility poles or structures would be installed, and a depiction of the completed facility;
3. Specifications and drawings prepared by a structural engineer, as that term is defined in section 4 of the Structural Engineering Practice Act of 1989, for each proposed small wireless facility covered by the application as it is proposed to be installed;
4. The equipment type and model numbers for the antennas and all other wireless equipment associated with the small wireless facility;
5. A proposed schedule for the installation and completion of each small wireless facility covered by the application, if approved;
6. Certification that the collocation complies with all of the collocation requirements and conditions set forth in section 4-7-10 of this chapter, to the best of the applicant’s knowledge;
7. In the event the proposed small wireless facility is to be attached to an existing pole owned by an entity other than the Township, the wireless provider shall provide legally competent evidence of the consent of the owner of such pole to the proposed collocation; and
8. Certification by a radio engineer that new, replacement or modified small wireless facility operates within all applicable FCC standards.
9. Such additional information as may be reasonably required by the Township, but in no event shall the applicant be required to provide more information to obtain a permit than the Township requires a communications service provider that is not a wireless provider that requests to attach facilities to a structure.
D. Consolidated Applications: An applicant seeking to collocate small wireless facilities within the jurisdiction of the Township, shall be allowed, at the applicant's discretion, to file a consolidated application and receive a single permit for the collocation of up to twenty five (25) small wireless facilities if the collocations each involve substantially the same type of small wireless facility and substantially the same type of structure. If the consolidated application includes multiple small wireless facilities, the Township has the right to remove small wireless facility collocations from the application and treat separately small wireless facility collocations for which incomplete information has been provided or that do not qualify for consolidated treatment or that are denied. The Township may issue separate permits for each collocation that is approved in a consolidated application.
E. Applicant's Duty To Update Information: Throughout the entire permit application review period and the construction period authorized by the permit, any amendments and/or revisions to information contained in the permit application shall be submitted by the applicant in writing to the Highway Commissioner within thirty (30) days after the change necessitating the amendment and/or revision.
F. Application Fees: All applications for permits pursuant to this chapter shall be accompanied by the following non-refundable applicable fees:
1. Six hundred fifty dollars ($650.00) for an application to collocate a single small wireless facility on an existing utility pole or wireless support structure;
2. Three hundred fifty dollars ($350.00) for each small wireless facility addressed in a consolidated application to collocate more than one small wireless facility on existing utility poles or wireless support facilities, as provided in subsection D of this section; or
3. One thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for each small wireless facility addressed in an application that includes the installation of a new utility pole or wireless support structure for such collocation.
G. Exceptions To Application; Approval Of Permit: The Township shall not require an application, approval or permit or any fees or other charges from a communications service provider authorized to occupy the rights-of-way, for:
1. Routine maintenance;
2. The replacement of wireless facilities with wireless facilities that are substantially similar, the same size, or smaller if the wireless provider notifies the Township at least ten (10) days prior to the planned replacement and includes equipment specifications for the replacement of equipment consistent with the requirements of subsection C of this section; or
3. The installation, placement, maintenance, operation or replacement of micro wireless facilities suspended on cables that are strung between existing utility poles in compliance with applicable safety codes.
4. Notwithstanding subsections G1, G2 and G3 of this section, wireless providers shall secure a permit to work within rights- of-way for activities that affect traffic patterns or require lane closures as provided in chapter 6, "Standards For The Construction Of Utility Facilities In The Public Rights-Of-Way", of this title.
H. Duration Of Permit: The duration of a permit shall be for a period of not less than five (5) years. The permit shall be renewed for a period of equivalent durations unless the Township makes a finding that the small wireless facilities or the new or modified utility pole do not comply with the applicable Town codes or any provision, condition or requirement contained in this chapter. If the Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act is repealed as provided in the Act, renewal of permits shall be subject to the applicable Town Code provisions or regulations in effect at the time of renewal of the permit. (Ord. SWO-2018-5, 8-14-2018; amd. Ord. TO-2022-2, 3-8-2022)