Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, all Wireless Telecommunication Facilities shall comply with the following standards:
(a) Spacing. There shall be a separation of a minimum of one-half (½) mile between Wireless Telecommunication Towers, including a separation of at least one (1) mile from any such Tower located outside the City's corporate limits.
(b) Height.
(1) The maximum height of a free-standing Wireless Telecommunication Tower, including its Antenna and all appurtenances, shall be less than two hundred (200) feet above grade.
(2) The maximum height of any Wireless Telecommunication Antenna or Equipment Shelter, installed on an existing building or structure pursuant to Section 1146.04
(c) hereof, shall be no greater in height than fifteen (15) feet above the roof line of the existing building or structure to which it is attached.
(3) The height of any Equipment Shelter shall not exceed fifteen (15) feet from the approved grade.
(c) Setbacks. All Wireless Telecommunication Towers shall be set back from property lines a distance of two and a half (2½) times the height of the Tower when located adjacent to a residential district. Otherwise the Tower, and related Facilities shall comply with the required setbacks for the zoning district in which they are located. In no event shall a Wireless Telecommunication Tower be located in front of the principal building on the lot, if any, or in front of the front yard setback when no principal building is present on the lot.
(d) Design.
(1) All Wireless Telecommunication Towers shall be of a Monopole design, as opposed to a Lattice design. No guy wired Towers shall be permitted. All wires and conduit serving Antennas shall be located inside the Tower.
(2) All Wireless Telecommunication Facilities shall be subject to review by the Planning Commission for the purpose of enhancing the compatibility of the Facilities with their surroundings. The color of a Wireless Telecommunication Tower and Antennas shall be as determined by the Planning Commission for the purpose of minimizing its visibility, unless otherwise required by the FCC or the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
(3) The Wireless Telecommunication Antennas shall be of a panel design and mounted flush to the Tower, building or structure which elevates the antennas, unless the applicant can demonstrate that it is not feasible from an engineering standpoint to use such Antennas or to mount them in such a fashion.
(e) Landscaping. A landscape buffer area of not less than twelve (12) feet in depth shall be placed between the Wireless Telecommunication Facilities and the public rights-of-way and any adjacent properties from which there is a direct view of the Facilities, other than the Tower itself. The landscape buffer area shall have a tight screen fence of hardy evergreen shrubbery not less than eight (8) feet in height. The landscaping shall be continuously maintained and promptly restored, if necessary. Existing vegetation (trees and shrubs) shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible. Landscape plans are subject to review and approval by the City Forester.
(f) Engineering.
(1) A report shall be prepared and submitted by a qualified and licensed professional engineer and shall provide proof of compliance with all applicable federal, state, county, and City regulations. The report shall include a detailed description of the Wireless Telecommunication Tower, Antenna(s), Equipment Shelter, and appurtenances. The report shall certify that:
A. Radio frequency emissions are in compliance with the regulations of the FCC, and
B. The use of the Facilities will not adversely affect or interfere with radio transmissions for public safety purposes.
(2) The applicant shall submit required engineering reports to the City Engineer for review and approval. The applicant shall provide sufficient information to the City Engineer that the proposed tower will be adequately anchored. The City Engineer may employ the services of outside engineers or technical assistance, which he deems necessary to review the proposal.
(g) Maintenance.
(1) The applicant shall submit a plan documenting how the Wireless Telecommunication Facility will be maintained on the site in an ongoing manner that meets industry standards.
(2) On an annual calendar year basis the owner/user of the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall submit to the Chief Building Official a report prepared by a licensed professional engineer(s) which shall verify continued compliance of the Facility with all governmental requirements including, but not limited to, the structural integrity and stability of any Towers or Antennas, electrical safety standards, and auxiliary power source safety standards.
(h) Lighting Prohibited. Except as required by law, a Wireless Telecommunication Antenna or Tower shall not be illuminated and lighting fixtures or signs shall not be attached to the Antenna or Tower. If lighting is required by FAA regulations, the most visually unobtrusive "state-of-the-art" lighting available shall be used, unless otherwise required by the FAA.
(i) Security.
(1) A security fence not less than eight (8) feet in height, but not greater than ten (10) feet in height, shall fully enclose those portions of the Wireless Telecommunication Facility which come in contact with the ground. Gates shall be locked at all times.
(2) A permanent warning sign with a minimum size of one (1) square foot and a maximum size of three (3) square feet shall be posted on the site, as well as an emergency telephone number of the owner/user of each set of antennas on the site. The owner/user shall also provide the Mayor, the Chief Building Official, the Fire Department, and the City Police Department with information regarding whom to contact, an address, and a telephone number in the event of an emergency.
(3) Other security measures for the Facility shall be determined by the Planning Commission as are appropriate under the circumstances of the particular application.
(j) Advertising Prohibited. No advertising sign(s) or devices shall be permitted anywhere on a Wireless Telecommunication Facility site.
(k) Outdoor Storage. There shall be no outdoor storage of equipment or other items on the Wireless Telecommunication Facility site except during the Facility construction period and to supply temporary emergency power to the Facility only during a power outage.
(l) Access to Facility. The access driveway to the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall, whenever feasible, be provided along with circulation driveways of the existing use on the lot, if any. Where use of an existing driveway is not feasible, the driveway to the Facility shall be a minimum of eighteen (18) feet in width with a minimum overhead clearance of eleven (11) feet and shall be set back a minimum of twenty (20) feet from the nearest side or rear lot line. This driveway shall meet the load limitations for fire equipment.
If the access road to the Facility is more than one thousand five hundred (1,500) feet from the public right-of-way, the Planning Commission may determine, in its sole discretion, whether a turnaround shall be provided for emergency vehicles at the site and whether a by-pass, adequate for emergency vehicles, with an approachable access shall be provided for each additional one thousand five hundred (1,500) feet of the driveway. There shall be a maximum of two (2) off-street parking spaces on the Facility site.
(m) Accessory Equipment Shelter. One (1) Equipment Shelter(s) accessory to a Wireless Telecommunication Tower or Antenna shall be permitted on a lot. The maximum cumulative total size of all Equipment Shelters accessory to a Wireless Telecommunication Tower or Antenna at a Facility shall not exceed seven hundred (700) square feet. The maximum height of an Equipment Shelter shall not exceed fifteen (15) feet above the approved grade at the site for an Equipment Shelter with a pitched roof and a maximum height of ten (10) feet above the approved grade at the site for an Equipment Shelter with a flat roof. The roof and facade of the Equipment Shelter shall be compatible as to architectural design and materials with the principal building on the lot, if any. Where it is technically feasible and reasonably practical, an existing building or structure on a lot shall be used to shelter the equipment associated with a Wireless Telecommunication Facility. Any Equipment Shelter located on the roof of an existing building shall comply with Section 1146.04(c) of this Chapter. The Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall be fully automated and unattended on a daily basis, and shall be visited only for periodic and necessary maintenance (except during construction or an emergency).
(n) Utilities to be Underground. All utility lines from the utility source to the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall be underground.
(o) Time Limit for Commencement and Completion. After issuance of a building permit to construct a Wireless Telecommunication Facility, the applicant shall commence construction within six (6) months and shall complete construction within one (1) year or the permit shall expire.
(p) Abandonment and Removal of Facilities.
(1) The applicant for the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall be required as a condition of issuance of a building permit to post a cash or surety bond acceptable to the City Law Director of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) per vertical foot from grade of the Wireless Telecommunication Facility. If an access drive which is separate from the existing access drive on the property is required to be constructed for a Wireless Telecommunication Facility, the owner/operator of the Facility shall also be required as a condition of issuance of a building permit to post a cash or surety bond acceptable to the City Law Director of not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per linear foot of access drive. The bond(s) shall insure that an abandoned, obsolete or destroyed Wireless Telecommunication Facility and/or access drive shall be removed. Any successor-in-interest or assignee of the applicant shall be required to additionally execute such bond, as principal, to insure that the bond will be in place during the period of time that the successor-in-interest or assignee occupies the Facility.
(2) The owner/user of the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall, on no less than an annual basis from the date of issuance of the building permit, file a declaration with the Planning Commission as to the continuing operation of each of its Facilities within the City.
(3) The owner/user of the Wireless Telecommunication Facility shall provide a thirty (30) day notice to the Chief Building Official of cessation of use or abandonment of the Facility. The Chief Building Official shall notify the owner/user in writing and advise that the Facility must dismantled and removed from the site and the site restored to a landscaped condition within ninety (90) days of cessation of use or abandonment all at the cost of the owner/user. The owner/user shall have the right to appeal the Chief Building Official's decision to require removal of an abandoned Facility to the Board of Zoning Appeals.
(Ord. 109-14. Passed 6-23-14.)