§ 150.249 ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.

   Ground equipment associated with a tower or wireless telecommunications facility shall be screened by vegetative or other screening compatible with the surrounding environment if deemed necessary by the City Council. When associated ground equipment is housed in a building or structure, that building or structure shall not exceed seven hundred fifty (750) square feet in area or twelve (12) feet in height. All such buildings or structures shall be architecturally designed to blend in with the surrounding environment and shall meet the minimum setback requirements of the underlying zoning district.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.250 AREA-WIDE ANALYSIS/PROOF OF NEED.

   The applicant shall demonstrate by providing a coverage/interference analysis and capacity analysis that the location of the tower as proposed is necessary to meet the frequency reuse and spacing needs of the wireless telecommunication facilities and to provide adequate coverage and capacity to areas which cannot be adequately served by locating the tower in a less restrictive district.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.251 PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.

   (A)   Any proposed commercial wireless telecommunication service tower shall be designed, structurally, electrically, and in all respects, to accommodate both the applicant’s antennas and comparable antennas for at least two (2) additional users if the tower is over one hundred (100) feet in height or for at least one (1) additional user if the tower is between sixty (60) and ninety-nine point nine (99.9) feet in height. Towers must be designed to allow for future rearrangement of antennas upon the tower and to accept antennas mounted at varying heights.

   (B)   Co-location requirements. All commercial wireless telecommunication towers erected, constructed, or located within the city shall comply with the following requirements. A proposal for a new commercial wireless telecommunication service tower shall not be approved unless the City Council finds that the telecommunications equipment planned for the proposed tower cannot be accommodated on an existing or approved tower or building within a one (1) mile search radius (one half (1/2) mile for towers under one hundred twenty (120) feet in height) of the proposed tower due to one (1) or more of the following reasons:

      (1)   The planned equipment would exceed the structural capacity of the existing or approved tower or building, as documented by a qualified and licensed professional engineer, and the existing or approved tower cannot be reinforced, modified, or replaced to accommodate planned or equivalent equipment at a reasonable cost;

      (2)   The planned equipment would cause interference materially impacting the usability of other existing or planned equipment at the tower or building as documented by a qualified and licensed professional engineer and the interference cannot be prevented at a reasonable cost.

      (3)   Existing or approved towers and building within the search radius cannot accommodate the planned equipment at a height necessary to function reasonable as documented by a qualified and licensed professional engineer; and/or

      (4)   Other unforeseen reasons that make it infeasible to locate the planned telecommunications equipment upon an existing or approved tower or building.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.252 OBSOLETE OR UNUSED TOWERS.

   (A)   Abandoned or unused towers or portions of towers shall be removed as follows: all abandoned or unused towers and associated facilities shall be removed within twelve (12) months of the cessation of operations at the site unless the City Council approves a time extension. A copy of the relevant portions of a signed lease which requires the applicant to remove the tower and associated facilities upon cessation of operations at the site shall be submitted at the time of application. In the event that a tower is not removed with twelve (12) months of the cessation of operations at a site, the tower and associated facilities may be removed by the city and the costs of removal assessed against the property.

   (B)   Unused portions of towers above a manufactured connection shall be removed within six (6) months of the time of antenna relocation. The replacement of portions of a tower previously removed requires the issuance of a new conditional use permit.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.253 EFFECT OF CHAPTER ON EXISTING TOWERS AND ANTENNAS.

   Antennas and towers in the city as of the publishing of this subchapter which do not conform to or comply with this subchapter are subject to the following provisions:

   (A)   Towers may continue in use for the purpose now used and as now existing but may not be replaced or structurally altered without complying in all respects with this subchapter; and

   (B)   If such towers are hereafter damaged or destroyed due to any reason or cause whatsoever, the tower may be repaired and restored to its former use, location and physical dimensions upon obtaining a building permit without otherwise complying with this subchapter; provided, however, that if the cost of repairing the tower to the former use, location and physical dimensions would exceed the cost of a new tower of like kind and quality, then the tower may not be repaired or restored, except in full compliance with this subchapter.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.254 ADDITIONAL SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS.

   In addition to the information required elsewhere in this subchapter, applications for commercial wireless telecommunication towers and antennas shall include the following supplemental information.

   (A)   A report from a qualified professional engineer licensed by the State of Minnesota which:

      (1)   Describes the tower height and design including a cross section and elevation;

      (2)   Documents the height above grade for all potential mounting positions for co-located antennas and the minimum separation distances between antennas;

      (3)   Describes the tower’s capacity, including the number and type of antennas that it can accommodate;

      (4)   Documents what steps the applicant will take to avoid interference with established public safety telecommunications;

      (5)   Includes an engineer’s stamp and registration number;

      (6)   A site plan clearly indicating a fall-zone equal to the height of the tower / antenna; and

      (7)   Includes other information necessary to evaluate the request.

   (B)   For all commercial wireless telecommunication service towers, a letter of intent committing the tower owner and his or her successors to allow the shared use of the tower if an additional user agrees in writing to meet reasonable terms and conditions for shared use.

   (C)   Before the issuance of a building permit, the following supplemental information shall be submitted:

      (1)   Proof that the proposed tower complies with regulations administered by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal Communications Commission and the Municipal Airport Zoning Code; and

      (2)   A report from a qualified professional engineer licensed by the State of Minnesota which demonstrates the tower’s compliance with the aforementioned structural and electrical standards.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)

§ 150.255 TOWER CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS.

   Any commercial or non-commercial telecommunication tower or antenna taller than fifteen (15) feet in height shall require the issuance of a building permit prior to construction.

(Ord. 395, passed 7-6-2010)