(A) (1) Applicability. Wireless Telecommunications Service Facilities including Cellular on Wheels (COW) shall comply with the following standards as well as the applicable requirements of the zoning district in which they are located except where otherwise noted in this part.
(2) Purpose. The purpose of this section is to provide for sensible and reasonable land use standards to allow for the provision of adequate, reliable public and private telecommunication service. There is a need to maximize the use of service facilities in order to reduce the total number of towers needed to service the needs of the areas, as well as a need to minimize the adverse, undesirable visual effects of service facilities while still providing for reasonable location of such towers within the city’s zoning jurisdiction.
(3) Location of Wireless Telecommunications Facilities.
(a) Wireless Telecommunication Facilities shall be a permitted use in the following zoning districts:
1. I-1 (Light Industrial) Zoning District;
2. I-2 (Heavy Industrial) Zoning District;
3. I-3 (Extractive Industrial) Zoning District; and
4. The following subdistricts of the CCPD (Corporate Campus) Zoning District:
a. Industrial/Office;
b. Regional Recreation and Entertainment; and
c. Agricultural/I-O.
(b) Wireless Telecommunication Facilities shall be a conditional use in the following zoning districts:
1. PB (Planned Business) Zoning District.
2. In any residential zoning district in which the structures may be setback at least 500 feet from an adjoining residential development or property.
3. In any district where the antennas are to be located upon pre-existing structures or buildings so long as the petitioner proposes to sufficiently screen or camouflage antennas and antenna support structures.
4. In any district upon property owned or operated by units of government or public utilities.
5. In any district, in a non-urban area, a term associated with I.C. 36-7-4-1103. “Urban area” is defined in the Code as follows: all lands and lots within the corporate boundaries of a municipality, any other lands or lots used for residential purposes where there are at least eight residences within any quarter mile square area, and other lands or lots that have been or are planned for residential areas contiguous to the municipality.
(c) Wireless Telecommunication Facilities shall be a special consideration in the following subdistricts of the CCPD (Corporate Campus) zoning district:
1. Office;
2. Office/Flex Uses;
3. Commercial;
4. Commercial/Office; and
5. Community.
(B) Procedural Standards. All Wireless Telecommunication Service Facilities shall meet the following requirements:
(1) The placement of antennas upon existing antenna support structures or any electrical work at existing support structures may be administratively approved by the Planning Director. The applicant shall submit all appropriate permits and drawings deemed necessary by the Director of Planning.
(2) In the event an antenna support structure ceases to be used, the antenna support structure shall be removed within 180 days of termination of use. Cellular on Wheels (COW) must be removed from the parcel within three days after the event to which it is servicing.
(3) In the zoning districts in which a Wireless Telecommunication Facility is listed as either a permitted or conditional use, a Wireless Telecommunications Facility may be deemed an accessory use.
(4) The following documentation shall be submitted for all applications for a Wireless Telecommunications Facility. This information shall be submitted in addition to the standard application requirements for the type of application being filed. The Planning Director may waive any of the submission requirements based upon a written request of the applicant that must be submitted at the time of application. The waiver of any submission requirement may only be granted if the Planning Director finds in writing that, due to special circumstances of the application, the information is not required to determine compliance with the standards of this chapter.
(a) A location map showing all Wireless Telecommunications Facilities within a two mile radius of the proposed facility. The applicant shall indicate which existing facilities in the area they already have existing antenna arrays located on. Applicant shall also indicate on this map the size and location of the search ring identified by their engineering studies to find a site to fill the network coverage gap.
(b) Evidence demonstrating that no existing building, site, or structure can accommodate the applicant’s proposed facility, the evidence for which may consist of any one or more of the following:
1. Evidence that no existing facilities are located within the targeted market coverage area identified by the applicant’s engineering requirements.
2. Evidence that existing facilities do not have sufficient height or cannot be increased in height at a reasonable cost or within the limitations of this chapter at a reasonable cost to meet the applicant’s engineering requirements.
3. Evidence that existing facilities do not have sufficient structural strength to support the applicant’s proposed antenna array and related equipment. Specifically:
a. Planned, necessary equipment would exceed the structural capacity of the existing facility, considering the existing and planned use of those facilities, and these existing facilities cannot be reinforced to accommodate the new equipment at a reasonable expense.
b. The applicant’s proposed antenna or equipment would cause electromagnetic interference with the antenna on the existing towers, or the antenna or equipment with the existing facility would cause interference with the applicant’s proposed antenna.
c. Existing or approved facilities do not have space on which planned equipment can be placed so it can function effectively.
4. The fee, costs, or contractual provisions required by the owner in order to share or adapt an existing facility are unreasonable. Costs exceeding the pro rata share of new facility development are presumed to be unreasonable.
5. Evidence that the applicant has made diligent good faith efforts to negotiate co-location on an existing facility, building, or structure and has been denied access.
(c) A propagation map, before and after, of how the proposed facility fits in the applicant’s telecommunications network. The after propagation map shall demonstrate that the proposed facility will fill a significant coverage gap.
(d) A scenic assessment for the project area consisting of the following:
1. Elevation drawings of the proposed facility, showing height above ground level and details on the antenna array attachment or arrangement.
2. A site plan indicating the proposed placement of the facility on the site, including the delineation of the proposed lease area; location of existing structures, trees, means of access to the lease area, and the type of material being used, and other significant site features.
3. Photo simulations of the proposed facility taken from at least two different perspectives. Each photo must be labeled with where it was taken from, elevation, and date taken.
4. A landscape plan indicating the landscaping and screening at the base of the facility or around the perimeter of the lease area, whichever is most appropriate.
(e) Drawings prepared and certified by a professional engineer of the proposed structure indicating the location, type, and height of the proposed facility, antenna capacity, and compliance with all applicable American National Standards Institute (ANSI) technical and structural codes.
(f) Certification by the applicant that the proposed facility complies with all FCC standards for radio emissions.
(C) Development Standards.
(1) All Wireless Telecommunication Service Facilities shall meet the following requirements:
(a) The height of the antenna support structure shall not exceed 200 feet.
(b) The antenna support structures in non-residential zoning districts shall be set back a minimum of 40 feet from the property line, unless the adjoining property is zoned or used for a residential use. If the adjoining property is zoned or used for residential use or the tower is located within a residential zoning district, the setback shall not be less than the height of the support structure.
(c) The antenna support structure shall not be illuminated or display strobe lights unless specifically required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), or other governmental agency.
(d) No signs or advertising shall be placed upon an antenna support structure or associated equipment buildings or cabinets.
(e) All new or replacement towers shall be a monopole design.
1. Wireless Telecommunication Service Facilities located within the I-1, I-2, and I-3 zoning districts may have external, hugging or slick-mounted antenna arrays.
2. Wireless Telecommunications Service Facilities located in all other zoning districts must at a minimum have internal antenna arrays. In addition, facilities shall be designed to blend into the surrounding environment through the use of color and camouflaging architectural treatments.
3. Where feasible, the applicant shall utilize existing structures to house antenna arrays. Such arrays shall be designed to be camouflaged by architectural treatments in keeping with the existing structure.
4. For building mounted facilities that do not utilize camouflaging, the antenna arrays may not extend above the roof line or parapet of an existing structure, and may not be installed unless the roof design allows them to be shielded from public view. Whip antennas and omni-directional antennas may extend up to 15 feet above the roof line or parapet of an existing structure.
(f) All utility or equipment buildings and cabinets accessory to the antenna support structure shall be architecturally designed to blend into the surrounding area. This shall be accomplished through the use of the same exterior materials as the surrounding structures for the equipment building. These requirements shall apply unless the building or cabinet is completely screened by a wall or fence.
(g) Wireless Telecommunications Service Facilities shall provide vehicular access to the tower and antennas along any existing driveways whenever feasible.
(h) A landscaping and screening plan for the Wireless Telecommunication Service Facility shall be submitted with the application.
1. An opaque fence or masonry wall shall completely screen and enclose the facility.
2. A landscaping screen, consisting of more than 75% evergreen material, shall be planted outside the fence or wall. For hedges, the plants shall be a maximum of five feet on center. For evergreen trees, plants shall be a maximum of ten feet on center. All plants needed to provide a solid screen shall be a minimum of five feet in height at the time of planting.
3. Existing vegetation (trees and shrubs) shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible on the entire site. Credit will be given for any existing trees saved as stated in §§ 159.180 through 159.191.
(i) All Wireless Telecommunication Service Facilities that utilize a freestanding tower shall be designed structurally, electrically, and in all other respects to accommodate the user’s equipment and the equipment of at least two additional service providers.
(j) A qualified and licensed engineer must approve the design of the antenna support structure and certify that it is constructed to comply with the co-location requirements set out above.
(k) A notarized letter of intent shall be included with the application committing the antenna support structure-owner or lessee on behalf of themselves and their successors in interest that the antenna support structure shall be shared with additional users if the additional user(s) agrees to meet reasonable terms and conditions of shared use.
(l) No transmissions from a Wireless Telecommunication Service Facility shall interfere with any existing public safety communications.
(m) The site of the facilities shall be maintained in a condition free of debris, refuse, and trash.
(D) Limitations on Zoning Authority.
(1) The Board of Zoning Appeals or any other reviewing body shall not consider any evidence or base a denial of the location of a Wireless Telecommunication Service Facility on any evidence concerning adverse environmental or health effects of radio frequency emissions so long as those emissions meet the standards of the Federal Telecommunication Commission.
(2) Nothing herein shall be construed as a prohibition of the location of Wireless Telecommunication Service Facilities within the planning and zoning jurisdiction of the city.
(3) Nothing herein shall be construed or applied to unreasonably discriminate between providers of functionally equivalent service, or services that compete one against the other for various Wireless Telecommunication Services.
(Ord. 5-2-97, passed 3-10-97; Am. Ord. 64-11-08, passed 12-9-08; Am. Ord. 10-03-13, passed 4-9-13; Am. Ord. 24-07-13, passed 8-13-13) Penalty, see § 159.999