The purpose of this chapter is to uniformly regulate the size, number, type and location of communication towers, antennas and support facilities. Advances in information technology and the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 generated an increase in the number of requests to site commercial communication support facilities in the city. The city encourages advances in communication technology that better serve its residents and does not prohibit communication systems. However, the purpose of the chapter is to protect city character and public safety by controlling tower, antenna, and facilities location, height, construction, and aesthetics ensuring that communication systems are compatible with surrounding land uses. Moreover, the city seeks to discourage visual clutter resulting from the potential, simultaneous deployment and proliferation of multiple communication towers or systems. To that end, this chapter is intended to encourage the co-location of communication antennas on existing public or private utility facilities, and to either camouflage antennas, towers and other communication facilities, or minimize visual impacts of communication systems through careful design, siting, buffering, and landscaping.
(Ord. 98-19, passed 7-16-98; Am. Ord. 2011-37, passed 7-21-11)