8.101.1 Exemptions. The following are exempt from these wireless telecommunications facilities (WTF) conditions:
A. Satellite dishes less than four feet in diameter in residential districts;
B. Regular maintenance and/or upgrade of antenna elements of any existing wireless communications facility that does not include the addition of any new antenna elements, feed lines, and associated support equipment on the facility or the placement of any new wireless communications facility;
C. A government-owned wireless communications facility, upon the declaration of a state of emergency by federal, state, or local government, and a written determination of public necessity by the town or county; except that such facility must comply with all federal and state requirements. No wireless communications facility shall be exempt from the provisions of this division section beyond the duration of the state of emergency; and
D. Antenna supporting structures, antennas, and/or antenna arrays for AM/FM/TV/HDTV broadcasting transmission facilities that are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission.
8.101.2 Standards.
A. Nonconforming towers. Replacement of nonconforming WTFs existing as of the effective date of this ordinance, damaged by natural causes, will meet the standards of this ordinance. Repairs to nonconforming WTFs, damaged by natural causes, will be made in accordance with the ordinance under which it was initially installed.
B. Siting.
1. Siting of a WTF shall be in accordance with the following descending hierarchy:
a. Attached to an existing WTF;
b. Attached to a utility infrastructure (such as an overhead power transmission line);
c. Attached as a stealth WTF to an existing building or structure in a nonresidential zoning district;
d. Attached to an existing building or structure in a nonresidential zoning district;
e. Located as a monopole in a nonresidential zoning district;
f. Attached as a stealth WTF to an existing nonresidential building or structure in a residential zoning district;
g. Attached to an existing nonresidential building or structure in a residential zoning district; and
h. Located as a monopole on a lot of a nonresidential use within a residential zoning district.
2. The applicant must file relevant information as indicated in an affidavit by a radio frequency engineer demonstrating that despite diligent efforts to adhere to the established hierarchy within the geographic search area, higher ranked options are not technically feasible, practical, or justified given the identified needs of the service provider, the location of the proposed (and alternate) sites.
3. The WTF shall be contained within one parcel.
4. When located next to a residential zoning district, new WTFs may only be permitted on parcels with a minimum lot size of five acres.
8.101.3 Dimensions. WTFs shall conform to the following dimensional requirements.
A. Design. Towers shall be a monopole construction; guidelines and guyed towers shall not be permitted. Towers will be designed to support a minimum of four users.
B. Height.
1. Attached WTF. The top of the WTF may not be more than 30 feet above the building or structure to which it is attached.
2. Freestanding WTF. This measure shall include the foundation of the WTF, but exclude lightning rods for the dissipation of lighting or lights required by the FAA that do not provide support for any antennas. The maximum height will be 160 feet in all districts. An additional 20 feet in height will be allowed for every four additional antennas.
3. Mitigation of an existing WTF. The maximum height of a new WTF arising from mitigation shall not exceed 125% of the height of the tallest WTF that is being mitigated.
C. Setbacks.
1. Attached WTF. The building or structure to which the WTF will be attached shall maintain the normal setbacks of the district.
2. Freestanding WTF. Setbacks for WTFs shall be determined according to the underlying zoning district, plus an additional one foot of setback (on each side) for every one-foot of tower height. The Zoning Administrator may approve reductions to this setback requirement as a part of the special use permit approval with certification by a registered engineer that the resulting setbacks provide adequate fall area in case of a tower collapse.
3. Mitigation of an existing WTF. A new WTF approved as mitigation shall not be required to meet setback requirements so long as the new WTF is no closer to any property lines or dwelling units as the WTF being mitigated and a certification by a registered engineer that the resulting setbacks provide adequate fall area in case of a tower collapse.
D. Buffers.
1. A landscaped buffer shall surround the base of the WTF equipment compound. Existing trees and shrubs on the site shall be preserved and may be used in lieu of some or all of the required landscaping as approved by the Zoning Administrator. Grading shall be minimized and limited only to the area necessary for the new WTF.
2. If the proposed WTF is to be located in front of an existing structure on the same lot, a street buffer shall also be required.
3. Security fencing at least eight feet in height shall be placed around the entire perimeter of the facilities.
4. Security fencing at least eight feet in height shall be placed around the entire perimeter of the facility.
E. Location of existing towers. In no case shall a telecommunications tower be located closer than two miles from another tower unless the builder, user, carrier, and the like, can establish through competent evidence and documentation either that:
1. It is in the best interests of the community that the proposed tower be located less than two miles from another tower; or
2. It is necessary for technical and/or capacity reasons that the proposed tower be located less than two miles from another tower.
8.101.4 Aesthetics.
A. Stealth attached WTFs, including feed lines and antennas, shall be designed so as to be compatible with the facade, roof, wall, or structure on which it is affixed so that it matches the existing structural design, color, and texture.
B. Freestanding WTFs shall be designed so as to be compatible with adjacent structures and landscapes to the extent feasible with specific design considerations as to height, scale, color, and texture.
C. Commercial messages may not be displayed on any WTF.
8.101.5 Application requirements. In addition to all of the requirements of a site plan review, the following information must be supplied with the application for WTFs:
A. Identification of the intended user(s) of the WTF and evidence supporting the need for a new antenna or a new tower;
B. A certified report by a registered engineer or other qualified professional of diligent efforts to locate an appropriate site based on the hierarchy established elsewhere in this Article;
C. For the proposed use of an existing facility, a report evaluating the adequacy of all alternative existing facilities to meet the applicants need and the reasons existing higher hierarchical preferred facilities cannot be used; and
D. In the case of a new WTF:
1. Evidence that no existing WTF can accommodate the applicant’s proposed antenna(s); or that use of such existing WTFs would prohibit personal wireless services in the area of the town to be served by the proposed WTF structure;
2. Evidence that the WTF has sufficient structural integrity to accommodate multiple future users, and the number of additional users that can be accommodated on the proposed WTF is specified. The builder, user, carrier, and the like, shall also submit documentation that the owner of the tower or antenna is willing to permit other user(s) to attach accessory communications facilities which do not interfere with the primary purpose of the tower or antenna, provided that such other user(s) agree to negotiate a reasonable compensation to the owner from such liability as may result from such attachment;
3. That in the event of a collapse, the proposed WTF facility has been engineered to fall in a radius of less than the provided setback;
4. Report on service gaps or service expansions that are addressed by the proposed WTF (“the proposed service”), and accompanying maps and calculations;
5. That the facility meets or exceeds applicable American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards as adopted by the FCC in order to protect the public from unnecessary exposure to electromagnetic radiation;
6. A statement that the proposed facility is the least visually obtrusive, as defined herein, and that the proposed facility conforms with state of the art, as defined herein, or alternatively, that state of the art technology is unsuitable for the proposed facility. Costs of state of the art technology that exceed customary facility development costs shall not be presumed to render the technology unsuitable; and
7. A listing and locations of any possible/future additional towers that may be necessary to meet the users long-term overall goals.
8.101.6 Third party review. When due to the complexity of the methodology or analysis required to review an application for a wireless communication facility, the Zoning Administrator may require the applicant to pay for a technical review by a third party expert selected by the town, the costs of which shall be in addition to other applicable fees. Based on the results of the expert review, the approving authority may require changes to the applicant’s application or submittals.
8.101.7 Mitigation. The intent of WTF mitigation is to reduce the number of WTFs (especially nonconforming facilities) and replace existing WTFs with new facilities to improve network functionality and increase overall compliance with this Article. To qualify as WTF mitigation, a proposal shall accomplish a minimum of one of the following:
A. Reduce the number of overall WTFs;
B. Reduce the number of nonconforming WTF types; or
C. Replace an existing WTF with a new WTF resulting in compliance with this Article.
8.101.8 Approval authority.
A. The Zoning Administrator shall be responsible for the approval of stealth attached WTFs, and co-location on existing antenna supporting structures, except those located within 300 feet of a designated State of North Carolina Scenic Byway.
B. In addition to the requirements for special use permits, the Planning Board, in determining whether a WTF is in harmony with the area, or the effects and general compatibility of a WTF with adjacent properties may consider the aesthetic effects of the WTF as well as mitigating factors concerning aesthetics. The Planning Board may disapprove an application on the grounds that the WTFs aesthetic effects are unacceptable, or may condition approval on changes in WTF height, design, style, buffers, or other features of the WTF or its surrounding area. Such changes need not result in performance identical to that of the original application. Factors relevant to aesthetic effects are: the protection of the view in sensitive or particularly scenic areas and areas specially designated in adopted plans such as unique natural features, scenic roadways and historic sites, the concentration of WTFs in the proposed area, and whether the height, design, placement, or other characteristics of the proposed WTF could be modified to have a less intrusive visual impact.
8.101.9 Construction and operation.
A. WTFs shall be constructed and maintained in conformance with all applicable building code requirements.
B. WTFs may not interfere with normal radio and television reception in the vicinity.
C. Lighting may not exceed the FAA minimum standard. Lights shall be oriented so as not to project directly onto surrounding residential property, consistent with FAA requirements.
D. The WTF equipment compound may not be used for the storage of any excess equipment or hazardous materials, nor be used as habitable space. No outdoor storage yards shall be allowed in a WTF equipment compound.
E. There shall be minimum eight-foot high fence installed and maintained by the owner of the telecommunications tower around the perimeter of the tower compound, except that security fencing shall not be required for accessory communication facilities.
8.101.10 Public service access. At the request of any local governing authority, a license shall be granted to such local governing authority to place public service communication antennas or other public service communication devices on the telecommunications tower or antenna, provided that such communication antennas or other public service communication devices do not interfere with the function of the telecommunications tower or antenna, or array of antennas of the operator or owner or other existing service providers located on the tower or antenna.
8.101.11 Interference with public safety communications.
A. In order to facilitate the town regulation, placement, and construction of WTFs and their interaction with the town public safety and emergency services communications equipment, all applicants requesting a permit for a WTF under this section shall agree in a written statement, to the following:
1. Compliance with good engineering practices as defined by the FCC in its rules and regulations;
2. Compliance with FCC regulations regarding susceptibility to radio frequency interference (RFI), frequency coordination requirements, general technical standards for power, antenna, bandwidth limitations, frequency stability, transmitter measurements, operating requirements, and any and all other federal statutory and regulatory requirements relating to RFI; and
3. In the case of co-location of telecommunications facilities, the applicant, together with the owner of the site, shall provide a composite analysis of all users of the site to determine that the applicant proposed facilities will not cause RFI with the town public safety and emergency services communications equipment.
B. When a specific base station is identified as causing RFI with the town public safety and emergency services communications equipment, the following steps shall be taken.
1. Upon notification by the town of interference with public safety and emergency services communications equipment, the owners of the WTF equipment shall utilize the hierarchy and procedures set forth in the FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Best Practices Guide. If the WTF owner fails to cooperate with the town in applying the procedures set forth in the Best Practices Guide in order to eliminate the interference, then the town and/or county may take steps to contact the FCC to eliminate the interference.
2. If there is a determination of RFI with the town public safety and emergency services communications equipment, the party which caused the interference shall be responsible for reimbursing the town for all costs associated with ascertaining and resolving the interference, including, but not limited to, any engineering studies obtained by the town to determine the source of the interference.
8.101.12 Removal of telecommunications towers or antenna no longer in use. Any telecommunications tower or antenna or accessory communication facility which is unused for the original permitted use for a period of 180 consecutive days shall be removed by the owner of such tower or antenna or accessory communication facility, within 120 days of receipt of notification to that effect. If the owner fails to so remove the tower or antenna or accessory communication facility as required by this section, then the town shall remove the tower or antenna or accessory communication facility, and the owner shall reimburse the town for all expenses incurred thereby, including without limitation all engineering, demolition, transportation, disposal, and legal fees and costs.
(Ord. passed 2-3-2021)