(a)

In the C-1 commercial district, no building or premises shall be used and no building shall hereinafter be erected or structurally altered unless otherwise provided in this chapter except for one or more of the following uses:

(1)

Any use permitted in the commercial district.

(2)

Telecommunication towers and antennas.

(b)

The following standards will be applicable for permitted and conditional uses:

(1)

Definitions.

a.

Accessory use: A use incidental to, subordinate to and subservient to the main use of the property.

b.

Antenna: Transmitting and/or receiving device used for personal wireless services that radiates or captures electromagnetic waves, including, directional antennas, such as panel and microwave dish antennas, and omni-directional antennas, such as whips, excluding radar antennas, amateur radio antennas, amateur radio antennas and satellite earth stations.

c.

Guyed tower: A telecommunication tower that is supported, in whole or part by guy wires and ground.

d.

Monopole tower: A telecommunication tower consisting of a single pole or spire self supported by a permanent foundation, constructed without guy wires and ground anchors.

e.

Self-support/lattice tower: A telecommunication tower that is constructed without guy wires and ground anchors.

f.

Stealth building-mounted antennas: Antennas which are mounted on an existing structure with or without a mast and which are painted to match the color of the exterior material of the structure and placed so as not to obstruct any significant architectural feature of the structure.

g.

Stealth facility: Any telecommunications facility which is designed to blend into the surrounding environment.

h.

Telecommunication tower: A guyed, monopole or self-support/lattice tower, constructed as a free standing or guyed structure, containing one or more antennas used in the provision of commercial wireless services.

(2)

Telecommunications tower.

A.

Reserved.

B.

Reserved.

C.

Minimum standards. Except where a conditional use exception is granted, every telecommunications tower must meet the following minimum standards:

1.

Prior to the issuance of a building permit, a site development plan shall be presented for approval to the building inspector. Each application for a proposed telecommunication tower shall include all requirements for a building permit. The building permit may waive all or some of these provisions for stealth towers which are designed to emulate existing structures already on the site, including but not limited to light standards or power poles; or for colocation sites with two or more carriers at the time of application.

2.

A statement shall be submitted, prepared by a professional registered engineer licensed to practice in the State of Louisiana, which through rational engineering analysis certifies the tower's compliance with applicable standards as set forth in the building code, and any associated regulations; and describes the tower's capacity including an example of the number and type of antennas it can accommodate. No tower shall be permitted to exceed its loading capacity. For all towers attached to existing structures, the statement shall include certification that the structure can support the load superimposed from the tower. All towers shall have the capacity to permit multiple users; at a minimum, monopole towers shall be able to accommodate two users and at a minimum, self-support/lattice or guyed towers shall be able to accommodate three users.

3.

Except where a telecommunications tower is permitted use, in which case these shall not apply, height/setbacks and related location requirements shall be as follows:

a.

The height of a telecommunications tower shall not exceed 250 feet. Tower height shall be measured from the crown of the nearest public street.

b.

Telecommunication towers shall conform with the setbacks established from the underlying zoning district.

c.

Monopole, lattice or guyed telecommunication towers shall not be located within 750 feet of any existing monopole, lattice or guyed telecommunication tower.

d.

All buildings and other structures to be located on the same property as a telecommunication tower shall conform with the setbacks established in the commercial district.

4.

Buffering.

a.

An eight-foot fence or wall constructed as measured from the finished grade of the site, shall be required around the base of any lattice tower and may be permitted around any accessory buildings or structures.

b.

Landscaping of this Code shall be installed around the entire perimeter of any fence or wall. Additional landscaping may be required around the perimeter of a fence or wall and around any or all anchors or supports as deemed necessary to buffer adjacent properties. The town may require landscaping in excess of the requirements of the code in order to enhance compatibility with adjacent residential and nonresidential land uses. Landscaping shall be installed on the outside of the perimeter fence or wall.

c.

Landscaping consistent with perimeter and on-site requirements shall be installed around any accessory buildings or structures.

5.

Equipment storage. Mobile or immobile equipment not used in direct support of a tower facility shall be stored or parked on the site of the telecommunication tower, unless repairs to the tower are being made.

6.

Removal of abandoned or unused facilities. All abandoned or unused telecommunication tower facilities shall be removed by the tower owner/operator within 90 days of the cessation of use, unless ownership and use thereof has been transferred to the property owner. A tower shall be considered abandoned if use has been discontinued for 180 consecutive days. Telecommunication towers being utilized for other purposes, including but not limited to light standards and power poles, may be exempt from this provision. The planning commission may extend this time period or waive this requirement if it is shown that the facility has not been abandoned.

7.

Signs and advertising. The use of any portion of a tower for signs, or advertising purposes, including company name, banners, streamers, etc., shall be strictly prohibited. This does not apply to an installation where an outdoor advertising sign is used as the base foundation for an antenna installation.

8.

Appurtenant structures. All appurtenant structures shall meet all building design standards as listed in this Code and in accordance with the provisions of the International Building Code.

9.

Colors. Except where superseded by the requirements of other state or federal regulatory agencies possessing jurisdiction over telecommunication towers, telecommunication towers or monopoles shall be constructed of galvanized or unpainted metal or shall be painted in neutral colors, designed to blend into the surrounding environment such as gray.

10.

Each application to allow construction of a telecommunication tower shall include a statement that the construction and placement of the tower:

a.

Is in compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FFA) regulations.

b.

Is in compliance with the rules and regulations of other federal or state agencies that may regulate telecommunication tower sitting, design and construction.

c.

Is in compliance with current radio frequency emissions standards of the Federal Communications Commission.

d.

Will not unnecessarily interfere with public safety communications and the usual and customary transmission or reception of radio and television service enjoyed by adjacent residential and nonresidential properties.

(c)

Shared uses.

(1)

Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, to minimize adverse visual impacts associated with the proliferation and clustering of telecommunication towers, colocation of facilities on existing or new towers shall be encouraged by:

a.

Only issuing permits to qualified shared facilities at locations where it appears there may be more demand for towers than the property can reasonably accommodate; or

b.

Giving preference to qualified shared facilities over other facilities in authorizing use at particular locations.

(2)

For a facility to become a "qualified shared facility", the facility owner must show that:

a.

The facility is appropriately designed for sharing; and

b.

The facility owner is prepared to offer adequate space on the facility to others on fair and reasonable nondiscriminatory terms.

(3)

Colocation of communications antennas by more than one provider on existing or new telecommunication towers shall take precedence over the construction of new single-use telecommunication towers.

(4)

For any telecommunications tower approved for shared use, the owner of the tower shall provide notice of the location of the telecommunication tower to the parish.

(d)

Transfer of use.

(1)

Approved telecommunications towers or antennas may be transferred to successor and assigns of the approved party subject to all of the conditions which apply to initial approval.

(Ord. No. 203, 8-20-96; Ord. No. 318, 3-26-07; Ord. No. 505, 11-19-2019)