WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE FACILITIES
(Article 15 added by Ordinance 02-07, 6-2-02)
To accommodate the increasing communication needs of Astoria residents, businesses, and visitors, while protecting the public health, safety and general welfare, and visual and aesthetic environment of the City, these regulations are established to:
These standards and regulations shall be construed to be consistent with any Federal or State standards regulating Wireless Communication Service Facilities which pre-empt or take precedence over the standards and regulations herein. In the event that either the Federal or State government adopt mandatory standards or regulations more stringent than those described herein, the more stringent standards or regulations shall govern.
The following definitions shall apply:
ALTERNATIVE ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURES: Roofs of buildings, church steeples, utility poles, flagpoles, street light standards, traffic light and traffic sign structures, billboards and commercial signs, and other similar human-made structures and devices that extend vertically from the adjacent grade to a sufficient height, to be at least 30 feet from adjacent grade, to accommodate the attachment of antennas for wireless communications signal transmission and reception.
ANALOG: In radiotelephony, a process where voice messages are electronically replicated and amplified as they are carried from the transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna.
ANTENNA: A specific exterior transmitting or receiving device used to capture, transmit, or receive radio frequency (RF) signals, microwave signals, and/or other communications energy transmitted from, or to be received by, other antennas. Antennas regulated by this Article include, but are not limited to: Omni-directional (or “whip”) antennas, directional (or “panel”) antennas, parabolic (or “dish”) antennas, and any other devices designed for the reception and/or transmission of radio-frequency (RF) signals or other communications technologies.
ANTENNA ARRAY: Two or more antenna as defined within this Section, above.
ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURE: “Support Structure”: A structure or device specifically designed, constructed and/or erected for the purpose of attaching, mounting, or otherwise affixing antennas at a height, altitude, or elevation which is above the base of such structure. Antenna support structures include, but are not limited to, the following:
LATTICE TOWER: A vertical support structure consisting of a network of crossed metal braces, forming a tower which may be three, four, or more sided.
GUYED TOWER: A monopole or lattice tower that is tied to the ground or other surface by diagonal cables.
MONOPOLE: A vertical support structure consisting of a single vertical metal, concrete, or wooden pole, pipe, tube, or cylindrical structure, typically round or square, and driven into the ground or mounted upon or attached to a foundation.
AVOIDANCE AREA: Locations in the City of Astoria where Wireless Communication Service facilities should not be located, as a substantial adverse impact may result, and where there are reasonably feasible alternative locations for the facilities. An avoidance area is NOT a "prohibited area" since there are conditions under which Wireless Communication Service facilities may be located in an avoidance area.
CAMOUFLAGE: A way of painting and mounting an antenna and antenna support structure, resulting in the antenna and antenna support structure being reasonably difficult for the naked eye to detect or observe.
CARRIER: A company which holds a current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license to provide Wireless Communications Services under the FCC/1996 Telecommunications Act. Also referred to as a “Wireless Communications Service Provider”.
CELLULAR: A mobile telephone service operating in the 800 MHz spectrum.
COLLOCATION (CO-LOCATION): The use of a Wireless Communication Service Facility or site by two or more Wireless Communication Service providers or by one Wireless Communication Service providers for more than one type of communications technology and/or placement of two or more Wireless Communication Service Facilities on adjacent properties, or utilization of a single antenna support structure, alternative antenna support structure, or an underground conduit or duct, by more than one Wireless Communication Service provider.
CONCEALMENT TECHNOLOGY: The use of technology through which a Wireless Communication Service Facility is enclosed within a natural or man-made feature, or to design a Wireless Communication Service Facility resulting in the antenna being either reasonably difficult for the naked eye to detect or observe, or made part of the feature enclosing it.
DESIGN: The appearance of Wireless Communication Service Facilities including but not limited to: materials, colors, and shape.
DIGITAL: Digital technology converts voice messages into digits (zeros and ones) that represent sound intensities. Because natural pauses in the conversation are eliminated, more call capacity is realized than with analog, and background noise is minimized. Digital is not the same as Personal Communications Services (PCS), as Cellular can be digital also.
DISGUISE: A Wireless Communication Service Facility designed to appear to be something other than a Personal Wireless Service facility.
ENHANCED SPECIALIZED MOBILE RADIOS (ESMR): Private land mobile radio with telephone services.
EQUIPMENT ENCLOSURE: A structure, shelter, cabinet, box, or vault designed for and used to house and protect the electronic equipment necessary and/or desirable for processing wireless communications signals and data, including any provisions for air conditioning, ventilation, or auxiliary electricity generators.
ESMR: Enhanced Specialized Mobile Radios.
FCC: Federal Communications Commission.
FCC GUIDELINES: Includes the Radio Frequency (RF) Performance Standards set forth by the FCC” OET (Office of Engineering and Technology) Bulletin 65, “Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields”, as referenced in “A Local Government Official’s Guide to Transmitting Antenna RF Emission Safety: Rules, Procedures, and Practical Guidance” Guidebook, dated June 2, 2000, or a subsequent FCC publication delineating required radio frequency performance standards.
MAINTENANCE: Emergency or routine repairs or replacement of transmitters, antennas, or other components of previously approved facilities which do not create a significant change in visual appearance, visual impact or an increase in radio frequency emissions.
MAST: A type of mount that is thinner and shorter than a monopole.
MICROCELL: A low power facility used to provide increased capacity to telecommunications demand areas or provide infill coverage in areas of weak reception, including a separate transmitting and receiving station serving the facility.
MITIGATION: Reduction or elimination of visual impacts by the use of one or more methods such as concealment, camouflage, or disguise.
MODIFICATION: The changing of any portion of a Wireless Communication Service Facility from its description in a previously approved permit.
MOUNT: The structure or surface upon which antennas are placed including but not limited to:
ROOF MOUNTED: Mounted on the roof of a structure.
SIDE-MOUNTED: Mounted on the side of a structure including a tower.
GROUND MOUNTED: Mounted on the ground.
NIER: Non-Ionizing Electromagnetic Radiation.
NON-RESIDENTIALLY UTILIZED PROPERTY: Property within a residential, neighborhood commercial, or attached-housing zone that is not used for residential purposes. Such property includes, but is not limited to, schools, churches, public parks, public safety facilities, and streets and highways. A public or privately owned vacant lot in a residential zone shall be not be considered non-residentially utilized property as the capacity for residential use exists.
RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) ENGINEER: A professional engineer, licensed in the State of Oregon, with a degree in electrical engineering, and demonstrated accreditation and experience to perform and certify radio frequency radiation measurements.
RF: Radio Frequency.
PCS: Personal Communications Services.
SITE: A portion of a subject property.
SITING: The method and form of placement of a use or development on a specific area of a subject property.
SMR: Specialized Mobile Radio.
SPECIALIZED MOBILE RADIO (SMR): A form of data transmission, dispatch or two-way communications used by companies that rent space or time from the high mount of a SMR carrier. Used primarily for sending information, for services such as delivery vans, truckers, or taxis within a small, definable geographic areas, the signal is not “handed off” to another cell as in Cellular, PCS, or ESMR.
SPECULATION (“SPEC”) TOWER: An antenna support structure designed for the purpose of providing location mounts for Wireless Communication Service Facilities without a binding commitment or option to lease a location upon the tower by a licensed service provider at the time of initial application.
STEALTH: A term meaning “hidden” or “undetectable.” The state of being furtive or unobtrusive.
SUBSTANTIAL ADVERSE IMPACT: (Also see “Avoidance Area”) An impact caused by a proposed project which would produce an end result which:
WCSF: Wireless Communication Service Facility.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE: Includes, but not limited to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensed “commercial mobile services”, (mobile services that are for-profit, are available to the public or a substantial portion of the public, and provide subscribers with the ability to access or receive calls from the public switched telephone network, including Cellular, Personal Communications Services (PCS), Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR), and Enhanced Specialized Mobile Radio (ESMR), as well as, “unlicensed wireless services” (services that are not licensed by the FCC, but are deployed through equipment that is authorized by the FCC), and “common carrier wireless exchange access services” (offerings designed as competitive alternatives to traditional wireline local exchange providers).
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE FACILITY (WCSF): All equipment and property associated with the construction of antenna support structures, antenna arrays, and antennas, including but not limited to cables, wires, conduits, ducts, pedestals, antennas of all descriptions, electronic and mechanical equipment and devices, buildings and similar structures and installations, used for the provision of Wireless Communication Services. A facility for the provision of Wireless Communication Services, as defined by Section 704 of the Telecommunications Act.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER: A company which holds a current FCC license to provide Wireless Communication Services under the FCC/1996 Telecommunications Act. Also commonly referred to as a “Carrier.”
All applications for Wireless Communication Service Facilities shall demonstrate compliance and conformity with the following requirements. The burden of proof is on the applicant to demonstrate such compliance and conformity. The Community Development Director may release an applicant from a requirement when it is determined that the requirement is not applicable to the request.
A decision of the Approval Authority made pursuant to this Article may be appealed in accordance with Astoria Development Code Article 9.
Applicant shall pay the filing fee at the time of submission of an application. Actual costs incurred in processing the application shall be billed from the filing fee. Upon final decision on an application, and after all expenses have been determined, any remaining filing fee shall be returned to the applicant.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE FACILITIES
(Article 15 added by Ordinance 02-07, 6-2-02)
To accommodate the increasing communication needs of Astoria residents, businesses, and visitors, while protecting the public health, safety and general welfare, and visual and aesthetic environment of the City, these regulations are established to:
These standards and regulations shall be construed to be consistent with any Federal or State standards regulating Wireless Communication Service Facilities which pre-empt or take precedence over the standards and regulations herein. In the event that either the Federal or State government adopt mandatory standards or regulations more stringent than those described herein, the more stringent standards or regulations shall govern.
The following definitions shall apply:
ALTERNATIVE ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURES: Roofs of buildings, church steeples, utility poles, flagpoles, street light standards, traffic light and traffic sign structures, billboards and commercial signs, and other similar human-made structures and devices that extend vertically from the adjacent grade to a sufficient height, to be at least 30 feet from adjacent grade, to accommodate the attachment of antennas for wireless communications signal transmission and reception.
ANALOG: In radiotelephony, a process where voice messages are electronically replicated and amplified as they are carried from the transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna.
ANTENNA: A specific exterior transmitting or receiving device used to capture, transmit, or receive radio frequency (RF) signals, microwave signals, and/or other communications energy transmitted from, or to be received by, other antennas. Antennas regulated by this Article include, but are not limited to: Omni-directional (or “whip”) antennas, directional (or “panel”) antennas, parabolic (or “dish”) antennas, and any other devices designed for the reception and/or transmission of radio-frequency (RF) signals or other communications technologies.
ANTENNA ARRAY: Two or more antenna as defined within this Section, above.
ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURE: “Support Structure”: A structure or device specifically designed, constructed and/or erected for the purpose of attaching, mounting, or otherwise affixing antennas at a height, altitude, or elevation which is above the base of such structure. Antenna support structures include, but are not limited to, the following:
LATTICE TOWER: A vertical support structure consisting of a network of crossed metal braces, forming a tower which may be three, four, or more sided.
GUYED TOWER: A monopole or lattice tower that is tied to the ground or other surface by diagonal cables.
MONOPOLE: A vertical support structure consisting of a single vertical metal, concrete, or wooden pole, pipe, tube, or cylindrical structure, typically round or square, and driven into the ground or mounted upon or attached to a foundation.
AVOIDANCE AREA: Locations in the City of Astoria where Wireless Communication Service facilities should not be located, as a substantial adverse impact may result, and where there are reasonably feasible alternative locations for the facilities. An avoidance area is NOT a "prohibited area" since there are conditions under which Wireless Communication Service facilities may be located in an avoidance area.
CAMOUFLAGE: A way of painting and mounting an antenna and antenna support structure, resulting in the antenna and antenna support structure being reasonably difficult for the naked eye to detect or observe.
CARRIER: A company which holds a current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license to provide Wireless Communications Services under the FCC/1996 Telecommunications Act. Also referred to as a “Wireless Communications Service Provider”.
CELLULAR: A mobile telephone service operating in the 800 MHz spectrum.
COLLOCATION (CO-LOCATION): The use of a Wireless Communication Service Facility or site by two or more Wireless Communication Service providers or by one Wireless Communication Service providers for more than one type of communications technology and/or placement of two or more Wireless Communication Service Facilities on adjacent properties, or utilization of a single antenna support structure, alternative antenna support structure, or an underground conduit or duct, by more than one Wireless Communication Service provider.
CONCEALMENT TECHNOLOGY: The use of technology through which a Wireless Communication Service Facility is enclosed within a natural or man-made feature, or to design a Wireless Communication Service Facility resulting in the antenna being either reasonably difficult for the naked eye to detect or observe, or made part of the feature enclosing it.
DESIGN: The appearance of Wireless Communication Service Facilities including but not limited to: materials, colors, and shape.
DIGITAL: Digital technology converts voice messages into digits (zeros and ones) that represent sound intensities. Because natural pauses in the conversation are eliminated, more call capacity is realized than with analog, and background noise is minimized. Digital is not the same as Personal Communications Services (PCS), as Cellular can be digital also.
DISGUISE: A Wireless Communication Service Facility designed to appear to be something other than a Personal Wireless Service facility.
ENHANCED SPECIALIZED MOBILE RADIOS (ESMR): Private land mobile radio with telephone services.
EQUIPMENT ENCLOSURE: A structure, shelter, cabinet, box, or vault designed for and used to house and protect the electronic equipment necessary and/or desirable for processing wireless communications signals and data, including any provisions for air conditioning, ventilation, or auxiliary electricity generators.
ESMR: Enhanced Specialized Mobile Radios.
FCC: Federal Communications Commission.
FCC GUIDELINES: Includes the Radio Frequency (RF) Performance Standards set forth by the FCC” OET (Office of Engineering and Technology) Bulletin 65, “Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields”, as referenced in “A Local Government Official’s Guide to Transmitting Antenna RF Emission Safety: Rules, Procedures, and Practical Guidance” Guidebook, dated June 2, 2000, or a subsequent FCC publication delineating required radio frequency performance standards.
MAINTENANCE: Emergency or routine repairs or replacement of transmitters, antennas, or other components of previously approved facilities which do not create a significant change in visual appearance, visual impact or an increase in radio frequency emissions.
MAST: A type of mount that is thinner and shorter than a monopole.
MICROCELL: A low power facility used to provide increased capacity to telecommunications demand areas or provide infill coverage in areas of weak reception, including a separate transmitting and receiving station serving the facility.
MITIGATION: Reduction or elimination of visual impacts by the use of one or more methods such as concealment, camouflage, or disguise.
MODIFICATION: The changing of any portion of a Wireless Communication Service Facility from its description in a previously approved permit.
MOUNT: The structure or surface upon which antennas are placed including but not limited to:
ROOF MOUNTED: Mounted on the roof of a structure.
SIDE-MOUNTED: Mounted on the side of a structure including a tower.
GROUND MOUNTED: Mounted on the ground.
NIER: Non-Ionizing Electromagnetic Radiation.
NON-RESIDENTIALLY UTILIZED PROPERTY: Property within a residential, neighborhood commercial, or attached-housing zone that is not used for residential purposes. Such property includes, but is not limited to, schools, churches, public parks, public safety facilities, and streets and highways. A public or privately owned vacant lot in a residential zone shall be not be considered non-residentially utilized property as the capacity for residential use exists.
RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) ENGINEER: A professional engineer, licensed in the State of Oregon, with a degree in electrical engineering, and demonstrated accreditation and experience to perform and certify radio frequency radiation measurements.
RF: Radio Frequency.
PCS: Personal Communications Services.
SITE: A portion of a subject property.
SITING: The method and form of placement of a use or development on a specific area of a subject property.
SMR: Specialized Mobile Radio.
SPECIALIZED MOBILE RADIO (SMR): A form of data transmission, dispatch or two-way communications used by companies that rent space or time from the high mount of a SMR carrier. Used primarily for sending information, for services such as delivery vans, truckers, or taxis within a small, definable geographic areas, the signal is not “handed off” to another cell as in Cellular, PCS, or ESMR.
SPECULATION (“SPEC”) TOWER: An antenna support structure designed for the purpose of providing location mounts for Wireless Communication Service Facilities without a binding commitment or option to lease a location upon the tower by a licensed service provider at the time of initial application.
STEALTH: A term meaning “hidden” or “undetectable.” The state of being furtive or unobtrusive.
SUBSTANTIAL ADVERSE IMPACT: (Also see “Avoidance Area”) An impact caused by a proposed project which would produce an end result which:
WCSF: Wireless Communication Service Facility.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE: Includes, but not limited to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensed “commercial mobile services”, (mobile services that are for-profit, are available to the public or a substantial portion of the public, and provide subscribers with the ability to access or receive calls from the public switched telephone network, including Cellular, Personal Communications Services (PCS), Specialized Mobile Radio (SMR), and Enhanced Specialized Mobile Radio (ESMR), as well as, “unlicensed wireless services” (services that are not licensed by the FCC, but are deployed through equipment that is authorized by the FCC), and “common carrier wireless exchange access services” (offerings designed as competitive alternatives to traditional wireline local exchange providers).
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SERVICE FACILITY (WCSF): All equipment and property associated with the construction of antenna support structures, antenna arrays, and antennas, including but not limited to cables, wires, conduits, ducts, pedestals, antennas of all descriptions, electronic and mechanical equipment and devices, buildings and similar structures and installations, used for the provision of Wireless Communication Services. A facility for the provision of Wireless Communication Services, as defined by Section 704 of the Telecommunications Act.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER: A company which holds a current FCC license to provide Wireless Communication Services under the FCC/1996 Telecommunications Act. Also commonly referred to as a “Carrier.”
All applications for Wireless Communication Service Facilities shall demonstrate compliance and conformity with the following requirements. The burden of proof is on the applicant to demonstrate such compliance and conformity. The Community Development Director may release an applicant from a requirement when it is determined that the requirement is not applicable to the request.
A decision of the Approval Authority made pursuant to this Article may be appealed in accordance with Astoria Development Code Article 9.
Applicant shall pay the filing fee at the time of submission of an application. Actual costs incurred in processing the application shall be billed from the filing fee. Upon final decision on an application, and after all expenses have been determined, any remaining filing fee shall be returned to the applicant.