The purposes of this Article are: to facilitate the provision of wireless telecommunications services throughout the City; to allow the location of commercial mobile radio service facilities ("CMRS facilities") in the City subject to certain standards; to act on applications for the location of CMRS facilities within a reasonable period of time; to encourage co-location of CMRS facilities; and to avoid unreasonable discrimination among providers of functionally equivalent services.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

Accessory equipment for a CMRS facility means equipment, including buildings and structures, used to protect and enable radio switching equipment, back-up power, support structures and other devices incidental to a CMRS facility, but not including antennae.

Base station means a structure or equipment, other than a tower, at a fixed location that enables Federal Communications Commission-licensed or authorized wireless communications between user equipment and a communications network. The term includes any equipment associated with wireless communications services, including radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial or fiber-optic cable, regular and backup power supplies, and comparable equipment, regardless of technological configuration (including distributed antenna systems and small-cell networks). The term includes any structure, other than a tower, to which any of the equipment described hereof is attached.

Building roof-mounted CMRS facility means a CMRS facility that is mounted and supported entirely on the roof of a legally existing building or structure.

Building wall-mounted CMRS facility means a CMRS facility that is mounted and supported entirely on the wall of a legally existing building or structure.

Co-location means the location of two (2) or more CMRS facilities on the same support structure. Two (2) or more separate facilities located on one (1) building shall not be considered co-location.

Commercial mobile radio service facility or CMRS facility means an unmanned facility consisting of antennae, accessory equipment and equipment storage shelters, and used for the reception, switching, transmission or receiving of wireless telecommunications operating at one thousand (1,000) watts or less effective radiated power, and using frequencies authorized by the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC"), including, but not limited to, paging, enhanced specialized mobile radio, personal communication systems, cellular telephone, point-to-point microwave signals and similar technologies.

Eligible telecommunications facility request means a request for approval of the modification of an existing tower or base station that involves the collocation of new transmission equipment, the removal of transmission equipment or the replacement of transmission equipment.

Equipment storage shelter means buildings, storage shelters and cabinets used to house CMRS facility equipment.

Freestanding CMRS facility means a CMRS facility that consists of a stand-alone support structure, antennae and accessory equipment.

Microwave dish antenna means a disk-type antenna used to link communication sites together by wireless voice or data transmission.

Pole-mounted CMRS facility means a CMRS facility that is mounted and supported entirely on a legally existing traffic signal, utility pole, street light, flagpole, freestanding CMRS facility, electric or transmission line support tower or other similar structure.

Substantial change means a modification to an existing tower or base station under the following circumstances:

(1)

A substantial change in the height of an existing tower or base station occurs as follows:

a.

For a tower outside of a public right-of-way, when the height of the tower is increased by more than ten percent (10%), or by the height of one (1) additional antenna array with separation from the nearest existing antenna not to exceed twenty (20) feet, whichever is greater.

b.

For a tower located in a public right-of-way or for a base station, when the height of the structure increases by more than ten percent (10%) or by more than ten (10) feet, whichever is greater.

(2)

Changes in height are measured as follows:

a.

When deployments are separated horizontally, changes in height shall be measured from the original support structure, not from the height of any existing telecommunications equipment.

b.

When deployments are separated vertically, changes in height shall be measured from the height of the tower or base station, including any appurtenances, as the tower or base station existed on February 22, 2012.

(3)

A substantial change in the width of an existing tower or base station occurs as follows:

a.

For a tower outside of public rights-of-way, when the addition of an appurtenance to the body of the tower protrudes from the edge of the tower more than twenty (20) feet, or more than the width of the tower structure at the level of the appurtenance, whichever is greater.

b.

For a tower in a public right-of-way or a base station, when the addition of an appurtenance to the body of the structure would protrude from the edge of the structure by more than six (6) feet.

(4)

A substantial change also occurs for an existing tower in a public right-of-way or an existing base station as follows:

a.

When the change involves the installation of any new equipment cabinets on the ground, if no ground cabinets presently exist, or

b.

When the change involves the installation of ground cabinets that are more than ten percent (10%) larger in height or overall volume than any existing ground cabinets.

(5)

A substantial change also occurs for any existing tower or base station when any of the following are found:

a.

When the change involves installation of more than the standard number of new equipment cabinets for the technology involved, or more than four (4) new cabinets, whichever is less.

b.

When the change entails any excavation or deployment outside the current site.

c.

When the change would defeat the concealment elements of the eligible support structure.

d.

When the change does not comply with conditions associated with the original siting approval of the construction or modification of the tower, base station or base station equipment.

This limitation does not apply if the non-compliance is due to an increase in height, increase in width, addition of cabinets, or new excavation that would not exceed the thresholds identified in Subsections (1) through (5)(b), hereof.

Tower means a structure built for the sole or primary purpose of supporting any Federal Communications Commission-licensed or authorized antennas and their associated facilities, including structures that are constructed for wireless communications services including, but not limited to, private, broadcast, and public safety services, as well as unlicensed wireless services and fixed wireless services such as microwave backhaul, and the associated site.

(Ord. 98-7 §1; Ord. 2014-6 §1; Ord. 2015-13, §§1, 2)

The standards and criteria contained in this Article apply to all applications for location of CMRS facilities in the City.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

The City encourages co-location of CMRS facilities when feasible to minimize the number of CMRS facility sites. To further the goal of co-location:

(1)

No CMRS facility owner or operator shall unfairly exclude a telecommunications competitor from using the same facility or location. Upon request by the City, the owner or operator shall provide evidence explaining why co-location is not possible at a particular facility or site.

(2)

If a telecommunications competitor attempts to co-locate a CMRS facility on an existing or approved CMRS facility or location, and the parties cannot reach an agreement, the City may require a third-party technical study to be completed at the expense of both parties to determine the feasibility of co-location.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

A CMRS facility shall comply with the current FCC regulations prohibiting localized interference with reception of television and radio broadcasts and the current FCC standards for cumulative field measurements of radio frequency power densities and electromagnetic fields.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

If the CMRS facility ceases operation for any reason for one hundred eighty (180) consecutive days:

(1)

The owner or operator shall remove it on or before the 270th day, and if the facility owner or operator fails to remove the facility, removal shall become the responsibility of the landowner.

(2)

Failure to timely remove an abandoned CMRS facility shall constitute a code violation.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

Equipment storage shelters for CMRS facilities shall adhere to the following design standards to minimize impacts:

(1)

Equipment storage shelters located outside shall be screened from view by vegetation, fencing or comparable screening.

(2)

No equipment storage shelter shall exceed fifteen (15) feet in height.

(3)

The total area of all equipment storage shelters shall not exceed four hundred (400) square feet per facility.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

(a)

An application for administrative approval pursuant to Section 16-401 of this Article shall be required prior to location of a freestanding CMRS facility in any zone district.

(b)

Minimum setback. A freestanding CMRS facility shall be set back from each property line one (1) foot of distance for every foot of facility height.

(c)

Maximum height. A freestanding CMRS facility, including antennae, shall not exceed the maximum structure height limit in the underlying zone district unless the administrative or other written approval specifically allows the facility to exceed that limit.

(d)

A freestanding CMRS facility shall meet the following design standards to minimize impacts:

(1)

The facility shall be designed to be compatible with surrounding buildings and structures and existing or planned uses in the area, subject to applicable Federal Aviation Administration ("FAA") regulations.

(2)

Existing land forms, vegetation and structures shall be used to screen the facility from view and blend in the facility with the surrounding environment, where feasible.

(3)

Existing vegetation shall be preserved or enhanced, where feasible.

(4)

The facility shall not be lighted unless required by the FAA.

(5)

All freestanding CMRS facilities shall accommodate co-location of facilities, unless co-location is technically unfeasible.

(6)

Any equipment that could be dangerous to persons or wildlife shall be adequately fenced.

(7)

The diameter of a microwave dish antenna shall not exceed four (4) feet.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

(a)

A building wall-mounted CMRS facility shall adhere to the following design standards to minimize impacts:

(1)

The facility shall be screened from view and/or colored to match the building or structure to which it is attached.

(2)

The mounting of antennae shall be as flush to the building wall as possible, and in no case shall the antennae extend more than three (3) feet out from the building wall.

(3)

If the roof of the building is pitched, the facility shall not extend above the roof line of the building.

(4)

If the roof of the building is flat, the facility shall not extend above the highest point of the building, including roof-mounted appurtenances.

(b)

A building roof-mounted CMRS facility shall adhere to the following design standards to minimize impacts:

(1)

A building roof-mounted CMRS facility, including antennae, shall not extend more than fifteen (15) feet above the roof line of the building on which the facility is mounted. For purposes of this Section, roof line shall include parapets but not equipment or other facilities.

(2)

The facility shall be screened from view and/or colored to match the building or structure to which it is attached.

(3)

The diameter of a microwave dish antenna shall not exceed four (4) feet.

(c)

Accessory equipment for a building-mounted CMRS facility shall be placed inside the building if feasible.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

A pole-mounted CMRS facility shall adhere to the following design standards to minimize impacts:

(1)

The facility shall be designed to be compatible with surrounding buildings and structures and existing or planned uses in the area.

(2)

The facility shall be colored to match the pole or structure to which it is attached.

(Ord. 98-7 §1)

(a)

A CMRS facility applicant shall follow the application and approval procedures set forth in this Article, and shall not be subject to the standards set forth in Sections 16-261 through 16-283 of this Chapter.

(b)

Administrative approval.

(1)

An application to locate a CMRS facility in any zone district shall include the following:

a.

A site plan on twenty-four-inch by thirty-six-inch (24" x 36") sheets which includes the following:

1.

The location of all proposed and existing improvements on the property;

2.

A north arrow;

3.

Scale (written and graphic);

4.

Scaled building elevations, if applicable; and

5.

The legal description of the property.

b.

A title commitment or other proof of ownership of the property, or, if the property is leased, a signed and notarized letter of authorization from the property owner.

c.

Photographic simulations showing the proposed facility and the structure on which it will be mounted, if applicable.

d.

An access plan and utility plan, if applicable.

e.

A written, narrative statement describing in detail how the proposed CMRS facility will comply with each of the applicable design standards outlined in this Article.

(2)

Application submittal. An application for administrative review of a proposed CMRS facility location shall be submitted to the Planning Department.

(3)

Review. The Planning Director shall consider whether the proposed facility meets the design standards set forth in this Article, and shall confer with the Public Works Department to ensure that the proposed facility conforms to the City's technical criteria.

(4)

Decision. The Planning Director shall issue a written decision approving or denying the application. Except with respect to an eligible telecommunications facility request that must be approved pursuant to Subsection (e) hereof, the Planning Director may impose reasonable conditions of approval.

(5)

Appeal. If the Planning Director denies the application, the applicant may appeal the Planning Director's decision to the Board of Appeals pursuant to Section 16-366.

(c)

City-owned property. The Board of Aldermen shall hold a public hearing to decide on any application to locate a CMRS facility on city-owned property, following the procedure set forth in Section 16-369. At the public hearing, the Board of Aldermen shall consider whether the proposed facility meets the design standards set forth in this Article, and issue a written decision approving or denying the application. The Board of Aldermen may impose reasonable conditions of approval.

(d)

Application denial. A final decision by the City to deny an application for a CMRS facility under this Article shall be in writing and supported by substantial evidence contained in a written record.

(e)

Eligible telecommunications facility requests.

(1)

Any modification to a CMRS facility that differs from the original design that was approved by the City shall require new application and approval. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the City may, in its sole discretion, waive or postpone the submittal of any application requirement detailed in this Section when considering a modification request.

(2)

Application materials.

a.

An applicant for an eligible telecommunications facility request shall be required to submit only such documentation and information as is reasonably necessary to determine whether a proposed modification would substantially change the physical dimensions of an eligible tower or base station.

b.

The City shall make available an application form which shall be limited to the information necessary for the City to consider whether an application would substantially change the physical dimensions of an eligible tower or base station. The application form may not require the applicant to demonstrate a need or business case for the proposed modification or collocation.

(3)

Incomplete applications.

a.

When an application is incomplete, the City shall provide written notice to the applicant within thirty (30) days, specifically identifying all missing documents or information.

b.

If an application remains incomplete after a supplemental submission, the City shall notify the applicant within ten (10) days. Second or subsequent notices of incompleteness may not require the production of documents or information that were not requested in the original notice of incompleteness.

(4)

Expedited review.

a.

An eligible telecommunications facility request shall be approved or denied by the City within sixty (60) days of the date of the City's receipt of the completed application. This time period may be tolled only by mutual agreement or where an application is incomplete.

b.

If the City fails to approve or deny an eligible telecommunications facility request within the time frame for review (accounting for any tolling), the request shall be deemed granted; provided that this automatic approval shall become effective only upon the City's receipt of written notification from the applicant after the review period has expired (accounting for any tolling) indicating that the application has been deemed granted.

(5)

Review.

a.

The Planning Director shall review the application to determine whether the application qualifies as an eligible telecommunications facility request.

b.

Approval.

1.

The City shall approve an eligible telecommunications facility request that does not substantially change the physical dimensions of a tower or base station.

2.

The City may approve an eligible telecommunications facility request that substantially changes the physical dimensions of a tower or base station if it complies with the remainder of this Code.

3.

The City may condition the approval of any eligible telecommunications facility request on compliance with generally applicable building, structural, electrical, and safety codes or with other laws codifying objective standards reasonably related to health and safety.

c.

Denial. A final decision by the City to deny an eligible telecommunications facility request under this Section shall be in writing and shall include the reason(s) for denial.

(Ord. 98-7 §1; Ord. 2009-13 §1; Ord. 2014-6 §2; Ord. 2015-13, §3)

In no case shall a CMRS facility located on property owned by the City or in any public right-of-way exceed forty (40) feet in height.

(Ord. 2016-14 §2)