Storage of trucks and other vehicles.

Storage of materials, inventory, tools and machinery.

Offices and maintenance shop structures.

Caretaker dwellings provided no compensation is received for the use of any such dwelling and the size of such dwelling is no greater than 2000 square feet.

Overhead and underground transmission and communications lines and facilities, including transformers, substations, control rooms, switching facilities and microwave towers.

Structures necessary for the conservation and development of water resources, such as dams, pipelines and pumping facilities, and aquaculture.

Cogeneration facilities.

Solar collectors and photovoltaic panels.

Energy storage facilities.

Physical dimensions of the property;

Locations and physical dimensions of existing and proposed structures;

Location of electrical lines and facilities;

Existing topography;

Proposed grading and removal of natural vegetation;

Wind characteristics and dominant wind direction at the site. Dominant wind direction is the direction from which 50% or more of the energy contained in the wind flows;

Setbacks;

Circulation;

Ingress and egress;

Utilization of the property under the requested permit.

No commercial WECS shall exceed 200 feet in height, measured at the top of the blade in the twelve o’clock position. Where unusual conditions warrant, a lower height limit may be imposed as a condition of a Conditional Use Permit.

No other building or structure shall exceed 30 feet in height, except for meteorological towers permitted by subsection (C)(2) of this section.

No building or structure shall be located closer than 50 feet from any lot line.

No WECS shall be located closer than 1,200 feet from any residence, hotel, hospital, school, library or convalescent home unless the owner of such structure waives, in writing, the setback requirement.

Notwithstanding the 1,200-foot setback requirement specified above, a lesser setback may be permitted where due to factors of topography or the characteristics of the proposed WECS project, the approving entity finds that the noise, aesthetic or other environmental impacts of the project on adjacent properties will not be any more significant than if the 1,200-foot setback were applied. In the case of the replacement of WECS, pursuant to subsection (F)(3) of this section, the standard for determining whether a reduction shall be approved is whether the replacement WECS will have a substantially reduced cumulative impact on surrounding property, as compared to the existing project, and whether adhering to the 1,200-foot setback will be an unreasonable economic hardship to the applicant. Wherever a setback reduction is proposed pursuant to this subsection, the setback reduction shall be included in all notices, and, if granted, the WECS permit shall specifically state the required setback.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within a distance of 1.25 times the total WECS height from any above-ground electrical transmission line of more than 12kV.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within a distance of 1.25 times the total WECS height from any public highway or road, railroad or off-site building. The setback herein specified shall be measured from the boundary of the public right-of-way or railroad right-of-way.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within a distance of 1.25 times the total WECS height from any lot line. No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within a distance of 1,200 feet from any lot line of a lot which contains a dwelling.

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (E)(3)(b) and (c) of this section, the setbacks therein specified may be reduced to less than 1.25 times the total WECS height if the Planning Commission determines that the topography of, or other conditions related to, the adjacent property or right-of-way eliminates or substantially reduces the potential safety hazards. Whenever a setback reduction is proposed pursuant to this subsection, the setback reduction shall be included in all notices regarding the Conditional Use Permit, and, if granted, the Conditional Use Permit shall specifically state the required setback.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within a distance of 5 rotor diameters from a lot line that is perpendicular to and downwind of, or within 45 degrees of perpendicular to and downwind of, the dominant wind direction.

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (E)(4)(a) of this section, such setbacks from lot lines do not apply if the application is accompanied by a legally enforceable agreement or waiver for a period of 25 years or the life of the permit that the adjacent landowner agrees to the elimination of the setback, or if the Planning Commission determines that the characteristics of the downwind property eliminate the ability to develop said downwind property with commercial WECS.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within 1,320 feet (1/4 mile) of State Highway 62.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within 500 feet of Indian Avenue.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within 500 feet of Interstate 10.

No commercial WECS shall be located where the center of the tower is within 1.25 times the total WECS height from Dillon Road.

The setbacks specified in the subsections above shall be measured from the nearest boundary of the public right-of-way.

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (E)(5)(a) through (e) of this section, the setbacks therein specified may be reduced if the Planning Commission determines that the characteristics of the surrounding property eliminate or substantially reduce considerations of scenic value. Whenever a setback reduction is proposed pursuant to this subsection, the setback reduction shall be included in all notices regarding the Conditional Use Permit, and, if granted, the Conditional Use Permit shall specifically state the required setback.

Fencing, or other appropriate measures, shall be required to prevent unauthorized access to the WECS or WECS array.

Guy wires shall be distinctly marked.

Signs in English and Spanish warning of the electrical and other hazards associated with the WECS shall be posted at the base of each tower and at reasonable intervals on fences or barriers.

Horizontal Axis WECS. The lowest extension of the rotor of a horizontal axis WECS shall be at least 25 feet from the ground.

Vertical Axis WECS. A fence or other barrier shall be erected around a vertical axis WECS whose rotors are less than 15 feet from the ground.

All WECS shall comply with the requirements of the applicable seismic zone of the Uniform Building Code or with the seismic design recommendation in an approved geotechnical report on the project.

Control facilities for commercial WECS or WECS arrays shall not be located within 660 feet of any fault within a State-designated Alquist-Priolo Act Special Studies Zone.

Fireproof or fire-resistant building materials;

Buffers of fire-retardant landscaping;

An automatic fire-extinguishing system;

Fire breaks.

Whenever any existing commercial WECS are modified, or any new commercial WECS are installed, any commercial WECS on the site which are unsafe, inoperable or abandoned, or for which the permit has expired, shall be removed by the owner or brought into compliance with the provisions of this section. All safety hazards created by the installation and operation of the WECS shall be eliminated. Whenever the operation of any WECS is eliminated, the site shall be restored to its condition prior to installation. A bond, in an amount approved by the Director, or other appropriate form of security, in a form approved by the City Attorney, may be required to cover the cost of removal and site restoration.

Every unsafe or inoperable commercial WECS and every commercial WECS which has not generated power for 12 consecutive months is hereby declared to be a public nuisance which shall be abated by repair, rehabilitation, demolition or removal. The appropriate abatement method shall be determined by the Director of Planning and Zoning based upon the cost of abatement and the degree to which the WECS will meet the requirements of this section following abatement. A commercial WECS which has not generated power for 12 consecutive months shall not be considered a public nuisance provided the owner can demonstrate that modernization, rebuilding or repairs are in progress or planned and that a good faith effort is being made to return the WECS to service at the earliest practical date. If a commercial WECS does not deliver power as a result of a curtailment whereby power is not accepted by the contracted utility, the period of curtailment shall be added to the minimum period defined above.

The foundation, tower and compatibility of the tower with the rotor and rotor-related equipment shall be certified in writing by a structural engineer registered in California that they conform with good engineering practices and comply with the appropriate provisions of the Uniform Building Code that have been adopted by the City.

The electrical system shall be certified in writing by an electrical engineer, registered in California, that it conforms with good engineering practices and complies with appropriate provisions of the National Electrical Code that have been adopted by the City.

The rotor overspeed control system shall be certified in writing by a mechanical engineer, registered in any State, that it conforms to good engineering practices.

To the extent economically prudent, as determined by the Planning Commission, electrical distribution lines on the project site shall be under grounded up to the low voltage side of the step-up transformer or to the utility interface point of an on-site substation.

Any electrical distribution line of less than 34 kV, not subject to the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission, which is located within 1 mile of State Highway 62 shall be installed underground if such installation is feasible, as determined by the Director.

Electrical distribution lines shall be governed by the latest edition of “Suggested Practices for Raptor Protection on Powerlines” on file with the Bureau of Land Management. Use of this information should be made to design the proposed facilities with proper grounding, phase spacing and configuration such that it will prevent, to the best of the design engineer’s ability, the electrocution of raptors. The use of designs other than those included in “Suggested Practices” that are, in the opinion of the Director, raptor safe, shall be permitted in public rights-of-way. The cost for review of such alternate designs shall be at the applicant’s expense.

Upon reasonable notice, and subject to the applicant’s safety and security procedures, City officials or their designated representatives may enter a lot on which a Conditional Use Permit has been granted for the purpose of monitoring noise and other environmental impacts. Twenty-four hours advance notice shall be deemed reasonable notice.

The holder of a Conditional Use Permit shall report to the City Planning Department all dead birds found within 500 feet of a WECS and all sightings of the Coachella Valley Fringe-Toed Lizard on the WECS site.

The holder of a Conditional Use Permit may be required to submit periodic monitoring reports containing data on the operations and environmental impacts.

A toll-free telephone number shall be maintained for each commercial WECS project and shall be distributed to surrounding property owners to facilitate the reporting of noise irregularities and equipment malfunctions.

Individual commercial WECS which have been installed pursuant to a Conditional Use, or other WECS, Permit may be replaced with approval of a Land Use Permit provided the replacement WECS meets the standards of subsection E of this section. Such determination shall be made by the Director.

WECS arrays which have been installed pursuant to a Conditional Use, or other WECS Permit may be replaced with approval of a revised Conditional Use Permit provided 2 or more individual WECS shall be removed for each replacement WECS installed and the resultant array meets the standards of subsection E of this section. Such determination shall be made by the Director.

WECS replacements not meeting the criteria above require approval of a new Conditional Use Permit.

Any WECS on which the cost of alteration, restoration, repair or rebuilding in a 12-month period exceeds 75% of the replacement cost and shall be subject to subsections (F)(3)(a) through (c) of this section.

Existing WECS, upon adoption of the ordinance codified in this section, shall be considered to hold a valid Conditional Use Permit under the conditions by which such WECS was originally approved; such WECS shall not be considered nonconforming by virtue of the provisions of this section.