Osceola, WI Zoning Ordinance

[Amended 9-12-2000 by Ord. No. 00-10; 4-11-2023 by Ord. No. 23-04; 8-12-2025 by Ord. No. 25-03]

Application referred to Plan Commission. The Building Inspector shall refer the application for a conditional use permit to the Plan Commission at least 10 days before the next regularly scheduled meeting.

(1)

The Plan Commission shall submit, within 40 days, a report and recommendation to the Village Board recommending approval where its findings indicate that:

(a)

The conditional use:

[1]

Will in no way endanger public health, safety, morals, comfort and general welfare;

[2]

Will not be injurious to the employment of other property in the immediate vicinity;

[3]

Will not impede the orderly development and improvement of other property for use permitted in the district; and

[4]

Conforms to the approval regulations of the district in which it is located.

(b)

Adequate utilities, access roads, drainage and other necessary site improvements have been or are being provided.

(c)

Adequate measures have been or will be taken to provide ingress or egress so designed as to minimize traffic congestion and traffic hazards in the public streets.

(2)

The Plan Commission shall state, in writing, the grounds for nonrecommendation of a conditional use permit.

(Reserved)

Wireless communications towers and facilities; conditional use permit standards.

(1)

Wireless communications towers and accessory structures which are a conditional use in all zoning districts shall be subject to the following minimum standards in relationship to the consideration of permit requests. This is due to concerns of the Village for the public health, safety and welfare relative to the impacts of such facilities upon private and public property alike and for community-wide aesthetic reasons. To this extent, it is the stated purpose of the Village to: minimize the visual impact of towers, antennas and associated structures through use of design and siting standards; to require maximization of the use of existing towers, antennas and associated structures; to encourage the use of alternatives to the building of additional towers and antennas in the Village; and to minimize the potential for damage to adjacent structures and properties as well as personal injuries through the imposition of structural standards and setback requirements.

(2)

No request to erect a new communications tower will be approved of unless the communications equipment planned for the proposed tower cannot be accommodated on an existing tower within the service area of the proposed tower due to one or more of the following reasons:

(a)

The planned equipment would exceed the structural capacity of the existing or approved tower, as documented by a qualified and licensed professional engineer and the existing or approved tower cannot be structurally reinforced, modified or replaced to accommodate the planned or equivalent equipment at a reasonable cost.

(b)

The planned equipment would materially interfere with the usability of other existing or planned equipment at that tower as documented by a qualified radio frequency engineer and the interference cannot be prevented at a reasonable cost.

(c)

Existing or approved towers within the radius of the proposed tower's range cannot accommodate the proposed equipment at a height necessary for it to function reasonably, as documented by a qualified radio frequency engineer.

(d)

Existing or approved towers within the radius of the proposed tower's range are unavailable or are unreasonable to lease space upon, as determined by the Village Board exercising its discretion.

(e)

Other reasons which make it impractical or unfeasible, in the opinion of the Plan Commission, to locate the proposed communication equipment on an existing or approved tower.

(3)

Each proposed communications tower shall be designed structurally, electrically and in all other respects to accommodate both the applicant's antennas and antennas for at least three other users. Towers shall be designed to allow for the future arrangement or rearrangement of antennas upon the tower and accept antennas mounted at various levels of height.

(4)

No commercial tower shall be constructed in a residential district, except when the tower is located on Village-owned land and used for public service telecommunication purposes; it shall not exceed 200 feet in height at the base in any or all other zoning districts in which it is allowed as a conditional use of the property.

(5)

The minimum setback from any property line, public right-of-way, or any other building shall be greater than the engineered fall zone of the tower, as certified by a licensed structural engineer. In no case shall the setback be less than the district's minimum yard requirements. For installations on Village-owned property, the Village Board may waive this requirement if the applicant demonstrates the adequate fall protection, buffering, and risk mitigation measures are in place. All accessory equipment must comply with the district's standard setback requirements.

(6)

Tower locations shall provide for the maximum amount of screening possible for off-site views of the facility. Existing on-site vegetation shall be preserved to the maximum extent practicable around the base of the tower.

(7)

The relationship between the tower site and existing public utility structures and service lines shall be considered, and adequate provision for interconnection with those utility lines shall be provided, through existing facilities, if possible.

(8)

Electromagnetic interference caused or created by the system utilizing each such tower, if any, shall not adversely affect or impact upon surrounding property uses.

(9)

The installation of the tower and accessory structures shall be designed to be compatible with the site. To this effect, a site plan shall be submitted to and approved by the Plan Commission. The base of the tower shall be landscaped and screened where practical. Accessory structures shall be designed to be architecturally compatible with principal structures on properties adjacent to the tower site.

(10)

Each tower shall be painted in a color which is demonstrated to minimize visibility. No advertising or identification visible off site shall be placed on any tower.

(11)

Towers shall be certified to meet the latest structural and safety standards and applicable state codes by a qualified and licensed professional engineer.

(12)

All obsolete and unused towers and accompanying accessory structures shall be removed from the site upon which they were erected within 12 months after the cessation of operations from that site by the owner or operator. After the facilities have been removed, the site shall be restored to its condition immediately prior to the erection of those facilities. Any tower which is not removed in accord with this provision shall be automatically deemed to be a public nuisance, and the Village may cause its removal at the owner's expense.

(13)

Where deemed to be appropriate by the Plan Commission, the applicant shall install fencing and/or landscaping for reasons of safety and aesthetics.

(14)

Towers shall be designed to withstand applicable wind load requirements as prescribed in the Uniform Building Code. Towers and antenna systems shall be treated with corrosive resistant materials, and the facilities shall be regularly maintained and, where necessary, repaired.

(15)

For purposes of Plan Commission review of applications for permission to erect towers and accessory structures, the following information, in addition to that submitted in response to the above criteria, shall be submitted by the applicant:

(a)

Written statements of compliance with regulations administered by the state and federal governments and their respective agencies with jurisdiction over the same.

(b)

A description of the height and a cross section of the proposed tower.

(c)

A description of the tower's capacity, including the number and types of antennas which it can accommodate.

(d)

A report on the means by which the applicant will take steps to avoid interference with established public safety communications systems through use of the facilities.

(e)

A letter of intent on the part of the applicant, its successors and assigns to allow shared use of the tower as long as there is no negative structural impact as a result thereof and no disruption to the services provided therefrom.

(f)

Structural and electrical system plans shall be submitted which shall also identify the location for and means of accommodating additional user's antennas.

(16)

The Village may, at any time, inspect any tower and accessory structures for compliance with this subsection and the terms and conditions of the conditional use permit. Upon inspection, any violation of this subsection or of the conditional use permit or the existence of any other safety hazard shall give rise to the provision to the owner of a notice requiring that within 30 days of the date of said notice full compliance will be required and that any defects or hazards shall, within that period of time, be cured or rectified.

(17)

The owner shall at all times maintain adequate insurance coverage against property damage or personal injuries resulting from the construction, collapse or operation of the tower, antennas or any and all other portions of the associated facilities. Upon request, such coverage shall be certified to the Village, which reserves the right to require additional coverage, either as to amounts or forms of exposure as based upon the advice of its insurance carriers or agents in light of industry-wide standards.

(18)

Definitions. The following definitions shall apply to this subsection:

ACCESSORY STRUCTURE

Any building or electrical or mechanical cabinet located adjacent to or in the vicinity of a tower, used to house equipment customarily incidental to the receiving or transmittal of wireless broadcasts of any kind, cellular telephone calls, voice messaging and paging services and other wireless communications of any sort or type.

ANTENNA

Equipment used for transmitting or receiving radio frequency signals and which is attached to a tower, consisting of directional panels, microwave or satellite dishes or omnidirectional whip antennas.

TOWER or COMMUNICATIONS TOWER

Any pole, spire, or other structure or combination thereof to which an antenna could be attached or which is designed for antennas, together with all supporting lines, cables wires and braces.

Disposition by the Village Board.

(1)

The Village Board, upon receipt of the Plan Commission's recommendation, shall place such recommendation on its agenda within 30 days. The Board may, without further hearing, authorize a conditional use permit in accordance with the general interest and spirit of this chapter, the purpose of the district in which the conditional use will be located and standards established.

(2)

Any requested conditional use permit which fails to receive the approval of the Village Plan Commission shall not be passed by the Village Board except by the favorable vote of 2/3 of the Board's members holding office.

(3)

A copy of the conditional use permit shall be supplied to the Building Inspector or whosoever performs such a duty within 10 days of passage.

Lapse of conditional use permit. A conditional use permit shall lapse and become void one year following the date on which the conditional use becomes effective unless a building permit is issued and construction is commenced and pursued diligently according to the recommendations of the permit.

A conditional use permit may be renewed for an additional period of one year from the date when the conditional use permit originally became effective. An application for renewal of the conditional use permit is to be filed with the Board of Appeals. The Board of Appeals may grant or deny an application for renewal of a conditional use permit.

[1]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I). See also Ch. 153, Mobile Homes and Mobile Home Parks.

[1]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

Osceola City Zoning Code

ARTICLE III

§ 219-17 Conditional use permit.

§ 219-18 Planned unit developments.

§ 219-19 Mobile home parks. [1]

§ 219-20 Campgrounds. [1]