The Board of Adjustment of the City may, by special permit after public hearing, authorize the location of any of the following buildings or uses in the districts specified below.

   1.   Any public building erected and used by any department of the City, Township, County, State, or Federal government in any district.

   2.   Airport or landing field in A and I Districts.

   3.   Buildings or uses located, designed, and operated to protect property values, public health, safety, and welfare including community buildings in any district (conditional use).

   4.   Hospitals and non-profit fraternal institutions, provided they are used solely for fraternal purposes, and institutions of an educational, religious, philanthropic, or eleemosynary character in the R-l or any less restrictive district.

   5.   Public or private cemetery in any district.

   6.   Private golf courses, country clubs, and tennis or swimming clubs in A or R districts.

   7.   Communication towers and antennas.

      A.   In all Residential Districts (R-1A, R-l, R-2 and R-3), communication towers and antennas which are accessory to a permitted use and comply with the bulk regulations for the district in which they are located or which are mounted on and do not extend more than 20 feet above an existing structure are permitted by right. Any other communication tower or antenna is permitted only by approval by the Board of Adjustment after public hearing. Notice of the hearing shall be provided to all owners of record of property within 300 feet of the subject property. The Board shall consider each of the following requirements and criteria in making its determination:

         (1)   A communication tower that does not comply with the height limitations in the district bulk regulations shall be located on a lot of at least 10 acres, and no reduction in the lot size shall be permitted which would result in the lot being less than 10 acres unless such reduction is authorized by an exception issued by the Board of Adjustment.

         (2)   A tower shall be set back from the property line of any adjoining residentially zoned property a distance equal to the height of the tower and antenna, unless the tower is otherwise adequately screened from adjoining residential uses.

         (3)   A tower and any antenna thereon shall be painted sky blue or an alternate color compatible with the surrounding area.

         (4)   Except for the minimum lighting, if any, necessary to comply with airport height and hazard zoning regulations and any applicable Federal regulations, no lights may be mounted on a tower or antenna, and the tower and antenna shall not be illuminated.

         (5)   The height of a tower, inclusive of any antenna thereon, shall not exceed 180 feet.

         (6)   The applicant shall provide a certification by a professional engineer licensed in Iowa that any tower is designed to permit a second antenna system of comparable size to be added to the tower above, or immediately below, the original antenna system.

         (7)   Any service building or equipment located at grade shall be adequately screened from adjoining residential uses.

         (8)   The applicant shall present a signed lease agreement, a recorded declaration of covenants, or other satisfactory evidence showing that the owner/operator of a tower is obligated to promptly remove the tower at the end of the lease term or when the antenna thereon is no longer used, and that the site will be sodded unless otherwise approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission for compatibility with the surrounding area.

         (9)   Any tower shall be of a monopole design without guy wires, or of an ornamental design compatible with the surrounding area.

         (10)   The adverse visual impact of a tower shall be minimized through careful design, sitting, landscape screening, and innovative camouflaging techniques.

      B.   In the C-1 Commercial, I-1 Industrial, and A-1 Agricultural Districts, communication towers and antennas that are accessory to a permitted use and comply with the bulk regulations for the district in which they are located or which are mounted on and do not extend more than 20 feet above an existing structure are allowed by right. Any other communication tower or antenna is permitted only by approval by the Board of Adjustment after public hearing. Notice of the hearing shall be provided to all owners of record of property within 300 feet of the subject property. In its determination, the Board of Adjustment shall consider all of the following provisions:

         (1)   Any service building or equipment located at grade shall be screened from adjoining residential uses.

         (2)   Any tower shall be adequately set back and screened from adjoining residential uses.

         (3)   The adverse visual impact of a tower shall be minimized through careful design, siting, landscape screening and innovative camouflaging techniques.

         (4)   Co-location and shared use shall be preferred over the construction of additional towers.

         (5)   The applicant shall present a signed lease agreement, a recorded declaration of covenants, or other satisfactory evidence showing that the owner/operator of a tower is obligated to promptly remove the tower at the end of the lease term or when the antenna thereon is no longer used, and that the site will be sodded unless otherwise approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission for compatibility with the surrounding area.

Before issuance of any special permit for any of the above buildings or uses, the Board of Adjustment shall refer the application to the Planning and Zoning Commission for study and report. The Planning and Zoning Commission shall, within 45 days, review the conformity of the proposal with the standards of the Comprehensive Plan, and with recognized principles of urban design, land use planning architecture, and landscape architecture. The Commission may approve or disapprove the special permit as submitted or, before approval, may require that the applicant modify, alter, adjust, or amend the proposal as the Commission deems necessary to the end that it preserve the intent and purpose of this Zoning Ordinance to promote health, safety, morals, and the general welfare; provided, however, if the Commission has not taken action on an application within 45 days of its receipt, it shall be assumed that the Commission has given its approval of said application. The request as approved or disapproved by the Commission shall then be reported to the Board of Adjustment, whereupon the Board of Adjustment may, after notice and public hearing, approve or disapprove said special permit as reported or may require such changes thereto as it deems necessary to effectuate the intent and purpose of this Zoning Ordinance. Applications for a special permit under the terms of this section shall be accompanied by evidence concerning the feasibility of the proposed request and its effect on surrounding property and shall include a site plan defining the areas to be developed for buildings, the areas to be developed for parking, the locations of sidewalks and driveways, and the points of ingress and egress, including access streets where required, the location and heights of walls, the location and type of landscaping, and the location, size, and number of signs, and other information as may be required by the Planning and Zoning Commission or Board of Adjustment. In the event a special permit is granted under the terms of this section, any change thereafter in the approved use or site plan shall be resubmitted and considered in the same manner as the original proposal.