Spencerport City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VI
Satellite Antennas and Towers
§ 340-39 Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to regulate the installation and maintenance of satellite antennas and towers. This article is furthermore intended to protect the safety, health and welfare of the Village residents as well as to promote development of the Village in accordance with its Comprehensive Plan.
§ 340-40 Satellite antennas.
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Any parabolic disk or other antenna or device which is to receive television, radio and/or microwave or other electrical signals from space satellites.
Regulations for antenna larger than two feet in diameter. No person or persons shall cause, suffer or permit the erection and/or maintenance within the Village of any parabolic disk or other antenna or device the purpose of which is to receive television, radio and/or microwave or other electrical signals from space satellites, except as set forth herein:
The maximum number allowed per lot, or per project site in the case of garden apartments, condominiums or similar types of complexes, shall be one, and the antenna shall be located on the same site it services.
Any such antenna shall be confined to the rear yard of any lot or site and shall be at ground level.
No antenna can be constructed, erected or maintained except as an accessory structure to the existing principal building on the same lot or site.
Lots must be of sufficient size to allow for sideline setback requirements and set back from existing neighboring structures equal to the height of the antenna measured from the base at ground level, plus six feet, with a minimum sideline or rear line setback being eight feet. No antenna shall exceed 12 feet in height, width or depth. When measuring side and rear setbacks, all cables, guy wires or other supports shall constitute a part of the antenna.
No antenna installation shall be permitted except by permit from the Village Building Inspector.
The Village Building Inspector is empowered to designate the approximate location of the antenna to be installed or maintained and to require any screening or other protective measures, including anticlimb protection devices, in order to reduce or eliminate aesthetic damage to the community which may result from said installation or maintenance and to provide safety to the community.
Application for the permit must include construction drawings showing the proposed method of installation, structural engineering analysis and site plan depicting structures and plantings on the property and all adjacent properties.
Commercial use of satellite antennas for the express purpose of selling, displaying or demonstrating such antennas and/or related equipment shall not be subject to the above regulations but will require a permit to be issued by the Building Inspector, who will establish guidelines for such use, subject to review of the Village Board.
The applicant shall present documentation of possession of any required license by any federal, state or local agency or governing authority.
Where the antenna is to be installed by the tenant, the consent of the property owners shall be filed.
Regulations for dishes or antennas two feet in diameter or less. No person or persons shall cause, suffer or permit the erection and/or maintenance within the Village of any parabolic disk or other antenna or device the purpose of which is to receive television, radio and/or microwave or other electrical signals from space satellites, except as set forth herein:
The maximum number allowed per lot, or per project site in the case of garden apartments, condominiums or similar types of complexes, shall be two, and the antenna shall be located on the same site it services.
Any such antenna shall be restricted from the front yard and the front of the structure facing the street, including any portion of the roof facing the street.
The antenna can be freestanding or attached to a structure on the property.
The antenna assembly shall be installed a minimum of four feet from the side or rear lot line. No antenna assembly shall exceed four feet in total installed height when measured from the ground.
No antenna installation shall be permitted except by permit from the Village Building Inspector.
Documentation showing the proposed location and method of mounting must be filed with the permit.
Commercial use of satellite antennas for the express purpose of selling, displaying or demonstrating such antennas and/or related equipment shall not be subject to the above regulations but will require a permit to be issued by the Building Inspector, who will establish guidelines for such use, subject to review of the Village Board.
The applicant shall present documentation of possession of any required license by any federal, state or local agency or governing authority.
Where the antenna is to be installed by the tenant, the consent of the property owners shall be filed.
§ 340-41 Telecommunications towers.
Enabling authority. Except as provided herein, the Zoning Board of Appeals is hereby authorized to review and approve, approve with modifications or disapprove special use permits for telecommunications towers consistent with Village Law § 7-725-b.
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
An accessory facility serves the principal use, is subordinate in area, extent and purpose to the principal use and is located on the same lot as the principal use. Examples of such facilities include transmission equipment and storage sheds.
A system of electrical conductors that transmit or receive radio frequency waves. Such waves shall include but not be limited to radionavigation, radio, television and microwave communications. The frequency of these waves generally range from 10 hertz to 300,000 megahertz.
A complete map of all existing or proposed tower locations within the Village of Spencerport as well as a complete map of all existing or proposed tower locations in the Town of Ogden and all municipalities adjoining the Town of Ogden.
A complete map of the Village of Spencerport and a radius of three miles from the boundaries of the Village of Spencerport, inventorying and identifying all preexisting structures, municipal land and/or buildings, public utility buildings, lands or rights-of-way or special geographic areas (i.e., hills, wooded areas, naturally screened areas), together with such narrative and/or technical data or information as the applicant and/or Village shall deem relevant or necessary so as to establish whether or not any of such structures or areas may be suitable for any proposed tower site.
Authorization of a particular land used which is permitted in this chapter to assure that the proposed use is in harmony with this chapter and will not adversely affect the neighborhood if such requirements are met.
A structure on which transmitting and/or receiving antenna(s) are located.
A map of the Village of Spencerport, adequately identifying each separate zoning district in the Village as it relates to the proposed grid analysis, propagation map and preexisting structures maps, respectively.
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the Village, to provide standards for the safe provision of telecommunications consistent with applicable federal and state regulations and to protect the natural features and aesthetic character of the Village of Spencerport.
Application of special use regulations:
No telecommunications tower shall hereafter be used, erected, moved, reconstructed, changed or altered except after approval of a special use permit and in conformity with these regulations. No existing structure shall be modified to serve as a telecommunications tower unless in conformity with these regulations.
These regulations shall apply to all property in the Village of Spencerport with each zoning classification in the Village of Spencerport being subject to the rules and regulations set forth herein.
Where these regulations conflict with other laws and regulations of the Village, the more restrictive shall apply, except for tower height and setback restrictions, which are governed by these special use standards.
Village property.
For applications which will be located on property owned by the Village of Spencerport, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Spencerport is hereby designated as the Board to review and decide on the application for a special use permit.
In such instance, the Village Board of Trustees may waive any of the requirements for the approval, approval with modifications or disapproval of special use permits hereunder in the event that such requirements are found not to be requisite in the interest of public health, safety or general welfare or inappropriate to the special use permit being sought by the applicant.
The Board of Trustees may refer the application to the Zoning Board of Appeals for review and comment.
Special use standards.
Zoning districts. Subject to co-location considerations set forth herein, the applicant shall be required, whenever technologically possible, to locate towers on public utility or municipal lands first, industrial districts second, commercial districts third and lastly in residential districts.
Site plan.
An applicant shall be required to submit a site plan to the Zoning Board of Appeals as described in Chapter 263 of the Code of the Village of Spencerport and the Spencerport Design Criteria and Construction Standards for Land Development.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Design Criteria and Construction Standards for Land Development are on file in the office of the Village Clerk.
In addition to other site plan requirements, an application for a communications tower shall include the following additional information:
The location of all structures, trees exceeding four inches in diameter (measured at a height of four feet off the ground) and other significant and/or unusual features on the site and on any other adjacent property within 20 feet of the property line;
The applicants specifications for the antenna and tower for which the permit is being sought, including but not limited to:
A landscaping plan which addresses the visual and screening requirements set forth in this section;
Justification for any land or vegetation clearing required; and
A full environmental assessment form (EAF), together with a completed visual addendum for the EAF with particular attention to visibility from key viewpoints within and outside of the Village as identified in the visual EAF. The Zoning Board of Appeals may require submittal of a more detailed visual analysis based on the results of the visual EAF.
Shared use.
At all times, shared use of existing towers shall be preferred to the construction of new towers. Additionally, where such shared use is unavailable, location of antennas on preexisting structures shall be considered. An applicant shall be required to present an adequate report inventorying existing towers and other structures which may be suitable for antennas within reasonable distance of the proposed site and outlining opportunities for shared use of existing facilities and use of other preexisting structures as an alternative to a new construction.
In the case of new towers, the applicant shall be required to submit a report demonstrating good-faith efforts to secure shared use from existing towers as well as documenting capacity for future shared use of the proposed tower. Written requests and responses for shared use shall be provided.
Setbacks. Towers and antennas shall be set back a minimum of the height of the tower and any antennas or other fixture on top of the tower, plus 25 feet. All other structures, including guy wire anchors and accessory facilities, shall be observe required setbacks within the affected zone. Additional setbacks may be required by the Zoning Board of Appeals to contain on-site substantially all icefall or debris from tower failure and/or to preserve privacy of adjoining residential and public property.
Visibility.
All towers and accessory facilities shall be sited to have the least practical adverse visual effect on the environment. The area to be served by the tower and the technology utilized by the applicant shall be relevant considerations in this determination.
Where possible, the applicant shall be required to disguise the presence of the tower to resemble more compatible natural or man-made structures.
The maximum height for towers, including anything attached to the tower, in any district of the Village shall be 160 feet.
Towers shall not be artificially lighted except to assure human safety as required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Towers shall be a galvanized finish or painted gray above the surrounding treeline and painted gray, green or black below the surrounding treeline unless other standards are required by the FAA.
All towers should be designed and sited so as to avoid, whenever possible, application of FAA lighting and painting requirements. Unless required by the FAA, towers shall not be painted with reflective paint or have any reflective surfaces.
There shall be no signs placed on the tower.
Accessory facilities shall maximize use of building materials, colors and textures designed to blend with the natural surroundings.
Existing vegetation. Existing on-site vegetation shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible, and no cutting of trees exceeding four inches in diameter (measured at a height of four feet off the ground) shall take place prior to approval of the special permit use. Clear-cutting of vegetation without prior approval of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be prohibited.
Screening. Where the site abuts residential or public property, including streets, screening may be required unless the Zoning Board of Appeals determines that the screening will have no useful purpose. Such screening, if required, may include native evergreen shrubs or trees capable of forming a continuous hedge at least 10 feet in height within two years of planting to effectively screen the tower base and accessory facilities. In some cases, a soil berm may be required to assure plant survival. Plant height in these cases shall include the height of any berm.
Fencing. All communications towers and guy anchors, if applicable, shall be enclosed by a fence not less than eight feet in height or otherwise sufficiently protected from trespassing or vandalism.
Access and parking. A road and parking area will be provided to assure adequate emergency and service access. Maximum use of existing roads, public or private, shall be made. Road construction shall be consistent with standards for private roads and shall at all times minimize ground disturbance and vegetation cutting to within the toe of fill, the top of cuts or no more than 10 feet beyond the edge of any pavement. Road grades shall closely follow natural contours to assure minimal visual disturbance and reduce soil erosion potential.
Maintenance of facility and site. The applicant shall be responsible at all times for maintenance of the tower and the site surrounding the tower to maintain the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the Village of Spencerport. The Building Inspector shall have the authority to enforce this provision. The permit issued by the Zoning Board of Appeals shall contain suitable provisions for access to the site by Village enforcement personnel and emergency personnel.
Removal and bond for removal.
In the event that a telecommunications tower is no longer used for the purpose specified in the application, or the communication facility ceases operations for a period of 90 days, the permit issued hereunder shall expire and the owner shall cause such tower, structures and facilities to be dismantled and removed from the site within 30 days of receipt of a written notice from the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer.
Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the owner and operator of a communications tower shall provide the Village with a surety bond or other financial security acceptable to the Village Attorney to assure that the funds are available to dismantle such tower, remove any debris and to restore to the site to a state acceptable to the Zoning Board of Appeals. The estimate shall be prepared by the applicant's licensed engineer, verified by the Village Engineer (or the engineer hired by the Village to evaluate the application, if different from the Village Engineer) and approved, as to form, by the Village Attorney. The amount of such bond shall be approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Village review fees. In addition to the application fee as shall be from time to time established by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees, the applicant shall be responsible for any and all expert fees which are incurred by the Village in the review of the application, including review by engineers and consultants employed by the Village. As security for this, an applicant shall deposit the sum of $1,000 with the Village at the time of application. Any part of said deposit which is not used by the Village will be refunded to the applicant at the time a certificate of occupancy is issued. No certificate of occupancy or certification of completion or compliance shall be issued until all unpaid fees have been paid.
Radio emissions. Radio emissions from any towers and/or antennas attached to it shall conform to applicable Federal Communications Commission regulations on emissions. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall request proof of compliance with these standards. No certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance shall be issued by the Building Inspector or Code Enforcement Officer without satisfactory proof of compliance with this requirement.
Authority to impose conditions. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the authority to impose such reasonable conditions and restrictions as are directly related to and incidental to the proposed telecommunication tower special use permit.
Expiration. The failure to commence active operation of the tower within 12 months of the issuance of the special use permit shall be deemed abandonment of said special use permit and the permit shall be deemed to have expired.
Application for area variance. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, where the proposed special use permit contains one or more features which do not comply with zoning regulations, application may be made to the Zoning Board of Appeals for an area variance pursuant to § 7-712-b of the Village Law, without the necessity of a decision or determination of an administrative official charged with the enforcement of the zoning regulations.
§ 340-42 Wind energy conversion systems.
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Any tower device that utilizes the wind to generate electrical energy.
Prohibition. Wind energy conversion systems are prohibited in the Village of Spencerport.
§ 340-43 Special permit required.
A special permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be required for all building permit applications not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter.