Provide for the appropriate location and development of communications facilities and systems to serve the citizens and businesses of the City of Winchester;

To encourage the location of antenna atop existing structures or buildings;

Minimize adverse visual impacts of communications antennae and support structures through careful design, siting, landscape screening and innovative camouflaging techniques;

Maximize the use of existing and new support structures so as to minimize the need to construct new or additional facilities;

Maximize and encourage the use of disguised antenna support structures as to ensure the architectural integrity of designated areas within the City and the scenic quality of protected natural habitats.

Conditional use. Antenna shall be a conditional use in the area designated in Exhibit "A" on file in the City offices.

Building Codes and safety standards. To ensure the structural integrity of antenna support structures, the owner shall ensure that it is constructed and maintained in compliance with all standards contained in applicable State and local Building Codes and the applicable standards published by the Electronics Industries Association, as amended from time to time.

Regulatory compliance. All antennae and support structures shall meet or exceed current standards and regulations of the FAA, FCC and any other State or Federal agency with the authority to regulate communications antennae and support structures. Should such standards or regulations be amended, then the owner shall bring such devices and structures into compliance with the revised standards or regulations within six (6) months of the effective date of the revision unless an earlier date is mandated by the controlling agency.

Security. All antennae and support structures shall be protected from unauthorized access by appropriate security devices. A description of proposed security measures shall be provided as part of any application to install, build or modify antennae or support structures. No barbed wire will be used on security fences. Additional measures may be required as a condition of the issuance approval as deemed necessary by the City Administrator or by the Board of Aldermen in the conditional use permit.

Lighting. Antennae and support structures shall not be lighted unless required by the FAA, a State or Federal agency with authority to regulate, or the Winchester Board of Aldermen, in which case a description of the required lighting scheme shall be made a part of the application to install, build or modify the antennae or support structure.

Advertising. Unless a disguised antenna support structure is in the form of an otherwise lawfully placed pylon sign, the placement of signs on structures regulated by this Section is prohibited.

A detailed site plan, based on a closed boundary survey of the host parcel, shall be submitted indicating all existing and proposed improvements including buildings, drives, walkways, parking areas and other structures, public rights-of-way, the zoning districts of the subject and adjoining properties, the location of and distance to off-site residential structures, required setbacks, required buffer and landscape areas, hydrologic features, and the coordinates and height, above ground level of the existing or proposed antenna support structure and antenna, together with latitude and longitude and shall include what other antenna support structure heights would or could accommodate the applicant's proposed needs along with documentation as to whether the height and location chosen will accommodate any other company's known network.

The application shall be reviewed by the City to determine compliance with the above standards and transmit the application for review and comment to other departments and public agencies as may be affected by the proposed facility.

The application for a new antenna support structure or a summary of such application, containing the height, design, location and type of antenna and frequency of the proposed antenna support structure shall, be delivered by certified mail to all potential antenna support structure users as identified by a schedule maintained by the City. Proof of such delivery shall be submitted with the application to the City. Upon request, the City Administrator shall place on a list the name and address of any user of towers or prospective user to receive notification of applications. The failure of any notified party to respond to said notice shall be considered in reviewing any subsequent requests for new antenna support structures by said notified party.

Any party seeking shared use of an antenna support structure, subject to the shared use requirement, may negotiate with the applicant for such use. The applicant may on a non-discriminatory basis choose between incompatible requests for shared use on the same tower or structure and may reject any request where legitimate technical obstacles cannot be reasonably overcome or where the party requesting shared use will not agree to reasonable financial terms designed to equally share the costs of the acquisition, design, construction and maintenance of the tower or structure and wholly offset any additional costs incurred by accommodation of the additional use. Any party believing that the applicant has breached its duty to negotiate in good faith for shared use shall immediately notify the applicant and the City Administrator, in writing, who may deny the application upon a finding that shared use has been improperly denied by the applicant. The writing shall explain the precise basis for the claim that the applicant has breached its duty to negotiate in good faith and shall be accompanied by payment of an administrative review fee of three hundred dollars ($300.00) to the City to offset the costs of this review. After the applicant's receipt of the letter, the applicant shall have ten (10) days to provide a written submission to the City Administrator responding to the letter alleging a violation of the shared use requirement. If deemed necessary by the City Administrator, the City Administrator may engage, at the cost of the party alleging the violation, a neutral qualified technical consultant to provide an opinion on feasibility or costs of the shared-use request. If the City Administrator receives such a letter alleging violation of the shared-use requirement, the time for a decision is automatically extended up to thirty (30) additional days until the City Engineer has determined whether the applicant has complied with such requirement.

The City Administrator shall issue a decision on the permit within thirty (30) days of the date of application or the application shall be deemed approved, except as provided in Subsection (4). The City Administrator may deny the application or approve the application as submitted or with such modifications as are, in his/her judgment, reasonably necessary to protect the safety or general welfare of the citizens of Winchester. The City Administrator shall consider the factors established herein for granting a conditional use permit as well as other considerations consistent with this Article. A decision to deny an application shall be made in writing and state the specific reasons for the denial. The decision of the City Administrator shall be considered as a recommendation to the Board of Aldermen for its final decision.

The proposed antenna support structure is located within the area designated by Exhibit "A" on file in the City offices.

There are other limiting conditions that render existing towers, structures or buildings within the applicant's required geographic area unsuitable.

The design of the tower or structure, including the antennae, shelter and ground layout, maximally reduce visual degradation and otherwise comply with the provisions and intent of this Article.

The proposal minimizes the number and size of the towers or structures that will be required in the geographic area surrounding the proposed site.

The applicant attempted to take advantage of available shared use options provided by this Article or otherwise.

No antenna support structure shall be approved in excess of one hundred (100) feet in height unless a clear showing that such height is required to provide personal wireless services or reasonably required for public safety communications of a governmental entity sharing the antenna support structure and such showing is supported by the opinion of a telecommunications consultant hired by the City at the expense of the applicant. The opinion of the consultant shall include a statement that no available alternatives exist to exceeding the height limitation or the reason why such alternatives are not viable. The City shall have an opportunity to hire their consultant if any questions arises as a result of the statement herein.

There are no existing antenna support structures located within the geographic area that meet the applicant's engineering requirements.

There are no existing towers, structures or buildings within the applicant's required geographic area of sufficient height to meet system engineering requirements.

There are no existing towers or structures in the geographic area which have sufficient structural strength to support the applicant's proposed antennae.

The proposed antennae would not experience or cause signal interference with antennae on existing towers or structures.

The fees, costs or other contractual terms required by the owner(s) of existing tower(s), structure(s) or building(s) within the required geographic area of the applicant or to retrofit the existing tower(s) or structure(s) are unreasonable. Costs exceeding that of a new tower are presumed to be unreasonable.

Unless expressly exempted by a conditional use permit, no such permit shall be effective until the approved petition shall have satisfied the notification, review, and shared-use application procedures.

If the City has agreed to participate in a shared-use application procedure.

Within the City, sites should be located in the following order of preference:

Certain types of low power mobile radio service facilities are more appropriate in some zoning districts than others and certain facilities create a greater impact on the surrounding area than others. There is a need to balance low power mobile radio service industry and homeowner concerns and review the specific impacts of the different types of low power mobile radio service facilities in relation to the character of land uses found in the City zoning districts. For example, the City recognizes the freestanding low power mobile radio service facilities generate the greatest impacts and, therefore, are most suitable in commercial zoned districts.

Facilities should be located to minimize any adverse effect they may have on residential property values.

Facilities should be located to avoid a dominant silhouette on ridge lines, and preservation of view corridors of surrounding residential developments should be considered in the location and design.

Location of sites in commercial zoning districts should consider the impact of the site on the surrounding neighborhood, particularly any adjacent residential neighborhood.

Facilities must be architecturally and visually (color, bulk, size) compatible with surrounding existing buildings, structures, vegetation and/or uses in the area or those likely to exist. Microcell or repeater facilities may be considered architecturally or visually compatible if they are mounted on existing structures such as light standard telephone pole or otherwise camouflaged to disguise their low power mobile radio service use.

Less obtrusive facilities are preferred, and sites in industrial and commercial areas are preferred.

Co-location. Where the result is less visual impact and the engineering of the low power mobile radio service network permits it, sites should be co-located with other low power mobile radio service facilities as well as other existing telecommunication sites and public structures. In co-location, anti-trust laws are a consideration.

Network compatibility. At the time of site selection, the applicant should demonstrate how the proposed site fits into the overall network of the low power mobile radio service system within the City and adjacent cities.