Chapter 17.71
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION FACILITIES
Sections:
17.71.050 Application for a use permit.
17.71.060 Location and appearance.
17.71.080 Co-located and multiple-user facilities.
17.71.090 Compatibility with neighboring land uses--Noise and setbacks.
17.71.100 Compliance with Federal Communications Commission regulations.
17.71.120 Abandonment of facility.
17.71.130 Maintenance and removal agreement.
17.71.140 Posting of security to maintain and remove facility and to enforce permit conditions.
17.71.200 Minor wireless facilities--Towers and antennas.
17.71.010 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a uniform and comprehensive set of standards for major and minor wireless communication facilities. The regulations contained herein are designed to protect and promote public safety, community welfare and the visual quality of the city of Angels as set forth in the goals, policies and programs of the city of Angels general plan, while at the same time providing for the installation of new communication facilities in accordance with the Telecommunications Act of 1996. It is also the intent of this chapter to ensure a balance between public concerns and private interests in establishing wireless communication and related facilities. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.020 Exempt facilities.
The following facilities are exempt from the provisions of this chapter pertaining to major wireless communications facilities:
A. Minor wireless communication facilities.
B. Preexisting major wireless communication facilities, except that modifications to such facilities shall comply with the provisions of this chapter.
C. Major wireless communication facilities added to an approved co-located or multiple-user wireless communication facility when such new facilities are in accordance with the plans and conditions for the approved facility.
D. Major wireless communication facilities located within the interior of a structure or on the exterior of a structure which do not substantially change the appearance of the structure as determined by the city planner. As used in this subdivision, structure shall not include a wireless communication tower.
E. Major wireless communication facilities located on an electrical transmission tower or power pole which do not substantially change the appearance of the structure as determined by the city planner.
F. Major wireless communication facilities located on federal, state, or tribal lands. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.030 Applicability.
The provisions of this chapter apply only to major wireless communication facilities and modifications to preexisting major wireless communication facilities. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.040 Conditional use.
Major wireless communication facilities are declared to be conditional uses and require the issuance of use permits in all zoning districts, except such facilities shall be prohibited in the R-3, R-2, R-1, RA, REC and O, zoning districts, or any zoning district when combined with the H (historical combining district), except as provided in Section 17.71.070. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.050 Application for a use permit.
In addition to the submittals required pursuant to Section 17.78.020, which governs use permit applications, an application for a use permit for a major wireless communication facility shall be accompanied by the following information:
A. A visual simulation or digitally reproduced depictions of a "virtual" tower of like size and type as viewed from various locations around the proposed site (as required by the city planner).
B. Information addressing security considerations, including exterior lighting, fencing, gates, and access.
C. A plan identifying the source of power to the proposed facility. If electrical service is proposed, electrical and equipment wiring shall be placed underground unless the city engineer determines that such undergrounding is economically or technically infeasible or if alternative camouflaging plans are determined by the city planner to accomplish the same purpose of screening the facilities from public view.
D. Other information as required by the planning director necessary to conduct environmental review in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
The planning director may waive one or more of the items of information listed above if similar information is already on file with the planning department. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.060 Location and appearance.
Major wireless communication facilities shall be located, designed and screened to blend with the existing natural or built surroundings to reduce visual impacts considering the technological requirements of the proposed communication service and the need to be compatible with neighboring land uses and community character.
A. All major wireless communication towers shall be designed as stealth facilities unless the facility is not visible (as determined by the city planner).
B. Lattice towers are prohibited.
C. Facilities proposed on hillsides or hilltops shall be sited below the ridgeline or designed to minimize their profile.
D. Signs (other than warning or equipment information signs) are prohibited on major wireless communications facilities.
E. Exterior lighting shall be limited to manually operated lights which shall be kept off except when personnel are actually present and shall not illuminate the site at any other time. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.070 Service gaps.
Notwithstanding the location standards of this chapter, a major wireless communication facility shall be granted a permit for a location in which it would otherwise be prohibited if the applicant establishes that the facility will fill an existing significant gap in the ability of remote users to access the communication service (not merely a particular provider’s service), that there is no alternative to the proposed location, and that the manner in which it proposes to fill the gap complies in all other respects with this chapter unless an applicant has established that an inability to comply with any other provision would prevent the facility from being constructed at that location. As a condition of approval of a conditional use permit for a major wireless communication facility to fill a service gap, the city may require the facility to be designed and used as a co-location or multiple-user facility. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.080 Co-located and multiple-user facilities.
Co-location and multiple-user facilities are encouraged by the city. Applications proposing co-location facilities which are in accordance with the provisions of this title shall be expedited. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.090 Compatibility with neighboring land uses--Noise and setbacks.
A. All generators shall be enclosed and shall comply with the noise standards as established in the noise element of the city’s general plan.
B. For facilities within one thousand feet of a residential area, testing of equipment and maintenance activities shall occur on weekdays between the hours of eight-thirty a.m. and four-thirty p.m. This restriction shall not apply to emergency situations or to an impending failure of the communication system.
C. Setbacks for major wireless communications facilities shall be the same as required for primary buildings in the zoning district in which the facility is to be located. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.100 Compliance with Federal Communications Commission regulations.
Major wireless communication facilities shall be sited, constructed and operated in compliance with FCC regulations including, but not limited to, radio frequency emissions. Complaints received by city residents shall be forwarded to the city. The city shall forward complaints to the operator/service provider. If violations are not resolved by the operator/service provider, the complaint shall be forwarded by the city to the regional office of the Federal Communications Commission in Pleasanton, CA. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.110 Safety.
A. The design of communication towers shall include "anti-climbing" features to reduce the potential for trespass and injury.
B. Major wireless communication facilities shall be engineered and constructed in accordance with the California Building Code. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.120 Abandonment of facility.
A major wireless communication facility shall be deemed abandoned and shall be removed by the facility’s owner and/or operator if it has not been used for a period of twelve months or more in accordance with Section 17.71.130. An extension of up to six months may be granted if the landowner or operator requests an extension from the planning commission prior to the expiration of twelve months from the date of the facility’s last use. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.130 Maintenance and removal agreement.
The property owner (for the property on which the major wireless facility is proposed) shall sign an agreement to maintain the facility or remove it upon abandonment or if it becomes structurally obsolete. The agreement shall be recorded and shall be binding on the property owner and his successors-in-interest. The agreement shall bind the owner to pay all costs for monitoring compliance with, and enforcement of, the agreement, and to reimburse the city for all costs incurred to perform any work required by a failure of the owner to perform in accordance with the agreement. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.140 Posting of security to maintain and remove facility and to enforce permit conditions.
To ensure compliance with Section 17.71.130, and to provide a source of funds to abate any violation of this chapter by any major wireless communication facility owner, the property owner shall deposit five thousand dollars into a common wireless communication facility maintenance, enforcement and removal fund, which is hereby created in the city treasury. The amount of deposit shall be adjusted annually based on the California Construction Cost Index. Said deposit shall be paid prior to issuance of a building permit for the communication facility. Monies deposited into the fund may be used by the city or its agents to administer the fund, undertake enforcement actions, maintenance work, or facility removals with respect to any major wireless communication facility in the city. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)
17.71.200 Minor wireless facilities--Towers and antennas.
Towers and antennas associated with minor wireless facilities shall not exceed the height requirements of the district in which they are to be located unless a conditional use permit is first secured, except for towers or antennas to be located within the city’s designated historic district. All towers or antennas proposed for location within the city’s designated historic district, regardless of height, shall require a conditional use permit. Issuance of a conditional use permit pursuant to this section is subject to compliance with the following standards:
A. Antennas/towers shall not exceed the minimum height determined by the city to be necessary to achieve effective transmission and reception. The applicant shall provide information and fund expert evaluation as may be required by the city to document minimum height.
B. Any boom or other active element/accessory shall not exceed twenty-five feet in length (i.e., shall not project out from the main pole by more than twenty-five feet).
C. Antennas may be roof- or ground-mounted.
D. Antennas and towers shall be located only in rear yard setbacks.
E. Unused/obsolete equipment shall be removed within six months after their need has ceased. If not removed by the landowner, the city may, after notice and hearing, remove the equipment and place a lien on the land to recover costs of removal plus administrative overhead.
F. The owner and/or operator shall operate and maintain the facility in a clean, safe and attractive condition at all times. If facilities become dilapidated, inoperative or are abandoned, the city may, after notice and hearing, cause such facilities and equipment to be removed at the owner’s expense. (Ord. 403 §3(part), 2003)