Telecommunications antennas and towers
(a) Purposes. The purpose of this section is to establish general guidelines for the siting of towers and antennas. The goals of this section are to:
(1) Encourage the location of towers in nonresidential areas and minimize the total number of towers throughout the community;
(2) Encourage strongly the joint use of new and existing tower sites;
(3) Encourage users of towers and antennas to locate them, to the extent possible, in areas where the adverse impact on the community is minimal;
(4) Encourage users of towers and antennas to configure them in a way that minimizes the adverse visual impact of the towers and antennas; and
(5) Enhance the ability of the providers of telecommunications services to provide such services to the community quickly, effectively, and efficiently.
(b) Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Alternative town structure shall mean manmade trees, clock towers, bell steeples, light poles and similar alternative-design mounting structures that camouflage or conceal the presence of antennas or towers.
Antenna shall mean any exterior apparatus designed for telephonic, radio or television communications through the sending and/or receiving of electromagnetic waves.
FAA shall mean the Federal Aviation Administration.
FCC shall mean the Federal Communications Commission.
Government authority shall mean either the building official or the zoning board of review of the Town of Burrillville.
Height shall mean, when referring to a tower or other structure, the distance measured from ground level to the highest point on the tower or other structure, even if said highest point is an antenna.
Preexisting towers and antennas shall have the meaning set forth in sebsection (c)(3) of this section.
Public officer shall mean the building official of the Town of Burrillville.
Tower shall mean any structure that is designed and constructed primarily for the purpose of supporting one or more antennas, including self-supporting lattice towers, guy towers, or monopole towers. The term includes radio and television transmission towers, microwave towers, common-carrier towers, cellular telephone towers, alternative tower structures, and the like.
(c) Applicability.
(1) New towers and facilities. The requirements set forth in this chapter shall govern the location of all new towers and facilities that exceed, and antennas that are installed at a height in excess of, the height limitations specified for each zoning district. The height limitations applicable to buildings and structures shall not apply to towers and antennas.
(2) Amateur radio, receive-only antennas. This chapter shall not govern any tower, or the installation of any antenna, that is under 70 feet in height and is owned and operated by a federally-licensed amateur radio station operator or is used exclusively for receive only antennas.
(3) Pre-existing towers and antennas. Any tower and antenna for which a permit has been properly issued prior to the effective date of this chapter shall not be required to meet the requirements of this chapter, other than the requirements of subsections (d)(3) and (d)(4). Any such towers or antennas shall be referred to in this chapter as "preexisting towers" or "preexisting antennas."
(d) General guidelines and requirements.
(1) Principal or accessory use. Antennas and towers may be considered either principal or accessory uses. A different existing use or an existing structure on the same lot shall not preclude the installation of an antenna or tower on such lot. For purposes of determining whether the installation of a tower or antenna complies with district development regulations, including but not limited to set-back requirements, lot coverage requirements, and other such requirements, the dimensions of the entire lot shall control, even though the antennas or towers may be located on leased parcels within such lots. Towers that are constructed, and antenna that are installed, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter shall not be deemed to constitute the expansion of a nonconforming use or structure towers and base facilities may not take away required parking spaces of an existing building.
(2) Inventory of existing sites. Each applicant for an antenna and or tower shall provide to the building department an inventory of existing towers that are either within the Town of Burrillville or within ten miles of the border thereof, including specific information about the location, height, and design and capacity of each tower. The building department may share such information with other applicants applying for administrative approvals or special use permits under this chapter or other organizations seeking to locate antennas within the town, provided, however that the building department is not, by sharing such information, in any way representing or warranting that such sites are available or suitable.
(3) Federal requirements. All towers must meet or exceed current standards and regulations of the RI State Building Code, FAA, the FCC, and any other agency of the federal government with the authority to regulate towers and antennas. Failure to bring towers and antennas into compliance with such revised standards and regulations shall constitute grounds for the removal of the tower and antenna at the owner's expense.
(4) Building codes: safety standards. To ensure the structural integrity of towers, the proposed plan shall be prepared and sealed by a certified structural engineer, additionally, the owner of a tower shall ensure that it is maintained in compliance with standards contained in applicable state building codes, as amended. If upon inspection, the building official concludes that a tower fails to comply with such codes and standards and constitutes a danger to persons or property, then upon notice being provided to the owner of the tower, the owner shall have 30 days to bring such tower into compliance with such standard. If the owner fails to bring such towers into compliance within said 30 days, the Town of Burrillville may remove such tower at the owner's expense.
(e) Procedures generally.
(1) Building permits are required for all telecommunications antennas, towers and similar facilities.
(2) Each applicant for such building permit shall apply to the building department, providing the information set forth in subsection (g)(2) below.
(3) The building department shall respond to each such application within 30 days after receiving it by either approving or denying the application. If the building department fails to respond to the applicant within the said 30 days, then the application shall be deemed to be approved.
(4) In connection with any such administrative approval, the building department may, in order to encourage shared use, administratively waive any zoning district setback requirements by up to ten percent pursuant to section 30-33(b) of this chapter.
(5) If an administrative approval is denied, the applicant may appeal said denial in accordance with the provisions of the zoning chapter concerning appeals of administrative decisions.
(f) Permitted uses.
(1) General. The uses listed in this subsection are deemed to be permitted uses and shall not require a special use permit. Nevertheless, all such uses shall comply with subsections (d)(3) and (d)(4) above, and this article and all other applicable statutes and ordinances.
(2) Specific permitted uses. The following uses are specifically permitted:
a. Locating a tower or antenna, including the placement of additional buildings or other supporting equipment used in connection with said tower or antenna, in any industrial or general commercial zoning district; provided however, that such tower shall be set back from any existing off-site residence a distance equal to the height of the tower or in the case of an unoccupied lot, setback a distance equal to the height of the tower plus the residential yard setback for the adjacent residential lot; setback from any commercial, manufacturing structure or use, and parking area equal to a distance of 1½ times the height of the facility; and the proposed site provides the opportunity to minimize the adverse visual effects of telecommunication facilities.
b. Installing an antenna on an existing structure other than a tower (such as a building, sign, light pole, water tower, or other free-standing nonresidential structure) that is 50 feet in height or greater, so long as said additional antenna adds no more than 20 feet to the height of said existing structure; and
c. Installing an antenna on any existing tower of any height, so long as the addition of said antenna adds no more than 20 feet to the height of said existing tower; provided, however, that such specific permitted use shall not include the placement of additional buildings or other supporting equipment used in connection with said antenna.
d. Towers and antennas erected on land or structures owned by the Town of Burrillville for public safety purposes.
(g) Special use permits.
(1) General. The following conditions shall require the issuance of special use permits:
a. If the tower or antenna is not a permitted use under article IV of this chapter or permitted to be approved administratively pursuant to article III of this chapter, then a special use permit shall be required for the construction of a tower or the placement of an antenna in all zoning districts.
b. In granting a special use permit, the zoning board of review may impose conditions to the extent the board concludes such conditions are necessary to minimize any adverse effect of the proposed tower on adjoining properties.
c. Any information of an engineering nature that the applicant submits, whether civil, mechanical, or electrical shall be certified by a licensed professional engineer.
d. Any enlargement, expansion, extension, addition of cells or construction of new or replacement towers or transmitters, beyond the original approved capacity, shall be subject to site plan review and follow the same procedure as for an original grant of a special use permit.
(2) Information required. Each applicant requesting a special uses permit under this chapter shall submit a scaled site plan and a scaled elevation view and other supporting drawings, calculations, and other documentation, signed and sealed by appropriate licensed professionals, showing the location and dimensions of all improvements, including information concerning topography, radio frequency coverage, tower height requirements, setbacks, drives, parking, fencing, landscaping, adjacent uses, and other information deemed by the zoning board of review to be necessary to assess compliance with this chapter. The date of balloon deployment pursuant to subsection (b) below shall be incorporated into the public meeting notice.
a. The applicant will also submit a report that includes a description of the tower and the technical, economic and other reasons for the tower design. The report will also describe the capacity of the tower including the number and type of transmitters and receivers that it can accommodate and the basis for the calculation of capacity. To encourage colocation, towers should be designed to handle capacity beyond that required by the applicant.
b. Between the date of advertisement of the public meeting date, and the scheduled public meeting date, a (tethered aerostat) balloon shall be required to be deployed at the height of the proposed tower. All cost associated with balloon deployment will be borne by the applicant.
c. Applicants proposing to erect wireless communication towers, accessory facilities and structures on land or structures shall provide evidence of contractual authorization from the owner(s) to conduct wireless communications services on the property.
d. Applicants other than licensed carriers shall provide evidence that a licensed carrier will locate on the proposed facility once erected.
e. Each applicant shall submit an evaluation of five potential sites for antenna platforms within five miles of the proposed site. Applicants will also submit proof that owners of existing or potential sites within the search area have been contacted and that permission was sought to install a device on those structures, and that permission was denied, or that such locations do not satisfy requirements to provide the service needed. Failure to present evidence of a good faith effort on the part of the applicant to utilize existing facilities shall be grounds for denial of the application.
f. The applicant must demonstrate that the tower complies with all applicable standards of the federal and state governments by providing a copy of the requests made by the applicant to the FAA and the FCC. The applicant shall also provide the written response from the FAA and the FCC that the proposed tower complies with applicable regulations administered by the agency or that the tower is exempt from those regulations. A copy of the response from each agency shall be included in the application. If such response is not received within 60 days, the application will be considered incomplete. The applicant shall send a subsequently received agency statement, if any, to the building official.
(3) Factors considered in granting special use permits. The zoning board of review shall consider the following factors in determining whether to issue a special use permit, although the board may waive or reduce the burden on the applicant of one or more of these criteria, if the board concludes that the goals of this chapter are better served thereby.
a. Height of the proposed tower;
b. Proximity of the tower to residential structures and residential district boundaries;
c. Nature of uses on adjacent and nearby properties;
d. Surrounding topography;
e. Surrounding tree coverage and foliage;
f. Design of the tower, with particular reference to design characteristics that have the effect of reducing or eliminating visual obtrusiveness;
g. Proposed ingress and egress; and
h. Availability of suitable existing towers and other structures as discussed in subsection (f)(4) of this section.
Every application for special use permit shall be accompanied by a description of the narrowing process that eliminated other potential sites. The applicant shall also provide a written statement from a radio frequency engineer justifying the height of the proposed facility.
(4) Availability of suitable existing towers or other structures. No new tower shall be permitted unless the applicant demonstrates to the reasonable satisfaction of the zoning board of review that no existing tower or structure can accommodate the applicant's proposed antenna. Evidence submitted to demonstrate that no existing tower or structure can accommodate the applicant's proposed antenna may consist of any of the following:
a. No existing towers or structures are located within the geographic area to meet applicant's engineering requirements.
b. Existing towers or structures are not of sufficient height to meet applicant's engineering requirements.
c. Existing towers or structures do not have sufficient structural strength to support applicant's proposed antenna and related equipment.
d. The fees, costs, or contractual provisions required by the owner in order to share an existing tower or structure or to adapt an existing tower or structure for sharing are unreasonable. Costs exceeding new tower development are presumed to be unreasonable.
e. The applicant demonstrates that there are other limiting factors that render existing towers and structures unsuitable.
f. Proof that owners of existing towers or structures within the search area of the proposed tower location have been contacted and that permission was sought to install a device on those structures, and that permission was denied.
(h) Design standards. The following design standards shall apply to all towers and antennas approved by right, or for which a special use permit is required; provided, however, that the building official or zoning board of review, as applicable, may reduce the standard setbacks and separation requirements if the goals of this chapter would be better served thereby.
(1) Setbacks and separation.
a. Towers must be set back a distance equal to the height of the tower from any residential structure plus the residential yard setback for the adjacent residential lot. Where the zoning board of review feels that the factual circumstances warrant it, the board may require that the tower be set back a distance equal to the height of the tower from any lot line.
b. Guys and accessory facilities must satisfy the minimum zoning district setback requirements for accessory structures.
c. Towers over 90 feet in height shall not be located within one mile of any existing tower that is over 90 feet in height.
d. Towers must be set back a distance equal to 1½ the height of the tower from the lot line of any adjoining commercial, manufacturing structure or use, and parking area.
e. All supports and anchors shall have a minimum ten-foot horizontal setback from any overhead utility lines.
(2) Aesthetics; lighting.
a. Towers shall either maintain a galvanized steel finish or, subject to any applicable standards of the FAA, be painted a neutral color, so as to reduce visual obtrusiveness.
b. At a tower site, the design of the buildings and related structures shall, to the extent possible, use materials, colors, textures, screening, and landscaping that will blend the tower facilities into the natural setting and built environment.
c. If an antenna is installed on a structure other than a tower, the antenna and supporting electrical and mechanical equipment must be of a neutral color that is identical to, or closely compatible with, the color of the supporting structure so as to make the antenna and related equipment as visually unobtrusive as possible.
d. Towers shall not be artificially lighted, unless required by the FAA or other applicable authority. If lighting is required, the governing authority may review the available lighting alternatives and approve the design that would cause the least disturbance to the surrounding views.
(3) Landscaping.
a. Tower facilities shall be landscaped with a buffer of evergreen plant materials that effectively screens the view of the tower compound from adjacent residential property. The standard buffer shall consist of a landscaped strip at least four feet wide outside the perimeter of the compound.
b. In locations where the visual impact of the tower would be minimal, the landscaping requirement may be reduced or waived altogether.
c. Existing mature tree growth and natural landforms on the site shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible. In some cases, such as towers sited on large, wooded lots, natural growth around the perimeter may be sufficient buffer.
d. No signs shall be allowed on any communication tower except as required for public safety purposes, by the Federal Communication Commission or by the town. All signs shall conform to the sign requirements of the zoning chapter.
(4) Security fencing.
a. Towers shall be enclosed by security fencing not less than six feet in height.
b. Towers shall also be equipped with an appropriate anti-climbing device.
(i) Removal of abandoned antennas and towers. Any antennas or tower that is not operated for a continuous period of 12 months shall be considered abandoned, and the owner of such antenna or tower/or the owner of the property on which the tower is located shall remove same within 30 days of receipt of notice from the building official notifying the owner of such abandonment. The applicant shall post a bond which shall be reevaluated every two years, to cover the cost of removal. If the town shall determine that the bond is insufficient to cover the cost of removal, then the applicant or property owner shall increase the value of the bond. If such antenna or tower is not removed within said 30 days, the town may remove such antenna or tower at the owner's expense. If there are two or more users of a single tower, then this provision shall not become effective until all users cease using the tower.
(Ord. of 2-12-1997; Ord. of 3-24-1999(2); Ord. of 5-27-2009)