Standards of development

A. Upon receipt of a special use permit from the Zoning Board of Review, the following five types of new wireless telecommunications facilities shall be permitted in the Town of Johnston, in accordance with § 340-8:
- (1) Lattice towers. An applicant must demonstrate that adequate telecommunications service cannot be achieved with a monopole, building-mounted facility, disguised facility, or pole-mounted antenna, in accordance with § 340-157.
- (2) Monopoles. No monopole shall be approved unless the applicant demonstrates that the need for wireless telecommunications services that will be satisfied by constructing the monopole cannot, for technological, legal, or economical reason other than the financial circumstances of the applicant, be reasonably satisfied by co-locating on an existing or approved tower or by using or constructing one or more building-mounted facilities, pole-mounted antennas, or disguised facilities. The applicant must further prove that it has made all reasonable efforts to procure antenna space on existing facilities and that the cost of co-location exceeds the cost of a new monopole facility by at least 50%.
- (3) Building-mounted facilities. Wireless telecommunications facilities shall be permitted on existing buildings and structures subject to the requirements of this article, except that no building-mounted facility shall be approved unless the applicant demonstrates that the need for wireless communications services that will be satisfied by means of a disguised facility cannot, for technological, legal, or economical reasons, be reasonably satisfied by co-locating on an existing or approved tower or by using or constructing one or more pole-mounted or disguised facilities.
- (4) Disguised facilities. A disguised facility shall be permitted as a new facility or interior to an existing facility subject to all applicable provisions of this article, except that no disguised facility shall be approved unless the applicant demonstrates that the need for wireless telecommunications service to be satisfied by means of a disguised facility cannot, for technological, legal, or economical reasons, be reasonably satisfied by co-locating on an existing or approved tower or by using or constructing one or more pole-mounted facilities.
- (5) Pole-mounted antennas. Pole-mounted antennas, including distributed antenna systems, shall be permitted on existing poles or standards subject to the requirements of this article.
B. If an applicant demonstrates that the purposes of the Federal Telecommunications Act cannot be achieved without the construction of a new lattice tower, approval for such facility will be subject to review and approval of the Planning Board as a major land development in accordance with the Town of Johnston Land Development and Subdivision Regulations and issuance of a special use permit by the Zoning Board as set forth in § 340-157.
Editor's Note: The most current regulations are on file in the Town offices.