As used within this article, the following terms shall have the following corresponding meanings:
ALTERNATIVE TOWER STRUCTURE Structures such as clock towers, bell towers, church steeples, water storage towers or tanks, light poles and similar alternative-design mounting structures that camouflage or conceal the presence of the antennas and tower.
ANTENNA Any exterior transmitting or receiving apparatus mounted on any tower, building or structure utilized to send or receive electromagnetic signals, microwave signals, radio frequency signals, digital and/or analog signals, wireless telecommunications signals and/or any other telecommunications signals.
CELL SITE Wireless telecommunications antennas, towers, facilities, structures and related equipment that transmits and captures signals to and from wireless service providers and their customers.
COLLOCATE Shared use of a wireless telecommunications antenna, tower or other related telecommunications structure by multiple licensed and authorized wireless telecommunications service providers for various types of telecommunications technology and/or siting of antennas on a site owned or operated by a public utility or other public entity.
FCC The Federal Communications Commission.
GOVERNING BODY The Mayor and Township Council of the Township of Little Falls.
GUY TOWER A telecommunications tower that is supported, in whole or in part, by guy wires and ground anchors.
HEIGHT The distance, when referring to a tower or other such structure, measured from the lowest finished natural grade of the parcel at the tower base to the highest point on the tower or other structure, including the base pad, any antennas, as well as any structure on which the same are built, affixed and/or attached.
MONOPOLE TOWER A communications tower consisting of a single pole constructed without guy wires or ground anchors.
REVIEWING BODY Any person, official, board, or entity required to review the wireless telecommunications and site plan application, including without limitation the Township of Little Falls Planning Board, Township Clerk, Township Construction Code Official, Township of Little Falls Engineer and Township governing body.
TOWER Any structure and any support thereof, such as an alternative tower structure, self-supporting lattice tower, guy tower or monopole tower, constructed either as self-supporting or in association with a building, for purposes of supporting one or more antennas.
All new wireless telecommunications towers and antennas, as defined herein, located in the Township of Little Falls shall be governed by these regulations.
The requirements set forth in this section shall govern the location and construction of all towers and the installation of all antennas governed by this article:
A. Building codes; safety standards. To ensure the structural integrity of wireless telecommunications towers, the owner of a tower shall maintain it in compliance with the standards contained in applicable state and local building codes, as well as the standards for towers as published and periodically amended by the Electronic Industries Association. Wireless telecommunications tower owners shall periodically inspect these towers at least once every two years to ensure the structural integrity of the tower. A structural engineer licensed to practice in New Jersey shall conduct the tower inspections. The inspection results shall be provided to the municipal Construction Code Official, Township of Little Falls Engineer, and the governing body of the Township. If, after inspection and notice being provided to the owner of the tower, the Township of Little Falls reviewing body concludes that a tower fails to comply with such codes and standards and constitutes a danger to persons or property, then the owner of the tower shall have 30 days to ensure the tower complies with such standards. At the discretion of the governing body and the reviewing body, the applicant will be required to post a bond in an amount sufficient to ensure compliance with this provision and entire article. Failure to comply with such standards within 30 days shall constitute grounds for removal of the tower and/or antenna at the owner's expense. The owner shall, in the case of conflicting code standards, comply with the most stringent of the applicable standards.
B. Regulatory compliance.
(1) All towers and antennas must meet or exceed current state or federal government agency standards and regulations. If such standards and regulations are changed, then the owners of the communications towers and antennas governed by this article shall ensure such wireless telecommunications towers and antennas comply within six months of the effective date with the revised standards and regulations, unless a more stringent compliance schedule is mandated by the controlling federal agency.
(2) Tower owners shall provide documentation to the designated Township official showing that each communications tower is in compliance with all federal requirements. Evidence of compliance must be submitted every 12 months.
(3) The failure of any tower owner to comply with the provisions set forth above shall permit the Township to take all action permitted under this chapter and at law to compel compliance, as well as the declaration by the Township that the tower shall be deemed abandoned as defined herein.
C. Security. Wireless telecommunications towers shall be enclosed by decay-resistant security fencing not less than six feet in height and shall be equipped with an appropriate anti-climbing device to prevent unauthorized access. However, the reviewing body may waive or permit variance from such requirements for alternative tower structures.
D. Lighting and signs.
(1) No signs shall be permitted except for one sign not exceeding two square feet displaying owner contact information and warnings, equipment information and safety instructions.
(2) Lighting and other forms of illumination are permitted only as required by state or federal regulations, where the Township of Little Falls reviewing body may review the available lighting alternatives and approve the lighting design that would cause the least disturbance to the surrounding uses and views.
E. Advertising. No advertising shall be permitted on any wireless telecommunications antenna or tower.
F. Visual impact.
(1) Subject to any applicable federal or state agency standards or as required by the Township Planning Board, towers shall either maintain a galvanized steel finish or be painted a neutral color to reduce visual obtrusiveness. Notwithstanding the same, the reviewing body considering any application for erection of a tower may require, at its reasonable discretion, that the tower be camouflaged or constructed of an alternative material, provided that the same does not interfere with the essential function of the tower.
(2) At the tower site, the design of the building and related structures shall use materials, colors, textures, screening, camouflaging and landscaping that will harmonize the wireless telecommunications tower and related facilities to the natural build setting and environment.
(3) The antenna and supporting electrical and mechanical equipment, if installed on a structure other than a tower, must be a neutral color that is identical to or closely compatible with the supporting structure's color to make the antenna and related equipment as visually unobtrusive as possible.
(4) Towers clustered or collocated at the same cell site shall be of similar height and design.
(5) Towers shall be the minimum height necessary to provide the service required, and towers shall be freestanding where the visually unobtrusive effect is less than would be created by use of a guyed tower.
G. Landscaping.
(1) Landscaping shall be used to effectively screen the view of the tower compound from adjacent public ways, public property and residential property. The landscaping buffer shall be a landscaped strip of at least four feet in width and shall be properly maintained by the owner of the tower. The buffer zone shall consist of landscaping that can be expected to grow to form a continuous hedge at least five feet in height within two years of planting.
(2) Trees and shrubbery in the vicinity of guy wires shall be of a kind that would not exceed 20 feet in height or would not affect the stability of the guy wires should they be uprooted and shall not obscure visibility of the anchor from the transmission building or security facilities and maintenance.
(3) Native vegetation around the cell site shall be preserved to the greatest practical extent. The applicant shall provide a site plan showing existing significant vegetation to be removed and vegetation to be replanted to replace that lost.
(4) The reviewing body having jurisdiction over the project may allow use of an alternate detailed plan and specifications for landscape and screening, including planting, fences, walls and other features designed to screen and buffer towers and accessory uses. The alternate plan shall achieve the above screening requirements, except as lesser requirements are desirable for adequate visibility for security purposes. In certain locations where the visual impact of the tower would be minimal, such as developed heavy industrial areas, the landscaping requirements may be reduced or waived by the reviewing body having jurisdiction over the project.
H. Principal, accessory and joint uses.
(1) Accessory structures used in direct support of a tower shall be permitted; however, they may not be used for offices, vehicular storage or any other outdoor storage. Mobile or immobile equipment not used in direct support of a wireless telecommunications tower facility shall not be stored or parked on the cell site unless the equipment is related to contemporaneous repairs being made to the tower. In all zoning districts and in addition to other bulk requirements, any accessory structure shall be located not more than 25 feet from the base of any proposed tower.
(2) Where permitted, wireless telecommunications antennas and towers within the meaning of this article shall be a principal permitted use rather than accessory use. Notwithstanding the same, or any conflicting provision of any other Township of Little Falls Code section or ordinance, towers may be located on sites containing another principal permitted use in the same buildable area, provided that all of the other siting, setback, separation and general requirements of this article are met. Towers may occupy a parcel meeting the minimum lot size requirements for the zoning district in which they are located.
(3) Joint use of a site is prohibited when a proposed or existing principal permitted use includes the storage, distribution or sale of volatile, flammable, explosive or hazardous materials such as propane, gasoline, natural gas and dangerous chemicals.
I. Municipal use of towers. The Township of Little Falls shall be permitted reasonable use and access of any tower to be erected within the Township for municipal purposes, including without limitation police, fire department/rescue squad and public works communications and other municipal government uses.
J. Site plan approval required. Site plan approval by the appropriate Township of Little Falls agency consistent with this article and this chapter shall be required for all new wireless telecommunications facilities in the Township.
K. Planning Board authority. This article shall in no way restrict or limit the powers or discretion of the Township of Little Falls Planning Board in reviewing site plan applications, otherwise granted under law.
Subject to any other applicable provision of this article, wireless telecommunications antennas or towers are permitted uses on property owned, leased, or otherwise controlled by the Township of Little Falls, provided that a license or lease authorizing such wireless telecommunications antenna or tower has been approved by the governing body and reviewing body upon the filing of an application and hearing as required by this article or by applicable law.
In furtherance of §
280-172 of this article, no wireless telecommunications license or lease shall be issued unless the licensee shall have first filed adequate proof that the following insurance requirements have been provided:
A. The following language/wording must appear on the insurance certificate: "The certificate holder (Township of Little Falls) is included as an additional insured as respects losses arising solely from the erection, installation, construction and maintenance of the cell site in its broadest and most inclusive sense."
B. Ten days' written notice of cancellation must be provided to the Township of Little Falls.
C. The insurance certificate must be written by a company licensed to do business in the State of New Jersey and rated A or better by A.M. Best Rating, and the certificate shall also state: "Rated by A.M. Best Rating."
D. The terms of the policy, including coverage, shall be determined by the governing body and the reviewing body during the application process and shall be in effect prior to commencement of any work being undertaken concerning the application.
In general, the following provisions shall govern the issuance of approvals for wireless telecommunications towers, antennas and related facilities on Township property:
A. The governing body of the Township of Little Falls may approve the uses listed in this section as an incident to a lease or license duly approved by the Mayor and Council.
B. Each applicant for administrative approval shall apply to the Construction Official of the Township of Little Falls providing the information required by this article.
C. The Construction Official, in consultation, if necessary, with the Township Engineer, shall review the application for completeness to determine if the proposed use complies with the requirements of this article. The matter shall thereafter be referred to the Township of Little Falls Planning Board for site plan review in accordance with the requirements of this article.
D. In connection with any administrative approvals, the Planning Board may grant waivers from the provisions of §
280-171 of this article or other relevant and applicable provisions hereof upon a showing by the applicant that the advantages of the waiver outweigh the detriment and that the waiver will not substantially impair the public good.
E. The Planning Board shall use the standards of the within article as set forth in §
280-171 in determining whether to permit the proposed construction.
F. If the application is denied by the Planning Board, the applicant shall have a right to file an appeal in the Superior Court or apply for an approval as otherwise provided in this article.
G. The applicant shall deposit with the Township of Little Falls a nonrefundable fee as set forth in Chapter
71, Fees, for administrative costs that may be incurred in the review of the application. In the event that it is determined that the costs incurred by the Township for legal or engineering review by its professional consultants exceeds the amount of the application fee, the applicant may be required to post a cash escrow as may be determined by the Township and administered in a manner conformable to the requirements of the Municipal Land Use Law.
[Amended 12-22-2008 by Ord. No. 1060]
Wireless telecommunications towers, antennas and related structures within the meaning of this article are prohibited in residential or business districts other than on Township-owned or -leased property. An applicant shall have a right to submit a use variance application to the Planning Board pursuant to the provision of N.J.S.A. 40:55-70(d). The applicant shall, in addition to meeting the criteria of the affirmative and negative proof under N.J.S.A. 40:55-70(d), have the burden of proof by clear and convincing evidence as to the criteria of this article applicable to Township property or as to industrially zoned property as well as any other criteria in the within article. The applicant shall also have the burden of proof of demonstrating that it cannot build the facility on Township-owned land or industrial-zoned land as evidenced by denials pursuant to this section or other demonstration of such inability.
No application pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be reviewed unless the applicant first executed and filed an indemnification agreement with the Township of Little Falls. In consideration of the authorization to construct and operate the cell site, the applicant shall forever agree to defend, protect, indemnify and save harmless the Township of Little Falls, its officers, agents and representatives from all damages, expenses, fees and costs, including attorney's fees, that arise out of or which may arise out of, in its most inclusive and broadest sense, the erection, construction, installation, and/or maintenance of the cell site.
Upon inspection by the reviewing body of the Township of Little Falls, if a wireless telecommunications tower is determined not to comply with the code standards or to constitute a danger to persons or property, then upon notice being provided to the owner of the tower and the owner of the property, if such owner is different, such owners shall have 30 days to bring such tower into compliance. In the event that such tower or antenna is not brought into compliance within 30 days, the Township may provide notice to the owners requiring the tower or antenna to be removed. In the event that such tower or antenna is not removed within 30 days of receipt of such notice, the Township may remove such tower or antenna and place a lien upon the property for the costs of removal. Delay by the Township in taking action shall not in any way waive the Township's right to take action. The Township may pursue all legal remedies available to it to ensure that communications towers and antennas not in compliance with the code standards or which constitute a danger to persons or property are brought into compliance or removed. The Township may seek to have the tower or antenna removed regardless of the owners' or operators' intent to operate the tower or antenna and regardless of any permits, federal, state or otherwise, which may have been granted.
This article is read and construed in pari materia with all relevant this chapter and the Code of the Township of Little Falls.