Town of North Greenbush, NY Article XXI Telecommunications Towers

§ 197-107 Regulations for telecommunications towers.

A. Enabling authority.

(1) The Planning Board of the Town of North Greenbush is hereby authorized to review and approve, approve with modifications or disapprove site plans consistent with this section, the regulations of the Town of North Greenbush and Town Law §§ 274-a and 274-b.

(2) The Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of North Greenbush is hereby authorized to review and approve, approve with conditions or disapprove special permit applications consistent with this section, the regulations of the Town of North Greenbush and Town Law §§ 274-a and 274-b.

B. Purpose.

(1) The purpose of these supplemental regulations is to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the Town of North Greenbush, to provide standards for the safe provision of telecommunications consistent with applicable federal and state regulations, to protect the natural features, aesthetic character and property values of the Town, and to minimize the number of telecommunications towers in the Town by encouraging shared use of existing and future structures.

(2) These regulations are not intended to prohibit or have the effect of prohibiting the provision of any federally licensed communications services nor shall they be used to unreasonably discriminate among providers of functionally equivalent services consistent with current federal regulations.

C. Application.

(1) No transmission tower shall hereafter be used, erected, moved, changed or altered except in conformity with these regulations. No existing structure shall be modified to serve as a transmission tower unless in conformity with these regulations.

(2) Applicants planning to construct new tower(s) or tall structure(s) must obtain a special permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

(3) Applicants planning to collocate on a previously approved telecommunications tower or construct facilities upon an existing tall structure must obtain site plan approval from the Planning Board.

(4) No telecommunications towers may be approved upon any property within R1, R2, R3 or R4 zones (See § 197, Table 1).

(5) Where these regulations conflict with other laws and regulations of the Town, the more restrictive shall apply.

D. Exceptions. Exceptions to these regulations are limited to new uses or modifications to existing uses which are accessory to residential uses, and lawful or approved uses existing prior to the effective date of these regulations.

E. New towers; future shared use. The applicant shall design a proposed new telecommunications tower to accommodate future demand for similar reception and transmitting facilities. The applicant shall submit to the Board a letter of intent committing the owner of the proposed new tower and its successors in interest to negotiate in good faith for shared use of the proposed tower by other telecommunications providers in the future. This letter shall be filed with the Building Inspector prior to the issuance of a building permit. The letter shall commit the new tower owner and its successors in interest to:

(1) Respond within 90 days to a request for information from a potential shared-use applicant.

(2) Negotiate in good faith concerning future requests for shared use of the new tower by other telecommunications providers.

(3) Allow shared use of the new tower if another telecommunications provider agrees in writing to pay reasonable charges. Said charges may include but are not limited to a pro rata share of the cost of site selection, planning, project administration, land costs, site design, construction and maintenance financing, return on equity, and depreciation, and all of the costs of adapting the tower or equipment to accommodate the shared user(s).

F. Site plan submission requirements for new towers.

(1) Required submissions. An applicant proposing to construct a new tower shall submit a site plan as described in Town Code Chapter 155 (Site Plan Review). The site plan and supporting documentation shall include:

(a) Special permit approval.

(b) A site plan showing all existing and proposed structures and improvements including towers, antennas, roads, accessory facilities, parking, landscaping and any proposed screening methods.

(c) Engineering documentation describing the capacity for additional antennas and radio-frequency equipment.

(d) A visual environmental assessment form (EAF) with particular attention to visibility from key viewpoints within and outside of the municipality as identified within the visual EAF.

(e) A complete inventory of existing towers and other structures over 75 feet in height within one-half mile of the proposed site.

(f) A report demonstrating good faith efforts to secure shared use upon all structures identified in Subsection F(1)(e) which are of sufficient height and mechanical stability to support the proposed use or can be modified to meet the applicant's needs; and also justifying why the remainder cannot be outfitted to meet its requirements. Written requests and responses for shared use shall be provided.

(g) A report detailing the applicant's long-range plans for additional facilities within the Town.

(h) A copy of applicant's Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license.

(2) Visual impact assessment. The Planning Board may require the applicant to undertake a visual impact assessment which may include:

(a) A Zone of Visibility Map indicating locations where the tower will be seen.

(b) Pictorial representations of "before and after" views from key viewpoints both inside and outside of the Town.

G. Site plan submission requirements for sharing existing facilities.

(1) Required submissions. An applicant proposing to share use of an existing tall structure shall submit a site plan as described in Town Code Chapter 155 (Site Plan Review). The site plan and supporting documentation shall include:

(a) A letter of intent from the owner of the existing facility to allow shared use by the applicant.

(b) A site plan showing all existing and proposed structures and improvements including towers, antennas, roads, accessory facilities, parking, landscaping and screening methods.

(c) In the case of use on a structure not originally designed as a telecommunications tower, a report, prepared by a New York State licensed professional engineer specializing in structural engineering, certifying that the proposed shared use will not diminish the structural integrity and safety of the existing structure and explaining what modifications, if any, will be required in order to certify to the above.

(d) A completed short EAF with completed visual EAF addendum.

(e) A copy of the applicant's FCC license.

H. New tower design standards.

(1) Setbacks. New towers and antennas shall comply with all existing setbacks within the affected zone. Furthermore, a minimum 100-foot setback shall be required where the site adjoins residential or public property. Setbacks shall apply to all tower parts including guy wire anchors and to any accessory facilities.

(2) Visual impact.

(a) Siting. All new towers and accessory facilities shall be sited to have the least practical adverse visual impact upon the environment.

(b) Lighting and painting. New towers shall not be artificially lighted except to assure human safety as required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). New towers shall be a galvanized finish or painted gray above the surrounding treeline and painted gray, green, black or similar colors designed to blend into the natural surrounding below the surroundings treeline unless other standards are required by the FAA. New towers shall be designed and sited so as to avoid, whenever possible, application of FAA lighting and painting requirements pursuant to 47 CFR Part 17.

(c) Materials. Accessory facilities shall maximize use of building materials, colors and textures designed to blend with the natural surroundings.

(3) Existing vegetation. Existing on-site vegetation shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible, and no cutting of trees exceeding four inches in diameter (measured at a height of four feet off the ground) shall take place prior to approval of the site plan. Clear-cutting of all trees in a single contiguous area exceeding 20,000 square feet shall be prohibited.

(4) Screening. Where the site abuts residential or public property, including streets, and includes construction of a new tower or an increase in height of an existing structure, at least one row of native evergreen shrubs or trees capable of forming a continuous hedge at least 10 feet in height within two years of planting shall be provided to effectively screen the tower base and accessory facilities. In the case of poor soil conditions, planting may be required on soil berms to assure plant survival.

(5) Access and parking. A road and parking shall be provided to assure adequate emergency and service access. Maximum use of existing roads, public or private, shall be made. Road construction shall be consistent with standards for private roads and shall at all times minimize ground disturbance and vegetation cutting to within the toe of fill, the top of cuts, or no more than 10 feet beyond the edge of any pavement. Roads shall be designed to minimize visual disturbance, soil erosion and excavation. Public road standards may be waived in meeting the objectives of this subsection.

(6) Consulting engineering services. The Planning Board may request a review of the application by a qualified engineer in order to evaluate the need for and/or the design of any new tower. The cost of this review shall be borne by the applicant.

(7) Signs. No portion of any tower or accessory structure shall be used for a sign or other advertising purpose, including but not limited to company name, phone numbers, banners and streamers.

I. Authority to impose conditions. The Planning Board shall have the authority to impose such reasonable conditions and restrictions as are directly related to and incidental to the proposed site plan.

J. Removal. Before a building permit may be issued for the construction of a new tower, the applicant must first submit to the Building Inspector a letter of intent committing the tower owner and its successors in interest to notify the Building Inspector within 30 days of the cessation of service operation from the tower. Telecommunications facilities, including but not limited to antennas, towers and accessory structures, shall be removed from the site within one year of the expiration or forfeiture of the FCC license governing their operation.

K. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

ANTENNA

A system of electrical conductors that transmit or receive radio frequency waves. Such waves shall include but not be limited to radio navigation, radio, television, wireless and microwave communications. The frequency of these waves generally range from 20 kilohertz to 300,000 megahertz.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACCESSORY FACILITY

An accessory facility serves the principal use, is subordinate in area, extent and purpose to the principal use and is located on the same lot as the principal use. Examples of such facilities include transmission equipment and storage sheds.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER

A structure upon which transmitting and/or receiving antennas are located.