[Adopted 10-24-2017 by Ord. No. 17-30]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Art. IV, Use of Other Public Property,
derived from §§ 13-41 — 13-43 of the Code of
1991, as amended, was repealed 1-28-2014 by Ord. No. 14-04.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have meanings
indicated by this section:
To install, mount, maintain, modify, operate, or replace
a facility on, under, within, or adjacent to a base station, building,
existing structure, utility pole, or wireless support structure. Co-location
has a corresponding meaning.
The Director of Public Works, or his designee.
Any structure that is legally installed or approved for installation
at the time a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure
provider provides notice to a locality of an agreement with the owner
of the structure to co-locate equipment on that structure. Existing
structure includes any structure that is currently supporting, designed
to support, or capable of supporting the attachment of wireless facilities,
including towers, buildings, utility poles, light poles, flagpoles,
signs, and water towers.
Refers to all items installed or proposed to be installed
under this article, specifically including utility facilities, undergrounded
utilities, utility poles, wireless facilities, micro-wireless facilities,
small cell facilities, and wireless support structures.
A small cell facility that is not larger in dimension than
24 inches in length, 15 inches in width, and 12 inches in height and
that has an exterior antenna, if any, not longer than 11 inches.
Improved and unimproved streets, alleys, sidewalks, trails,
and other property owned by the City and used for the purpose of public
vehicular or pedestrian travel.
A wireless facility that meets both of the following qualifications:
Each antenna is located inside an enclosure of no more than
six cubic feet in volume or, in the case of an antenna that has exposed
elements, the antenna and all of its exposed elements could fit within
an imaginary enclosure of no more than six cubic feet; and
All other wireless equipment associated with the facility has
a cumulative volume of no more than 28 cubic feet, or such higher
limit as is established by the Federal Communications Commission.
The following types of associated equipment are not included
in the calculation of equipment volume: electric meter, concealment,
telecommunications demarcation boxes, backup power systems, grounding
equipment, power transfer switches, cutoff switches, and vertical
cable runs for the connection of power and other services.
A permit issued by the Director granting permission for excavation
work within the public rights-of-way or other public property.
Any item of public or private property which is placed below
ground or submerged for use in connection with the storage or conveyance
of water, sewage, telecommunications, electric energy, cable television,
oil, petroleum products, gas, or other substances, such as pipes,
sewers, storm sewers, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires, manholes,
attachments, and those portions of poles below ground.
Plant, equipment, and property, such as pipes, mains, conduits,
ducts, cables, circuits, wires, guy wires, pedestals, cross-connect
cabinets, power supplies, transformers, meters, and lines, located
within the public rights-of-way.
A permit issued by the Director for the purpose of installing
facilities.
A structure owned, operated, or owned and operated by a public
utility, local government, or the commonwealth that is designed specifically
for and used to carry lines, cables, or wires for communications,
cable television, or electricity. This definition specifically excludes
poles used as wireless support structures.
Equipment at a fixed location that enables wireless communications
between user equipment and a communications network, including:
Equipment associated with wireless services, such as private,
broadcast, and public safety services, as well as unlicensed wireless
services and fixed wireless services, such as microwave backhaul;
and
Radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial, or fiber-optic cable,
regular and backup power supplies, and comparable equipment, regardless
of technological configuration.
A freestanding structure, such as a monopole, tower, either
guyed or self-supporting, or suitable existing structure or alternative
structure designed to support or capable of supporting wireless facilities.
Wireless support structure does not include any telephone or electrical
utility pole or any tower used for the distribution or transmission
of electrical service.
A.
This article applies to all facilities installed or proposed to be
installed in the public rights-of-way.
B.
All facilities installed before October 24, 2017, in the public rights-of-way shall be deemed to have been installed under a permit granted in accordance with ordinances that existed at the time of the installation. Those facilities shall be subject to those ordinances, except that the current § 66-147, Undergrounded utilities, applies.
A.
No person shall install any facility in the public rights-of-way
without a franchise from the City Council, and a utility permit for
the installations from the Director. No person shall install any facility
on other public property without a franchise, easement, or lease,
or license from the City Council, and a utility permit for the installations
from the Director. Permit applications shall be submitted in the format
and containing the information required by the Director.
B.
No permit for installation of new facilities shall be granted if
the Director determines that co-location of the wireless facilities
is a feasible alternative to the proposed new installation.
C.
The Director shall refer all applications to the City's Chief
Information Officer. The Chief Information Officer shall:
D.
The Director shall refer any application involving a City park to
the Director of Parks and Recreation for review and approval before
approving the permit. These reviews shall be concurrent.
E.
The Director shall refer any application involving the Historic Fredericksburg
District to CPURC for review and approval before approving the permit.
These reviews shall be concurrent.
F.
Applications for co-locations shall be submitted separately from
applications for installation of other facilities. The City shall
review co-location applications under Code of Virginia, § 56-484.29.
The applicant shall submit a fee of $250 with its co-location application.
G.
No application shall be required for installation, placement, maintenance,
or replacement of micro-wireless facilities that are suspended on
cables or lines that are strung between existing utility poles in
compliance with national safety codes; however, a utility permit shall
be required if those activities:
No person shall open any ditch, trench, or other opening in
the public rights-of-way or other public place without a special excavation
permit. If required for public safety, the Director may grant immediate
permission for an excavation, provided that a permit is obtained on
the next business day. The Director may require, as a condition precedent
to issuance of a special excavation permit, that the applicant make
a cash deposit or post bond with corporate surety payable to the City
in an amount reasonably necessary to reimburse the City for expenses
which may be incurred by the City if the permittee fails to restore
the excavation to a condition satisfactory to the Director. Permit
applications shall be submitted in the format and containing the information
required by the Director.
Fees for franchises and permits under this article shall be
established by the City Council, by resolution.
Installations and replacements of all facilities, other than
poles intended to support streetlights, poles intended to support
traffic signals, replacement of existing poles, and wireless support
infrastructure, shall be underground, unless this requirement is specifically
waived by the Director.
Facility placement shall be as designated by the Director. The
Director shall adopt standards for facilities and standards for cutting,
excavating, backfilling, compacting, and patching for all work done
in the public rights-of-way. All work performed under permits issued
under this article shall be in compliance with those standards. The
Director shall adopt standards for the condition and maintenance of
facilities. All facilities located in the public rights-of-way or
on other public property shall be in compliance with those standards.
A.
The Director may prohibit the installation of a facility if the facility,
its proposed location, or the manner of installation fails to conform
to the requirements of this article or any other City ordinance, or
to any condition attached to the permit for its installation.
B.
All facilities installed in the public rights-of-way shall conform
to the height requirements of the Design Guidelines for the Installation
of Facilities in the City of Fredericksburg Rights-of-Way. No part
of any facility installed in the public rights-of-way shall be more
than 55 feet in height over street level, or taller than specified
in the Design Guidelines, without advance written approval from the
Director. The Director shall grant this approval only upon finding
that denying that approval would cause an undue hardship upon the
applicant.
A.
The Director may immediately suspend or revoke permits issued under
this article due to any violation of this article or any other ordinance
relating to use of the public rights-of-way, any failure to observe
the conditions attached to a permit, or any refusal to make alterations
or repairs as may be required to conform to this article. No person
shall perform any work or cause any work to be performed under a suspended
or revoked permit.
B.
When a permit has been revoked, the owner or proprietor of the facilities
authorized by the permit shall, within 30 days, remove those facilities
from the public rights-of-way. If the owner or proprietor fails to
do so, the Director may remove the facilities at the risk and expense
of the owner or proprietor.
All permitted work shall be prosecuted with diligence, and the
permittee shall avoid unnecessary delays. Excavation shall not be
left uncovered overnight without advance written approval from the
Director.
Any person installing undergrounded utilities shall participate
in the VA811 underground utility protection program, and respond to
and stake or locate underground utilities as prescribed by the program.
The City shall be held harmless for any damage to facilities damaged
by City excavations if due to untimely or incorrect locations being
staked or identified; provided that the City acted in accordance with
the VA811 program.
A.
All openings, excavations, and obstructions in the public rights-of-way
and on other public property shall be properly barricaded and illuminated
with barriers and flashing beacons as required by the Virginia Department
of Transportation Work Area Protection Manual.
B.
All openings, excavations, and tunnels in the public rights-of-way
and on other public property shall be properly shored and braced in
accordance with all Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) and the Virginia Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(VOSHA) standards.
The applicant shall provide as-built maps of all of its facilities
upon request of the Director. If this information is available in
a format compatible with the City's GIS, the information shall
be submitted in that format.
Every facility that no longer serves its originally intended
purpose shall be removed from the public rights-of-way within 60 days
of abandonment or other reasonable period authorized by the Director,
unless a permit for its use is granted to some other person or corporation.
Any person obtaining a special excavation permit under this
article shall restore the excavation as required by the Director,
in accordance with City standards. If the excavation is not properly
restored, the City may perform the restoration and charge the actual
cost of that work to the permittee. The work area shall also be thoroughly
cleaned of all rubbish, excess earth, rock, and other debris resulting
from the work. All clean-up operations shall be at the permittee's
expense and shall be completed to the satisfaction of the Director.
If facilities are installed in a street that has not been accepted
by the City, this article shall apply to those facilities if and when
the street is accepted by the City.
