Village of Thornton, IL Chapter 7-10 Commercial Mobile Radio Service Facilities

§ 7-10-1 Wireless service facilities.

[11-17-2003]

Wireless service facilities shall meet the following requirements:

A. Purpose. The general purpose of this section is to regulate the placement, construction and modification of wireless service facilities in order to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public, while at the same time not unreasonably interfering with the development of the competitive wireless telecommunications marketplace within the corporate limits of the Village of Thornton.

B. Applications. Application for the installation of a wireless service facility shall be filed with Building Official, in accordance with the requirements of Title 7 of this Code (Building Regulations). In addition to the requirements set in the building regulations, applications for wireless service facilities shall include the following information:

1. The name, address and telephone number of the owner and lessee of the parcel of land upon which the wireless service facility is to be situated. If the applicant is not the owner of the property, documentation that the owner of the property has granted, by agreement, use of the property for the proposed facility. The agreement shall also reflect who shall have maintenance responsibility for the facility and that the applicant shall be required to remove the facility or any portion thereof upon cessation of operation.

2. A report signed by an Engineer licensed in the State of Illinois, which:

a. Describes the facility's height and design and includes cross sections and elevations for the proposed facility;

b. Provides landscape screening plans drawn to scale;

c. Describes the facility's capacity, including the number and type of antennas it can accommodate;

d. Documents the height above grade for all potential mounting positions for all antennas and the minimum separation distances between antennas;

e. Documents the steps that the applicant will take to avoid interference with established public safety telecommunications;

f. Any other relevant data the Building Official deems necessary to a complete review of the application; and

g. States that the facility is designed in accordance with the Village's Building Code, in addition to all other state and federal laws and regulations applicable thereto.

3. A site plan, drawn to scale, showing the lot lines, land uses, and tree coverage, including average tree height, for all properties within 300 feet of the proposed site.

4. A map showing all existing wireless service facilities within the service area of the proposed facility, including the name, address and telephone number of all owners of such facilities.

5. Where a wireless service facility is not collocating, an affidavit attesting to the fact that the applicant made diligent, but unsuccessful, efforts to receive permission to install or collocate the applicant's facility on another service provider's facility within the service area desired by the applicant and that the proposed site is therefore, of practical necessity for the applicant.

C. Design and Construction.

1. Wireless service facilities may be either freestanding, roof mounted, or building mounted. No guyed or latticed wireless service facilities shall be permitted. For the purposes of this title, wireless service facilities located on water towers shall be considered roof mounted facilities and notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, shall be limited to a height of 10 feet above the highest point of the water tower.

2. All wireless facilities shall be designed in accordance with the Village's Building Code, in addition to all state and federal law and regulations concerning aviation safety. Notwithstanding the foregoing, all facility towers shall be constructed with at least one release point so as to bend and fold over on themselves.

3. Wireless service facilities shall be designed to accommodate three or more wireless antennas.

4. Wireless service facilities shall be designed to be compatible with neighboring buildings and uses. All facilities shall, including building and structures accessory thereto, be designed to blend or match with a host building or the environment. Support structures and antennas shall be of a single blue, gray or similar color, and have a flat, non-gloss, non-fluorescent finish. The color scheme for the facility shall be subject to the approval of the Building Official.

5. No advertising, logos, or corporate symbols shall be permitted on any wireless service facility or any building or structure accessory thereto.

6. No signals or lights or other illumination shall be permitted on the wireless service facilities unless required by the Federal Communication Commission, the Federal Aviation Administration or by the Village of Thornton.

7. Every wireless service facility shall be separated from all other wireless service facilities a minimum of 1,000 lineal feet.

8. Every wireless service facility shall be fully automated. No employee of the service provider shall be stationed at the site, except for the completion of periodic maintenance.

9. Except in cases where a height bonus has been granted pursuant to Subsections D and E below, the maximum height of any single facility tower or antenna shall be 50 feet.

10. Screening techniques such as landscaping, berming, screening, and fencing shall be incorporated into each site as deemed appropriate by the Building Official. A fence or wall of eight feet in height shall be required to encompass a freestanding wireless service facility, including any associated accessory building or structure. Except fence and wall entrances, all fences and walls shall be screened with appropriate landscaping and screening techniques, so that no more than 2/3 of the surface of the fence or wall is visible within three years after creation of the facility from a public right-of-way or any residential lot.

11. All wireless service facilities, including any associated accessory building or structure, shall meet the setback requirements of the district in which they are located. All wireless service facilities, including any associated accessory building or structure, shall be setback a minimum of 500 feet from any residential district.

D. Permitted Location. Subject to site plan approval, the location of wireless service facilities shall be regulated as follows:

1. Permitted Uses. The following wireless service facilities shall be considered permitted uses:

a. Roof and building mounted wireless service facilities and antennas located in the Industrial Zoning District, subject to the limitation that the height of any such facility or antenna shall not extend to a height greater than 20 feet above the host building; and

b. Wireless service facilities and antennas located on Village owned property pursuant to an executed agreement with the Village's Corporate Authorities.

2. Special Uses. The following wireless service facilities shall be considered special uses and require a special use permit subject to § 9-4-5 of this Title:

a. Free-standing wireless service facilities and antennas located in the B-2, B-3, B-4 and Industrial Zoning Districts; and

b. Roof- and building-mounted wireless service facilities and antennas located in the B-2, B-3 and B-4 Zoning Districts, subject to the limitation that the height of any such facility or antenna shall not extend to a height greater than 20 feet above the host building.

E. Collection.

1. The Village encourages collocation of wireless service facilities on existing or planned wireless service facilities in order to minimize the proliferation of antenna support structures and to achieve the most efficient use of land within the community. Therefore, the Village may grant access to municipally owned property and may lower or waive application fees for applicants locating additional antennas on an existing facility. In addition, a height bonus may be granted to an applicant that incorporates two or more antennas upon the applicant's facility, however, no facility shall exceed a height of 50 feet.

2. When asking for additional height, an applicant shall provide documentation from a professional engineer licensed in the State of Illinois showing that the proposed antenna cannot be accommodated on an existing or approved facility within a one-quarter mile search for facilities under 50 feet in height for one or more of the following reasons:

a. The planned equipment would exceed the structural capacity of the existing or approved facility, and the existing or approved facility cannot be reinforced, modified, or replaced to accommodate the planned equipment at a reasonable cost;

b. The planned equipment would cause interference materially impacting other service providers, and the interference cannot be prevented at a reasonable cost;

c. An existing or approved facility within the search area cannot accommodate the planned equipment at a height necessary to provide service to the applicant's service area; or

d. Other unforeseen reasons make the subject site of practical necessity for the applicant.

F. Compliance. All wireless service facilities shall maintain compliance with the plans and specifications approved and made part of the application for the installation of a wireless service facility. Noncompliance, including but not limited to, discoloration, cracking, missing components, rusting, settling, damage or general disrepair shall be deemed a violation of this Title and shall subject the owner of the facility and the owner of a host building or structure, if different, to the remedies and penalties set forth in this Code. Liability for such noncompliance shall be joint and several for the owner or owners of a facility and an owner or owners of a host building or structure, if different.

G. Abandonment. Abandoned, obsolescent, or unused wireless service facilities or portions thereof shall be removed within three months of notice to the FCC of intent to cease operations at a site, unless an extension is granted by the Building Official. In the event that a wireless service facility, or portion thereof, is not removed within three months of such notice, or other agreed time, the Village may, in addition to any other remedy provided by this Title, remove the facility or portion thereof, at the applicant's expense. Unused portions of a wireless service tower above a manufactured connection shall be removed within two months of the time of antenna relocation. The replacement of portions of a tower previously removed requires the issuance of a new permit.