[Adopted 5-13-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-01]
The purpose of this article is to govern the placing of utilities,
poles, wires and equipment, including personal wireless telecommunications
facilities, within the Town's public right-of-way, in order to
lessen the danger to the traveling public, facilitate the maintenance
of storm- and surface water drainage systems, regulate underground
and above-ground utilities, protect the community's investment
in public streets and roads, and to protect the health, safety and
welfare of the Town of Bedford. The purpose of this article is also
to minimize the negative and adverse visual and aesthetic impacts
of utilities, including personal wireless telecommunication facilities
in the right-of-way, to the maximum extent practicable.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The Federal Communications Commission of the United States.
Any "PWSF" as defined in the federal Telecommunications Act
of 1996, 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C)(ii), including facilities
used or to be used by a licensed provider of personal wireless services,
including all small cell installations. A PWSF includes the set of
equipment and network components, exclusive of the underlying tower
or mount, including, but not limited to, antennas, accessory equipment,
transmitters, receivers, base stations, power supplies, cabling, and
associated equipment necessary to provide personal wireless service.
The area of land which constitutes a public way under RSA
229:1. This area shall include, but not be limited to, the area of
any road as laid out, the area within the property lines of any land
deeded to the Town for highway purposes, or the extent (including
reasonable adjoining areas) of any public way established by prescription.
All equipment required for the operation and maintenance
of so-called "small cell" wireless communications systems that transmit
and/or receive signals, including antennas, microwave dishes, power
supplies, transformers, electronics, and other types of equipment
required for the transmission of telecommunication signals.
The Town of Bedford, New Hampshire or any affiliate or political
subdivision of the Town.
A structure owned and/or operated by a public utility, municipality,
electric membership corporation, or rural electric cooperative that
is designed specifically for and used to carry lines, cables, or wires
for telephone, cable television, or electricity, or to provide lighting.
The placement, installation, and maintenance of all utilities,
poles, wires, and equipment, including equipment for personal wireless
telecommunications facilities in the right-of-way, shall be governed
by the provisions of RSA 231:159 et seq.
A.
No utilities, poles, wires or associated equipment, including equipment
for personal wireless telecommunications facilities, or other like
structure shall be installed on, over, across or within any public
right-of-way without first receiving approval of a permit as described
below. No approval granted shall confer any exclusive right, privilege,
license or franchise to occupy or use the public right-of-way for
delivery of telecommunication services or any other purpose. No enjoyment
by a person, co-partnership, or corporation for any length of time
shall create an easement or raise any presumption of a grant thereof.
B.
The Town shall not be subject to a permit or any other requirements
of this article.
C.
Any utilities, poles, wires, and equipment, including personal wireless
telecommunications facilities, and like structures, the location of
which have already been approved by the Town, shall be deemed legally
permitted or licensed without further proceedings under this article.
D.
Utilities, poles, wires, and equipment, including personal wireless
telecommunications facilities installed on private property and Town-owned
land, are subject to the requirements of the Bedford Zoning Ordinance
and Land Development Control Regulations. All such permits required
by the Bedford Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment shall
be issued before a permit under this article will be effective.
E.
The Town Council shall appoint a Utilities, Poles and Wires Committee
to review and approve permit applications for all new installations
of utilities, poles, and equipment, including personal wireless telecommunications
facilities and equipment thereof, in the Town's right-of-way.
The Committee shall approve such application if the public good so
requires. See RSA 231:161, II. The Committee shall have the authority
to waive application content if it is determined items are not applicable
to the application. The Committee shall be comprised of three regular
members. The Director of Public Works and the Planning Director, or
their designee, and a Town Councilor shall be appointed to serve as
regular members.
F.
The Utilities, Poles and Wires Committee shall publish a regular
schedule of meeting dates and deadlines for the acceptance of new
applications and shall adopt standard rules, procedures, and timelines
for the review and approval of permits. The timeline for review and
approval of an application shall be in accordance with all federal
and state requirements.
G.
Application fee. The Town Council may adopt a fee schedule relating
to the review and issuance of permits. All fees shall be in accordance
with all federal and state requirements.
H.
Application content. All permit applications for above- or below-ground
utilities and equipment within the right-of-way, including personal
wireless telecommunication facilities, must be made in writing to
the Town and shall include the following:
(1)
Completed application form with the full name and contact information
of the owner, operator and agent (if applicable).
(2)
Confirmation that all landowners within 200 feet of the proposed
aboveground installation have been notified by certified mail of the
pending application.
(3)
Detailed engineering plans, prepared by a NH licensed professional
engineer or surveyor, for each proposed installation, including the
exact location and dimension of the installation and construction
details of all equipment necessary for operation.
(4)
Visual impact analysis with photo simulations depicting the before
and after view of all proposed aboveground equipment at the location
of the installation from at least three vantage points within the
immediate vicinity of the proposed facility.
(5)
An executed indemnification agreement and insurance certificate,
in an amount approved by the Town. Applicant shall assume full liability
for damage or injury caused to any person or property as a result
of the installation.
(6)
A written description of the timeline for installation and the intended
areas of service.
(7)
A roadway and pavement restoration plan and cost estimate for roadwork
approved by the Public Works Director.
(8)
Any additional information as reasonably required by the Town to
analyze the impact the application have on the use and safety of the
public right-of-way.
I.
The following additional information may be required, as applicable,
for all permit applications, personal wireless telecommunication facilities,
and any applications for colocations, if determined to be necessary
by the Utilities, Poles and Wires Committee:
(1)
Master plan showing the geographic service area for the proposed
installation, and all existing, proposed and anticipated installations
in Bedford.
(2)
Written description of the proposed stealth design and concealment
techniques to be utilized to minimize the visual impact to the public
right-of-way and surrounding properties. All proposed exterior equipment
must be the minimum necessary to achieve the needed service and must
be the most aesthetically pleasing alternative for the location. Exterior
equipment and antenna surfaces shall be painted a muted color and
nonreflective hue to match the underlying support structure. Antennas
and equipment shall be contained and concealed. To expedite the review
and permitting process, the Utilities, Poles and Wires Committee may
adopt one or more preapproved designs for the placement and concealment
of utilities and equipment.
(3)
Certification by a radiofrequency engineer that personal wireless
telecommunication facilities will be in compliance with the most recently
adopted FCC standards for radiofrequency (RF) emissions, as they relate
to the general public, including aggregate emissions for all colocated
equipment. The applicant shall be required to test the facility upon
the commencement of operations, and annually thereafter. Copies of
the reports shall be submitted to the Town within 30 days of the completion
of testing. If there is reasonable cause to believe that a facility
may emit an RF frequency that exceeds the FCC standards, the Town
may retain a consultant to perform independent testing to verify compliance
with current regulatory and operational standards; the consultant
fees shall be paid for by the applicant.
(4)
Certification that the applicant has a right under New Hampshire
state law to install personal wireless telecommunication facilities
in the public right-of-way.
(5)
If equipment is proposed to be placed on existing poles or equipment
not owned by the applicant, written authorization from the owner stating
the applicant has permission to utilize the existing poles and equipment
shall be provided.
(6)
A financial guarantee shall be provided to ensure compliance with
the provisions of this article and shall remain in effect until the
utilities are fully and completely removed and the site is returned
to its original condition. The amount and terms of the financial guarantee
shall be approved by the Town prior to the issuance of the permit
and shall include funds for the removal of the utility and restoration
of the site.
J.
Consultant fee. The Town may require the payment of reasonable fees
for the third-party consultant review of any aspect of a permit application
to ensure compliance with the provisions of this article, as well
as all applicable federal and state laws.
K.
Term of the permit. The permit will automatically renew one year
from its issuance, and each year thereafter, provided the applicant
is in compliance with all terms of the permit approval.
L.
Relocation, removal or abandonment. In the event of widening, repair
or reconstruction of any roadway, the applicant shall move or remove
any utility lines and equipment at no cost to the Town, should they
be found by the Town to interfere with the roadway construction.
M.
Transfer, sale or assignment. A notice of transfer, sale, or assignment
of the ownership of any infrastructure approved under the permit shall
be filed with the Town within 30 days of transfer.
N.
Maximum pole height and spacing. The maximum height of new utility
poles or support structures in the public right-of-way shall not exceed
50 feet. In the case of colocations, attachments shall not exceed
five feet above the existing pole structure. Poles shall be located
not less than 150 feet apart along the same side of the street.
O.
Each individual piece of pole-mounted equipment or antenna shall
not exceed six cubic feet in dimension or shall not exceed the dimensional
standards of any preapproved designs for specific equipment installations.
P.
Utilities shall be located so as not to cause any physical or visual
obstruction to pedestrian or vehicular traffic, inconvenience to the
public's use of the right-of-way or safety hazards to pedestrians
and motorists.
Q.
No signage. Applicants shall not place commercial signage on any
poles, equipment or utilities within the public right-of-way.
R.
Underground areas. Utilities and equipment, with the exception of
antennas, shall be placed underground in areas where other utilities
are required to be placed underground by action of the Town Planning
Board or other Town ordinance or regulations, or where utilities are
scheduled to be converted from overhead to underground. Underground
placement shall apply to all applications unless the applicant presents
clear and convincing evidence that compliance with this section would
be technically infeasible.
S.
All new overhead utilities and equipment shall be installed at the
outermost boundary of public right-of-way, or as otherwise recommended
by the Public Works Director.
T.
Annual certification. Each year, on or before January 31, the applicant
shall submit an affidavit to the Town which shall list, by location,
all facilities it owns within the Town by location and shall certify:
U.
Excavation permit required. No construction, excavation, clearing,
dredging for the installation of underground utilities may be conducted
on, over, or under a public right-of-way without express permission
from the Public Works Director or his designee. In the case of emergency
work, the person conducting the work shall obtain an excavation permit
from the Department of Public Works.
V.
In accordance with the requirements of RSA 72:23, I(b), the owner
of the installation shall be obligated to pay real and personal property
taxes on the structures or improvements in the public right-of-way.
W.
After 90 days' notice in writing given by the Public Works Director,
utilities and equipment, including equipment for personal wireless
telecommunication facilities, shall be removed when the public good
so requires. Such notice may be served by the Public Works Director
or agent thereof on such utility or any agent or officer thereof.
The notice of removal shall designate the location in the highway
to which the same shall be removed, and such notice, together with
affidavit or acceptance of service thereof, shall be recorded in the
office of the Town Clerk in which such utility is located. The notice
shall take effect when the same, with such affidavit or acceptance
of service endorsed thereon, shall be thus recorded, and the 90 days
shall run from the date of such record. All such utilities shall be
removed within the time designated, and, if not removed by the date
stated in such notice, may be forthwith removed by the Public Works
Department at the expense of the owner. See RSA 231:171 through 231:181.
X.
Temporary and emergency removal of utilities shall be in accordance
with RSA 231:182.
A.
The provisions of this article with respect to the meaning of technical
terms and phrases, interpretation of the regulations and other technical
matters shall be interpreted and administered by the Town Manager.
B.
Right of appeal. Any party aggrieved by any decision, regulation,
or provision under this article, as amended from time to time, shall
have the right of appeal within 30 days of said decision to the Town
Council, which shall issue a decision within 30 days. An aggrieved
party may appeal the Town Council's decision in accordance with
RSA 231:166 to the Superior Court or a court of competent jurisdiction
within 60 days of such decision.
