Article VI Special Permit Uses

§ 260-61 Applicability.

All special permit uses cited in § 260-14, the Schedule of Use Regulations, or any other section of this chapter shall be subject to review and approval by the Planning Board in accordance with the standards and procedures included herein. In all cases where this chapter requires such special use permit authorization by the Planning Board, no building permit or certificate of occupancy or use shall be issued by the Zoning Enforcement Officer except upon authorization of and in full conformance with plans approved by the Planning Board.

§ 260-62 General standards.

In authorizing any special permit use, the Planning Board shall take into consideration the public health, safety, and general welfare and the comfort and convenience of the public in general and that of the immediate neighborhood in particular. The Planning Board shall also take into strict account the specific conditions set forth in this article for certain uses, applicable supplementary regulations stated in Article V of this chapter, and the following general objectives for any use requiring Planning Board authorization:

The location and size of the use, the nature and intensity of the operations involved, the size of the site in relation to the use, and the location of the site with respect to existing and future streets providing access shall be in harmony with the orderly development of the district.

The location, nature and height of the buildings, walls and fences, and the nature and intensity of intended operations, should not discourage the appropriate development and use of adjacent land and buildings or impair the value thereof.

All proposed traffic accessways shall be adequate but not excessive in number; adequate in width, grade, alignment and visibility; sufficiently separated from street intersections or other places of public assembly; and meet similar safety considerations.

Adequate provision for safe and accessible off-street parking and loading spaces shall be made.

All parking and service areas shall be screened at all seasons of the year from the view of adjacent residential lots and streets, and the general landscaping of the site shall be in character with that generally prevailing in the neighborhood. Such landscaping shall include the preservation of existing trees, particularly those over eight inches in diameter, to the maximum extent possible.

All proposed buildings, structures, equipment and/or material shall be readily accessible for fire and police protection.

The character and appearance of the proposed use, buildings, structures and/or outdoor signs shall be in general harmony with the character and appearance of the surrounding neighborhood, shall not be more objectionable to nearby properties by reason of noise, fumes, vibration, or flashing lights than would the operations of any permitted use and shall not adversely affect the general welfare of the inhabitants of the Town of Woodstock. The days and hours of operation may be limited by the Planning Board to minimize disturbance to neighbors.

The Planning Board may issue a special use permit for a limited period of time and may place specific conditions for its renewal thereafter. The investment of an applicant shall have no bearing on the issuance or renewal of a special use permit.

Where required in § 260-63 of this chapter, or wherever the Planning Board deems it appropriate for a special permit use, the following standards shall apply to all districts:

(1)

Driveways shall be so located and, where possible, relocated as to minimize the impact of vehicular traffic on neighboring properties.

(2)

All activities employing amplified sound shall take place fully within the structure or structures.

(3)

Structures shall be designed to contain sound fully within the structure. This may require the installation of sound damping material and/or central air conditioning to permit the closing of windows in hot weather.

Where required in § 260-63 of this chapter, or wherever the Planning Board deems it appropriate for a special permit use, the following standards shall apply to the R8, R5, R3, R1.5 and PRD Districts:

(1)

No building shall be erected closer than 100 feet to any street or lot line.

(2)

No parking area shall be closer than 150 feet to any street or lot line. Where space permits, larger setbacks are encouraged to maximize the buffer to neighboring properties.

The Planning Board may require all proposed elementary, middle and high schools to adhere to standards described in the 2006 edition or later editions of Planning and Urban Design Standards, John Wiley & Sons.

[Added 6-17-2014 by L.L. No. 1-2014[1]]

[1]

Editor's Note: This local law also provided for the redesignation of former Subsection K as Subsection L.

Additional standards. The Planning Board may establish any additional standards appropriate to any special use permit in this article.

§ 260-63 Additional specific standards for certain uses.

[Amended 7-3-2013 by L.L. No. 1-2013; 12-9-2025 by L.L. No. 3-2025]

In addition to the general standards set forth in § 260-62 above and the site plan review considerations set forth in § 260-77 of this chapter, the following specific standards shall be complied with for the particular special permit uses cited below.

Mining and excavation, including the loading, hauling and/or processing of sand, gravel, soil, shale, topsoil, stone, or any aggregate material native to the site, in excess of 300 cubic yards or a disturbed area greater than 1/2 acre, provided that

(1)

All applicable provisions of the New York State Mined Land Reclamation Law[1] and other state and federal regulations shall be fully complied with;

[1]

Editor's Note: See Environmental Conservation Law § 23-2701 et seq.

(2)

A time schedule for completion of either the entire operation or, if excavation is to occur in stages, of each stage of the operation shall be submitted for approval; no renewal of the special use permit shall be granted until the permit holder shall have complied with all provisions of the reclamation plan;

(3)

An operations plan, including the number and type of trucks and other machinery to be used on the site, including their respective noise levels, shall be submitted for approval;

(4)

A progressive restoration and rehabilitation plan showing both existing contours and proposed final contours after operations are completed shall be submitted for approval; such restoration and rehabilitation plan shall include sowing and planting and proper vegetation so as to prevent erosion, unsightliness and noisome impact on neighboring properties, groundwater resources and aquifers;

(5)

A performance guarantee (performance bond or escrow deposit) to assure rehabilitation shall be provided, upon recommendation of the Planning Board, in an amount and form satisfactory to the Town Board;

(6)

A buffer area shall be established of not less than 100 feet between the operation and the nearest property line, and not less than 100 feet from the nearest road; for extraction operations in creek or stream beds which fall within what otherwise would be the buffer area, the Planning Board may reduce the buffer;

(7)

Such special use permit, including renewals, shall be restricted to a disturbed area not to exceed five acres and to a time period not to exceed six years in total, at which time all reclamation activities shall have been completed; and

(8)

The number of mines in any area shall be limited to one mine per geologic deposit or soil section as defined by the appropriate map contained in the Soil Survey of Ulster County issued by the United States Department of Agriculture in cooperation with the Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station. The total amount of land to be disturbed within any one geologic deposit shall be not greater than five acres at any one time.

Motor vehicle service station or gasoline station, provided that:

(1)

The minimum lot area shall be 30,000 square feet and the minimum lot frontage shall be 200 feet;

(2)

No building shall be erected closer than 20 feet to any street or lot line;

(3)

Entrance and exit driveways shall have an unrestricted width of not less than 18 feet nor more than 30 feet, nor shall they be located closer than 10 feet to any side or rear lot line;

(4)

No entrance or exit driveway or parking space shall be so located as to require the backing of any vehicle into a public right-of-way;

(5)

No access drive shall be within 200 feet of and on the same side of the street as a school, public library, theater, church or place of worship, or other public gathering place, park, playground or fire station designed for occupancy by more than 50 persons, unless a street not less than 50 feet in width lies between such service station and such building or use;

(6)

Gasoline or flammable oils in bulk shall be stored fully underground, in accordance with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Part 614 Regulations, and shall not be located closer than 10 feet to any street line or 35 feet to any lot line; and

(7)

No gasoline pump shall be located closer than 25 feet to any property line.

Summer or vacation colony, including cabins and cottages available for rent during the nonwinter months, provided that:

(1)

Minimum lot area shall be 10 acres;

(2)

Such cabins or cottages shall be designed for one family only, with not more than three such dwelling units permitted per gross acre;

(3)

Central water supply and/or common sewage disposal facilities may be required by the Planning Board and, if so, shall be provided in accordance with the requirements of the Town of Woodstock and the Ulster County Health Department; and

(4)

A building or recreational facility shall not be located less than 100 feet from any lot line and shall be effectively screened from adjacent properties.

Camp, provided that:

(1)

Minimum lot area shall be 20 acres;

(2)

No tent, activity area or recreational facility shall be closer than 200 feet to any lot line;

(3)

There shall be not more than three tents or cottages per gross acre; and

(4)

Day camp, provided that:

(1)

Minimum lot area shall be five acres;

(2)

No activity area or recreational facility shall be closer than 100 feet to any residential property boundary;

(3)

There shall be not more than eight day campers accommodated per acre of available land area; and

(4)

Water supply and sewage disposal facilities shall satisfy all applicable requirements of the Ulster County Health Department and, to the extent applicable, the water, wastewater and sewer districts within the Town of Woodstock.

Membership club providing private social and recreational facilities, including swimming facilities, and hunting or fishing club, with accessory buildings for administration, operation and clubhouse purposes, provided that:

(1)

Minimum lot area shall be the minimum lot area as noted for the area and bulk regulations for the district in which the club is located;

(2)

Plans for all public address systems and lighting for outdoor recreational facilities shall be submitted to and approved by the Planning Board; and

(3)

Where it is determined that the club may cause a disturbance to neighboring residential properties, the Planning Board may require the standards described in § 260-62I and J of this chapter.

Cemetery and human crematory, provided that:

(1)

No burial or memorial plats or buildings shall be located closer than 50 feet to any residential lot line, except that, when a dense evergreen hedge or wall or landscaped strip not less than six feet in height providing complete visual screening from all adjacent residential property is provided, burial or memorial plots of fewer than six in number may be located as close as 20 feet to any residential lot line; and

(2)

All burials shall be undertaken in strict accordance with applicable regulations of the New York State Department of State and the New York State Department of Health.

Hospital and sanitarium for general medical care and nursing home, provided that:

(1)

Minimum lot area shall be three acres; and

(2)

Maximum structure coverage shall not exceed 15% of lot area.

Public, denominational or private school, including playgrounds and accessory uses required for their operation, provided that:

(1)

No building shall be erected closer than 50 feet to any street or lot line;

(2)

Maximum structure coverage shall not exceed 15% of lot area;

(3)

No open space recreation use or facility shall occur within 50 feet of a residential property boundary; and

(4)

Activities shall be limited to the regularly scheduled classes and recreational activities of the school, unless the standards described in § 260-62I and J of this chapter are fully complied with.

Cultural facility (library, art gallery, museum, etc.), provided that:

(1)

No building or parking area shall be erected closer than 50 feet to any street or lot line in the R8, R5, R3, R1.5 and PRD Districts;

(2)

Maximum structure coverage shall not exceed the allowed maximum in the district; and

(3)

No public assembly activities or activities which produce noise audible on neighboring properties shall be permitted, unless the standards described in § 260-62I and J of this chapter are fully complied with.

Commercial logging, provided that:

(1)

All parcels of five or more acres of forest vegetation, whether on one lot or on two or more contiguous lots to be harvested, shall be subject to a special use permit under these provisions.

(2)

A forest management plan shall be submitted prior to the beginning of any clearing or cutting. This plan shall include information pertaining to the following:

(a)

Land area of parcel to be logged;

(b)

Location of land area on tax maps;

(c)

Approximate existing number of trees;

(d)

Approximate number of trees to be harvested;

(e)

Impact on all streams and waterways on the parcel;

(f)

Site-specific measures for the prevention of erosion and preservation of wildlife habitats;

(g)

Measures for the preservation of aesthetic values of the land;

(h)

Maintenance and/or repair of roads, loading areas and access paths;

(i)

Establishment of buffer zones to mitigate visual impact to roads, nearby elevations and neighboring parcels, and to protect watercourses and wetlands;

(j)

Cleanup and reclamation plans;

(k)

Locations of major skid roads and landing areas; and

(l)

A time schedule for all of the above activities.

(3)

The Planning Board may engage a forestry consultant to examine the commercial logging proposal.

(4)

The Planning Board shall receive and approve a signed contract between the logger and property owner or owners.

(5)

The Planning Board shall require a performance bond or equivalent security to ensure proper cleanup and implementation of the forest management plan. In the case of a bond, the Town of Woodstock shall be named as an additional beneficiary insured. In the case of a security, the Town of Woodstock shall be named as a holder of the security.

(6)

All New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) regulations shall be strictly adhered to by the special use permit holder, and all required stream bank disturbance permits shall be secured and in effect before the commencement of logging.

(7)

An appropriate buffer of trees shall be maintained contiguous to any neighboring lot line or road.

(8)

No operations shall take place between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.

(9)

Clear-cutting is prohibited in the Scenic Overlay (S-O) District and within wetlands, watercourses and their associated buffers.

(10)

Land in the Scenic Overlay is regulated by § 260-66. Land not in the Scenic Overlay is excluded from these special use permit requirements: the harvesting of Christmas trees; the clearing of land for rights-of-way for utilities; reasonable site clearing preparatory to construction of a building for which a building permit has been issued; the clearing and maintenance of land for agricultural purposes; and the harvesting of trees and firewood for the personal use of the property owner not to exceed 20 cords per year.

Contractor's yard, provided that:

(1)

The size of the contractor's yard shall be limited to one acre, including any structures relating to the contractor's yard;

(2)

The owner and operator of the contractor's yard shall reside on the lot upon which the contractor's yard is located or upon an adjoining lot;

(3)

There shall be no commercial sale of equipment, parts, sand, gravel, pipe, aggregate, or any other building supplies, with the exception of building materials and supplies transported by the owner or an employee of the contractor's yard and delivered to a customer as part of his or her contracting business;

(4)

Materials used in association with the contractor's yard may be temporarily stored within the yard and only within the yard;

(5)

No rental of equipment shall occur from the contractor's yard or from the lot on which the contractor's yard is situated or from an adjoining lot; and

(6)

The contractor's yard may be required to be screened. The screening preference shall be dense natural screening or compact evergreen screening with a recommended minimum height of six feet when planted or fencing, the type and height to be determined by the Planning Board.

Hotel or motel development, provided that:

(1)

Minimum residential lot area shown in § 260-16, the Schedule of Area and Bulk Regulations, for the zoning district in which the hotel or motel is proposed to be located shall be increased by 1,500 square feet for each guest room provided.

(2)

Minimum side and rear yard setback requirements shall be 100 feet if such yard abuts property in a residential district (R8, R5, R3, R1.5, HR or PRD).

(3)

Minimum front, side and rear yard setback requirements for off-street parking areas stated in § 260-30B(2) shall be increased to 150 feet if such yard abuts property in a residential district (R8, R5, R3, R1.5, HR or PRD).

(4)

Accessory uses to a hotel or motel development shall be limited to the following:

(a)

Conference, banquet or seminar rooms to accommodate a total of not more than 125 persons;

(b)

Restaurant facilities;

(c)

Swimming pool and racquet courts;

(d)

Small personal service/retail shops fully within the hotel or motel facility and selling newspapers, magazines, tobacco, small gifts and similar items; and

(e)

The hotel or motel service and maintenance facilities.

(5)

Each of the accessory uses, except those referenced in Subsection M(4)(a) above, shall be designed and provided for the exclusive use of those who are lodged at the hotel or motel development, except where the accessory use would be a permitted use or a special permit use within the zoning district in which the hotel or motel development is proposed, in which case all requirements from all sections of this chapter for such use or uses must be met.

(6)

Maximum structure coverage, including all principal and accessory structures, shall not exceed 15% of lot area.

(7)

There shall be not more than 40 guest rooms.

Multifamily dwelling created either through new construction or by conversion of a one- or two-family residence or other structure in existence at the time of adoption of this chapter, provided that

(1)

The number of dwelling units allowed on a lot shall be calculated as follows:

(a)

For lots in the R5, R3 and NC Districts, and for lots in the R1.5, HR and HC Districts without both Town-provided central water and Town-provided common sewer, the minimum lot area per dwelling unit requirement, as provided in § 260-16, the Schedule of Area and Bulk Regulations, column a of Attachment 2 of this chapter, shall apply for the first two units in a multifamily structure. In a two-story structure, each additional dwelling unit shall require 25% of the per-dwelling-unit density. In a single-story structure, each additional dwelling unit shall require 50% of the per-dwelling-unit density.

(b)

For lots with both Town-provided central water and Town-provided common sewer, in the R1.5, HR and HC Districts, four units may be built on a lot meeting the minimum lot area per dwelling unit requirement, provided that all other requirements of this chapter and other applicable laws, rules and regulations are strictly met. For each additional unit after the first four, the requirement shall be 25% of the per-dwelling-unit density.

(2)

No individual multifamily structure shall contain more than eight residential units in the case of two-story apartment buildings, with four units allowed in each floor, nor more than six units in the case of a single-story multifamily structure.

(3)

Adequate common water supply and common sewage disposal facilities shall be provided in full accordance with the requirements of the Town of Woodstock and the Ulster County Health Department.

(4)

Common open space totaling not less than 50% in the R5 and R3 Districts and not less than 25% in the R1.5, HR, HC and NC Districts of the total multifamily development site shall be provided in perpetuity for the use and beneficial enjoyment of all residents within the multifamily development.

(5)

A deeded conservation easement or similar mechanism for the long-term ownership and maintenance of common open space shall be provided, subject to the approval of the Planning Board during the special use permit review process.

(6)

The minimum front, rear and side yards required by § 260-16, the Schedule of Area and Bulk Regulations, for the zoning district in which the development is proposed shall be doubled, that is, increased by 100%, in the R5 and R3 Districts to establish the minimum front, rear and side yards required for the development.

(7)

The Zoning Enforcement Officer shall inspect all the rental dwelling units every three years to ensure that they have been maintained in habitable condition and that there are no violations of this chapter or any other applicable rules and regulations related to multifamily dwelling units.

Class B home occupation conducted either outside or wholly or in part in an accessory building on the residential premises, provided that:

(1)

While vehicles required to conduct the home occupation may be parked on the premises, such shall occur in accordance with the provisions of § 260-30A(3)(a) of this chapter.

(2)

Materials and equipment used in connection with the home occupation may be required to be screened from public rights-of-way and neighboring properties and stored in such a way that they do not pose a nuisance to adjacent property owners and shall not be less than 50 feet from any property boundary, with no such storage permitted in the required front yard. Where required, the screening shall consist of a dense natural screen or other barrier so designed as to form an effective visual screen from the adjoining property.

(3)

No retail or wholesale sales shall take place in any Class B home occupation.

(4)

No general or professional office shall be permitted as a Class B home occupation.

§ 260-64 Personal wireless service facilities.

[Amended 12-13-2022 by L.L. No. 5-2022]

This § 260-64 is intended to repeal and replace all previous versions of, and amendments to, § 260-64 of Chapter 260 of the Zoning Law of the Town of Woodstock, all of which are hereby repealed and replaced in their entirety by this § 260-64 et seq., as of the effective date hereof.

No personal wireless service facility (PWSF) shall be sited, constructed, reconstructed, installed, materially changed or altered, expanded, or used unless in conformity with this section.

Prior to the installation, construction, erection, relocation, substantial expansion, or material alteration of any PWSF the Town shall require a Special Use Permit pursuant to the provisions of this section, which shall be applied for in accordance with the procedure set forth within § 260-68, unless otherwise provided herein below.

The performance of maintenance, routine maintenance, in-kind replacement of components, and/or repairs (as defined herein) to an existing PWSF and/or existing personal wireless service equipment shall not require a Special Use Permit.

Each application for a Special Use Permit under this chapter and each individual PWSF for which an application for a Special Use Permit is submitted shall be considered based upon the individual characteristics of each respective installation at each proposed location as an individual case. In other words, each installation, at each proposed location, shall be reviewed and considered independently for its own characteristics and potential impacts, irrespective of whether the proposed facility is designed and intended to operate independently or whether the installation is designed and/or intended to operate jointly as part of a Distributed Antenna System.

Purpose and legislative intent.

The purpose of this section is to promote the health, safety, and general welfare of the residents of the Town of Woodstock and to preserve the scenic, historical, natural, and man-made character and appearance of the Town while simultaneously providing standards for the safe provision, monitoring, and removal of cell towers and other personal wireless service facilities consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations.

Consistent with the balancing of interests which the United States Congress intended to embed with the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 (hereinafter "the TCA"), § 260-64 is intended to serve as a Smart Planning Provision, designed to achieve the four simultaneous objectives of: a) enabling personal wireless service providers to provide adequate personal wireless services throughout the Town so that Town residents can enjoy the benefits of same, from any FCC-licensed wireless carrier from which they choose to obtain such services, while b) minimizing the number of cell towers and/or other personal wireless service facilities needed to provide such coverage, c) preventing, to the greatest extent reasonably practical, any unnecessary adverse impacts upon the Town's communities, residential areas, and individual homes, and d) complying with all of the legal requirements which the TCA imposes upon the Town, when the Town receives, processes and determines applications seeking approvals for the siting, construction and operation of cell towers and/or other personal wireless service facilities.

The Town seeks to minimize, to the greatest extent possible, any unnecessary adverse impacts caused by the siting, placement, physical size, and/or unnecessary proliferation of, personal wireless service facilities, including, but not limited to, adverse aesthetic impacts, adverse impacts upon property values, adverse impacts upon the character of any surrounding properties and communities, adverse impacts upon historical and/or scenic properties and districts, and the exposure of persons and property to potential dangers such as structural failures, ice fall, debris fall, and fire.

The Town also seeks to ensure that, in applying this section, the Planning Board is vested with sufficient authority to require applicants to provide sufficient, accurate, and truthful probative evidence, to enable the Board to render factual determinations consistent with both the provisions set forth herein below and the requirements of the TCA when rendering decisions upon such applications.

To achieve the objectives stated herein, the Town seeks to employ the "General Authority" preserved to it under 47 U.S.C.A. § 332(c)(7)(A) of the TCA to the greatest extent which the United States Congress intended to preserve those powers to the Town, while simultaneously complying with each of the substantive and procedural requirements set forth within the subsection 47 U.S.C.A. § 332(c)(7)(B) of the TCA.

Definitions; word usage.

For purposes of this section, and where not inconsistent with the context of a particular section, the defined terms, phrases, words, abbreviations, and their derivations, shall have the meaning given in this section. When not inconsistent with the context, words in the present tense include the future tense, words used in the plural number include words in the singular number, and words in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory. The definitions set forth herein shall supersede any definitions set forth within the Zoning Law, and the definitions set forth herein below shall control and apply to § 260-64 and all subparagraphs herein.

ACCESSORY FACILITY or ACCESSORY STRUCTURE

A facility or structure serving or being used in conjunction with a personal wireless services facility or complex and located on the same property or lot as the personal wireless services facility or complex, or an immediately adjacent lot including, but not limited to, utility or transmission equipment storage sheds or cabinets.

ACHP

The federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

ADEQUATE COVERAGE

As determined by the Planning Board, adequate coverage means that a specific wireless carrier's personal wireless service coverage is such that the vast majority of its customers can successfully use the carrier's personal wireless service the vast majority of the time, in the vast majority of the geographic locations within the Town, that the success rate of using their devices exceeds 97%, and that any geographic gaps in a carrier's gaps in personal wireless services are not significant gaps, based upon such factors including, but not limited to, lack of significant physical size of the gap, whether the gap is located upon a lightly traveled or lightly occupied area, whether only a small number of customers are affected by the gap, and/or whether or not the carrier's customers are affected for only limited periods of time. A wireless carrier's coverage shall not be deemed inadequate simply because the frequency or frequencies at which its customers are using its services are not the most preferred frequency of the wireless carrier.

ANTENNA

An apparatus designed for the purpose of emitting radiofrequency (RF) radiation, to be operated or operating from a fixed location, for the provision of personal wireless service.

APPLICANT

Any individual, corporation, limited liability company, general partnership, limited partnership, estate, trust, joint-stock company, association of two or more persons having a joint common interest, or any other entity submitting an application for a Special Use Permit, site plan approval, variance, building permit, and/or any other related approval, for the installation, operation and/or maintaining of one or more personal wireless service facilities.

APPLICATION

Refers to all necessary and required documentation and evidence that an applicant must submit to receive a Special Use Permit, building permit, or other approval for personal wireless service facilities from the Town.

BOARD

The Planning Board of the Town of Woodstock.

CELL TOWER

A free-standing, guy-wired, or otherwise supported pole, tower, or other structure designed to support or employed to support, equipment and/or antennas used to provide personal wireless services, including, but not limited to, a pole, monopole, monopine, slim stick, lattice tower or other types of standing structures.

CEQ

The Council on Environmental Quality was established under NEPA.

CFR

The Code of Federal Regulations.

COLOCATION and/or CO-LOCATE

To install, mount or add new or additional equipment to be used for the provision of personal wireless services to a pre-existing structure, facility, or complex which is already built and is currently being used to provide personal wireless services, by a different provider of such services, wireless carrier or site developer.

COMPLETE APPLICATION, COMPLETED APPLICATION

An application that contains all the necessary and required information, records, evidence, reports, and/or data necessary to enable an informed decision to be made with respect to an application. Where any information is provided pursuant to the terms of this Article and the Building Inspector or the Town's expert or consultant or the Board determines, based upon information provided, that any additional, further or clarifying information is needed as to one or more aspects, then the application will be deemed incomplete until that further or clarifying information is provided to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector, Planning Board or the Town's expert or consultant or the Board.

COMPLEX

The entire site or facility, including all structures and equipment, located at the site.

DBM (dBm)

DBM stands for decibel milliwatts, which is a concrete measurement of the wireless signal strength of wireless networks. Signal strengths are recorded in negative numbers and can range from approximately -30 dBm to 110 dBm. The closer the number is to 0, the stronger the cell signal.

DEPLOYMENT

The placement, construction, or substantial modification of a personal wireless service facility.

DISTRIBUTED ANTENNA SYSTEM, DAS

A network of spatially separated antenna nodes connected to a common source via a transport medium that provides personal wireless service within a geographic area.

EFFECTIVE PROHIBITION

A finding by the Planning Board that, based upon an applicant's submission of sufficient probative, relevant, and sufficiently reliable evidence, and the appropriate weight which the Board deems appropriate to afford same, an applicant has established that an identified wireless carrier does not have adequate coverage as defined hereinabove, but suffers from a significant gap in its personal wireless services within the Town and that a proposed installation by that applicant would be the least intrusive means of remedying that gap, such that a denial of the application to install such facility would effectively prohibit the carrier from providing personal wireless services within the Town. Any determination of whether an applicant has established, or failed to establish, both the existence of a significant gap and whether its proposed installation is the least intrusive means of remedying such gap, shall be based upon substantial evidence, as is hereinafter defined.

ELEVENTH HOUR SUBMISSIONS

An applicant's submission of new and/or additional materials in support of an application within 48 hours of the expiration of an applicable shot clock, or at an otherwise unreasonably short period of time before the expiration of the shot clock, making it impracticable for the Planning Board to adequately review and consider such submissions due to their complexity, volume, or other factors, before the expiration of the shot clock.

ENURE

To operate or take effect. To serve to the use, benefit, or advantage of a person or party.

EPA

The United States Environmental Protection Agency.

FAA

The Federal Aviation Administration, or its duly designated and authorized successor agency.

FACILITY

A set of wireless transmitting and/or receiving equipment, including any associated electronics and electronics shelter or cabinet and generator.

FCC

The Federal Communications Commission.

GENERAL POPULATION/UNCONTROLLED EXPOSURE LIMITS

The applicable radiofrequency radiation exposure limits set forth within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1), Table 1 Section (ii), made applicable pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(3).

HEIGHT

When referring to a tower, personal wireless service facility, or personal wireless service facility structure, the height shall mean the distance measured from the pre-existing grade level to the highest point on the tower, facility, or structure, including, but not limited to, any accessory, fitting, fitment, extension, addition, add-on, antenna, whip antenna, lightning rod or other types of lightning-protection devices attached to the top of the structure.

HISTORIC STRUCTURE

Any structure that is either listed on the National Register of Historic Places, or is eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places under 36 CFR § 63.1.

ILLEGALLY EXCESSIVE RF RADIATION or ILLEGALLY EXCESSIVE RADIATION

RF radiation emissions at levels that exceed the legally permissible limits set forth within 47 CFR 1.1310(e)(1), Table 1 Sections (i) and (ii), as made applicable pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(3).

IN-KIND REPLACEMENT

The replacement of a malfunctioning component(s) with a properly functioning component of substantially the same weight, dimensions, and outward appearance.

MACROCELL

A cellular base station that typically sends and receives radio signals from large towers and antennas. These include traditionally recognized cell towers, which typically range from 50 to 199 feet in height.

MAINTENANCE or ROUTINE MAINTENANCE

Plumbing, electrical or mechanical work that may require a building permit but that does not constitute a modification to the personal wireless service facility. It is work necessary to assure that a wireless facility and/or telecommunications structure exists and operates: reliably and in a safe manner, presents no threat to persons or property, and remains compliant with the provisions of this chapter and FCC requirements.

NECESSARY or NECESSITY or NEED

What is technologically required for the equipment to function as designed by the manufacturer, and that anything less will result in prohibiting the provision of service as intended and described in the narrative of the application. "Necessary" or "need" does not mean what may be desired, preferred, or the most cost-efficient approach and is not related to an applicant's specific chosen design standards. Any situation involving a workable choice between or among alternatives or options is not a need or a necessity.

NEPA

The National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq.

NHPA

The National Historic Preservation Act, 54 U.S.C. 300101 et seq., and 36 CFR Part 800 et seq.

NODE, DAS NODE

A fixed antenna and related equipment installation that operates as part of a system of spatially separated antennas, all of which are connected through a medium through which they work collectively to provide personal wireless services, as opposed to other types of personal wireless facilities, such as macrocells, which operate independently.

NOTICE ADDRESS

An address, which is required to be provided by an applicant at the time it submits an application for a Special Use Permit, at which the Town, Planning Board and/or Building Inspector can mail notice, and the mailing of any notice to such address by first-class mail shall constitute sufficient notice to any and all applicants, co-applicants, and/or their attorneys, to satisfy any notice requirements under this chapter, as well as any notice requirements of any other local, state and/or federal law.

NOTICE OF EFFECTIVE PROHIBITION CONDITIONS

A written notice which is required to be provided to the Town at the time of the filing of any application, by all applicants seeking any approval, of any type, for the siting, installation and/or construction of a PWSF, wherein the respective applicant asserts, claims or intends to assert or claim, that a denial of their respective application, by any agent, employee, board or body of the Town, would constitute an "effective prohibition" within the meaning of the TCA, and concomitantly, that a denial of their respective application or request would violate 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(B)(i)(II) of the TCA.

NOTICE OF INCOMPLETENESS, NOTICE OF INCOMPLETE APPLICATION

A written notice, mailed by first class mail, to an applicant seeking an approval for the installation of a PWEF, wherein the sender advises the applicant that its application is either incomplete, the wrong type of application, or is otherwise defective, and setting for the reason or reasons why the application is incomplete and/or defective.

OCCUPATIONAL/CONTROLLED EXPOSURE LIMITS

The applicable radiofrequency radiation exposure limits set forth within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1), Table 1 Section (i), made applicable pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(2).

PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICE FACILITY, PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICES FACILITY or PWSF

A facility or facilities used for the provision of personal wireless services, within the meaning of 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(c)(ii). It means a specific location at which a structure that is designed or intended to be used to house or accommodate antennas or other transmitting or receiving equipment is located. This includes, without limitation, towers of all types and all kinds of support structures, including but not limited to buildings, church steeples, silos, water towers, signs, utility poles, or any other structure that is used or is proposed to be used as a telecommunications structure for the placement, installation and/or attachment of antennas or the functional equivalent of such. It expressly includes all related facilities and equipment such as cabling, radios and other electronic equipment, equipment shelters and enclosures, cabinets, and other structures enabling the complex to provide personal wireless services.

PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICE/PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICES

Commercial mobile services, unlicensed wireless services, and common carrier wireless exchange access services, within the meaning of 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(c)(i), and as defined therein.

PROBATIVE EVIDENCE

Evidence which tends to prove facts, and the more a piece of evidence or testimony proves a fact, the greater its probative value, as shall be determined by the Planning Board, as the finder- of-fact in determining whether to grant or deny applications for Special Use Permits under this provision of the Town Code.

REPAIRS

The replacement or repair of any components of a wireless facility or complex where the replacement is substantially identical to the component or components being replaced, or for any matters that involve the normal repair and maintenance of a wireless facility or complex without the addition, removal, or change of any of the physical or visually discernible components or aspects of a wireless facility or complex that will impose new visible intrusions of the facility or complex as originally permitted.

Radiofrequency.

RF RADIATION

Radiofrequency radiation, that being electromagnetic radiation which is a combination of electric and magnetic fields that move through space as waves, and which can include both Non-Ionizing radiation and Ionizing radiation.

SECTION 106 REVIEW

A review under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.

SEQRA

The New York State Environmental Quality Review Act, 6 NYCRR Part 617 et seq.

SETBACK

For purposes of Special Use Permit applications, a setback shall mean the distance between a) any portion of a personal wireless facility and/or complex, including but not limited to any and all accessory facilities and/or structures, and b) the exterior line of any parcel of real property or part thereof which is owned by, or leased by, an applicant seeking a Special Use Permit to construct or install a personal wireless facility upon such real property or portion thereof. In the event that an applicant leases only a portion of real property owned by a landlord, the setback shall be measured from the facility to the line of that portion of the real property which is actually leased by the applicant, as opposed to the exterior lot line of the non-leased portion of the property owned by the landlord.

SHOT CLOCK

The applicable period which is presumed to be a reasonable period within which the Town is generally required to issue a final decision upon an application seeking Special Use Permit approval for the installation or substantial modification of a personal wireless services facility or structure, to comply with 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(B)(ii) of the TCA.

SHPO

The New York State Historic Preservation Office

SITE DEVELOPER or SITE DEVELOPERS

Individuals and/or entities engaged in the business of constructing wireless facilities and wireless facility infrastructure and leasing space and/or capacity upon, or use of, their facilities and/or infrastructure to wireless carriers. Unlike wireless carriers, site developers generally do not provide personal wireless services to end-use consumers.

SMALL CELL

A fixed cellular base station that typically sends and receives radio signals and which are mounted upon poles or support structures at substantially lower elevations than macrocell facilities.

SMALL WIRELESS FACILITY (SWF)

A personal wireless service facility that meets all of the following criteria:

(1)

The facility does not extend the height of an existing structure to a total cumulative height of more than 50 feet, from ground level to the top of the structure and any equipment affixed thereto;

(2)

Each antenna associated with the deployment is no more than three cubic feet in volume;

(3)

All wireless equipment associated with the facility, including any pre-existing equipment and any proposed new equipment, cumulatively total no more than 28 cubic feet in volume;

(4)

The facility is not located on tribal land; and

(5)

The facility will not result in human exposure to radiofrequency radiation in excess of the applicable FCC safety standards set forth within Table 1 of 47 CFR § 1.1310(E)(1).

Note that Strand Mounted antennae that meet these criteria are included in this definition of Small Wireless Facility.

SPECIAL USE PERMIT

The official document or permit granted by the Planning Board pursuant to which an applicant is allowed to file for and obtain a building permit to construct and use a personal wireless services facility, personal wireless service equipment, and/or any associated structures and/or equipment which are used to house, or be a part of, any such facility or complex, or to be used to provide personal wireless services.

STATE

The State of New York.

STEALTH or STEALTH TECHNOLOGY

A design or treatment that minimizes adverse aesthetic and visual impacts on the land, property, buildings, and other facilities adjacent to, surrounding, and generally in the same area as the requested location of such personal wireless service facilities. This shall mean building the least visually and physically intrusive facility and complex under the facts and circumstances.

STRAND MOUNTED ANTENNA or STRAND MOUNTED SMALL CELLS

Small wireless antenna(s) and equipment attached directly to the wire, that is, the metal strand, hanging between two utility poles. These are similar in size to cable operator's equipment that is placed on their aerial fiber.

STRUCTURE

A pole, tower, base station, or other building, physical support of any form used for, or to be used for, the provision of personal wireless service.

SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE

Substantial Evidence means such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion. It means less than a preponderance but more than a scintilla of evidence.

TCA

The Telecommunications Act of 1996, 47 U.S.C. § 332(c).

TOLLING or TOLLED

The pausing of the running of the time period permitted under the applicable shot clock for the respective Type of application for a personal wireless services facility. Where a shot clock is tolled because an application has been deemed incomplete and timely notice of incompleteness was mailed to the applicant, the submission of additional materials by the applicant to complete the application will end the tolling, thus causing the shot clock period to resume running, as opposed to causing the shot clock to begin running anew, unless the filing of additional material(s) causes the shot clock to be reset and begin running anew, as for Type III applications.

TOWER, TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER

Any structure designed primarily to support one or more antennas and/or equipment used or designed for receiving and/or transmitting a wireless signal.

TOWN

The Incorporated Town of Woodstock.

TOWN CODE

The Code of the Town of Woodstock, as the term has been codified in Article I, § 1-1.

UNDERTAKING

Any application for a Special Use Permit seeking Board approval for the installation of a personal wireless services facility licensed under the authority of the FCC shall constitute an undertaking within the meaning of NEPA, in accord with 42 CFR § 137.289 and 36 CFR § 800.16.

WIRELESS CARRIERS or CARRIER

Companies that provide Personal Wireless Services to end-use consumers.

ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS

The Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Woodstock, established pursuant to Article VI, § 82-19.

ZONING LAW, A/K/A THE ZONING ORDINANCE

The Zoning Law of the Town of Woodstock, Ulster County, New York, as entitled under Article I, § 260-1.

Application types.

There shall be four specific types of applications for Special Use Permits under this section, which shall include Type I, Type II, Type III, and Type IV applications. It shall be the obligation of any applicant to explicitly and correctly identify which type of application they are filing.

(1)

Type I applications: colocations of small wireless facilities.

Type I applications shall be limited to applications wherein an applicant seeks to co-locate a new small wireless facility, as defined in this chapter, by installing new personal wireless service equipment upon an already existing small personal wireless services facility structure.

If the completed facility would still meet the physical limits and requirements to meet the definition of a small wireless facility after the installation of the new equipment, then the application to install such new equipment is a Type I application.

Type I applications for co-location of a small wireless facility in all zoning districts delineated in § 260-7 of the zoning law shall require an applicant to obtain a Special Use Permit, and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

(2)

Type II applications: co-locations which do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility.

Type II applications shall be limited to applications wherein an applicant is seeking to co-locate new personal wireless service equipment by installing such new wireless equipment upon an already existing personal wireless services facility structure, tower, or complex, which does not meet the definition of a small wireless facility or which will not meet the definition of a small wireless facility if and when the proposed new personal wireless service equipment is installed upon the existing facility and/or structure.

Type II applications for co-location of a wireless facility in all zoning districts delineated in § 260-7 of the zoning law shall require an applicant to obtain a Special Use Permit, and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

(3)

Type III applications: new small wireless facilities.

Type III applications shall be limited to applications seeking to install and/or construct a new small wireless facility as defined in § 260-64B hereinabove.

Type III applications shall require applicants to obtain a Special Use Permit and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

(4)

Type IV applications: new towers and all other wireless facilities.

Type IV applications shall include applications for the installation of a new telecommunications tower, personal wireless service facility, complex, structure, or equipment, which does not meet the criteria for Type I, Type II, or Type III applications.

Type IV applications shall require applicants to obtain a Special Use Permit and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

Shot clock periods.

To comply with the requirements of 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(7)(B)(ii) of the TCA, the following shot clock periods set forth herein below shall be presumed to be reasonable periods within which the Planning Board shall render determinations upon Special Use Permit applications for personal wireless service facilities.

The Planning Board shall render determinations upon such applications within the periods set forth hereinbelow, unless the applicable shot clock period listed below is tolled, extended by agreement or the processing of the application is delayed due to circumstances beyond the Board and/or Town's controls, as addressed within subsections § 260-64O, P, Q, and R herein below.

Table of Days Allowed for Response to Applicant — Details Follow
Respond to Applicant With:	Shot Clock Starts When:	Response Provided By:	Type I: Colocate SWF	Type II: Colocate Non-SWF	Type III: New SWF	Type IV: New Non-SWF
Notice of Incompleteness of Application	Application Received by the Town	Building Inspector	10 days	30 days	10 days	30 days
Notice of Incompleteness of Additional Materials	Additional Materials Received by the Town	Building Inspector	10 days	10 days	10 days	10 days
When missing required materials are provided by the Applicant, the Shot Clock:			Resumes	Resumes	Runs Anew	Resumes
Written Decision	Application Received by the Town	Planning Board	60 days	90 days	90 days	150 days
			Shot Clock

(1)

Type I applications: colocations of small wireless facilities 60 days.

Unless extended by agreement, tolled, or subject to reasonable delays, the Planning Board shall issue a written decision upon a Type I application within 60 days from the date when the Town receives a Type I application.

Upon receipt of a Type I application, the Building Inspector shall review the application for completeness. If the Building Inspector determines the application is: a) incomplete, b) missing required application materials, c) is the wrong type of application, or d) is otherwise defective, then, within 10 days of the Town's receipt of the application, the Building Inspector, or his/her or their designee, shall mail the applicant a Notice of Incompleteness by first class mail, to the Notice Address provided by the applicant.

Within such Notice of Incompleteness, the Building Inspector shall advise the applicant, with reasonable clarity, the defects within its application, including a description of such matters as what items are missing from the application and/or why the application is incomplete and/or defective.

The mailing of a Notice of Incomplete Application by the Building Inspector shall toll the 60-day shot clock, which shall not thereafter resume running unless and until the applicant tenders an additional submission to the Building Inspector to remedy the issues the Building Inspector identified in the Notice of Incomplete Application, which he/she or they had mailed to the applicant.

The receipt by the Building Inspector of any responsive materials from the applicant shall automatically cause the shot clock period to resume running.

If upon receipt of any additional materials from the applicant, the Building Inspector determines that the application is still incomplete and/or defective, then the Building Inspector shall, once again, mail a Notice of Incompleteness within 10 days of the applicant having filed its supplemental or corrected materials to the Town and the shot clock shall once again be tolled, and the same procedure provided for hereinabove shall be repeated.

(2)

Type II applications: colocations on existing towers, structures or other facilities which do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility. Ninety days.

Unless extended by agreement, tolled, or subject to reasonable delays, the Planning Board shall issue a written decision upon a Type II application within 90 days from the date when the Town receives a Type II application.

Upon receipt of a Type II application, the Building Inspector shall review the application for completeness. If the Building Inspector determines the application is: a) incomplete, b) missing required application materials, c) is the wrong type of application, or d) is otherwise defective, then, within 30 days of the Town's receipt of the application, the Building Inspector, or his/her or their designee, shall mail the applicant a Notice of Incompleteness by first class mail, to the Notice Address provided by the applicant.

Within such Notice of Incompleteness, the Building Inspector shall advise the applicant, with reasonable clarity of the defects within its application, including a description of such matters as what items are missing from the application and/or why the application is incomplete and/or defective.

The mailing of a Notice of Incomplete Application by the Building Inspector shall toll the 90-day shot clock, which shall not thereafter resume running unless and until the applicant tenders an additional submission to the Building Inspector to remedy the issues the Building Inspector identified in the Notice of Incomplete Application, which he/she or they had mailed to the applicant.

The receipt by the Building Inspector of any responsive materials from the applicant shall automatically cause the shot clock period to resume running.

If upon receipt of any additional materials from the applicant, the Building Inspector determines that the application is still incomplete and/or defective, then the Building Inspector shall, once again, mail a Notice of Incompleteness within 10 days of the applicant having filed its supplemental or corrected materials to the Town. The shot clock shall once again be tolled, and the same procedure provided hereinabove shall be repeated.

(3)

Type III applications: new small wireless facilities: 90 days.

Unless extended by agreement, tolled, or subject to reasonable delays, the Planning Board shall issue a written decision upon a Type III application within 90 days from the date when the Town receives a Type III application.

Upon receipt of a Type III application, the Building Inspector shall review the application for completeness. If the Building Inspector determines the application is: a) incomplete, b) missing required application materials, c) is the wrong type of application, or d) is otherwise defective, then, within 10 days of the Town's receipt of the application, the Building Inspector, or his/her or their designee, shall mail the applicant a Notice of Incompleteness by first class mail, to the Notice Address which the applicant has provided.

The mailing of a Notice of Incomplete Application by the Building Inspector shall reset the 90-day shot clock, which shall start running anew, if and when the applicant tenders an additional submission to the Building Inspector to remedy the issues the Building Inspector identified in the Notice of Incomplete Application, which he/she or they had mailed to the applicant.

If upon receipt of any additional materials from the applicant, the Building Inspector determines that the application is still incomplete and/or defective, then the Building Inspector shall, once again, mail a Notice of Incompleteness within 10 days of the applicant having filed its supplemental or corrected materials to the Town and the shot clock shall be tolled, and the same procedure provided for hereinabove shall be repeated.

(4)

Type IV applications: new towers and all other wireless facilities: 150 days.

Unless extended by agreement, tolled, or subject to reasonable delays, the Planning Board shall issue a written decision upon a Type IV application within 150 days from the date when the Town receives a Type IV application.

Upon receipt of a Type IV application, the Building Inspector shall review the application for completeness. If the Building Inspector determines the application is: a) incomplete, b) missing required application materials, c) is the wrong type of application, or d) is otherwise defective, then, within 30 days of the Town's receipt of the application, the Building Inspector, or his/her or their designee, shall mail the applicant a Notice of Incompleteness by first class mail, to the Notice Address provided by the applicant.

The mailing of a Notice of Incomplete Application by the Building Inspector shall toll the 150-day shot clock, which shall not thereafter resume running unless and until the applicant tenders an additional submission to the Building Inspector to remedy the issues the Building Inspector identified in the Notice of Incomplete Application, which he/she or they had mailed to the applicant.

The receipt by the Building Inspector of any responsive materials from the applicant shall automatically cause the shot clock period to resume running.

Shot clock tolls, extensions & reasonable delay periods.

Consistent with the letter and intent of 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(B)(ii) of the TCA, each of the shot clock periods set forth within § 260-64D hereinabove shall generally be presumed to be sufficient periods within which the Planning Board shall render decisions upon Special Use Permit applications.

Notwithstanding same, the applicable shot clock periods may be tolled, extended by mutual agreement between any applicant and/or its representative and the Planning Board, and the Planning Board shall not be required to render its determination within the shot clock period presumed to be reasonable for each type of application, where the processing of such application is reasonably delayed, as described hereinbelow.

(1)

Tolling of the applicable shot clock due to incompleteness and/or applicant error.

As provided for within § 260-64D hereinabove, in the event that the Building Inspector deems an application incomplete, the Building Inspector shall send a Notice of Incompleteness to the applicant to notify the applicant that its application is incomplete and/or contains material errors and shall reasonably identify the missing information and/or documents and/or the error(s) in the application.

If the Building Inspector mails a Notice of Incompleteness as described hereinabove, the applicable shot clock shall automatically be tolled, meaning that the applicable shot clock period within which the Planning Board is required to render a final decision upon the application shall immediately cease running, and shall not resume running or start running anew, unless and until the Town receives a responsive submission from the applicant.

If and when the applicant thereafter submits additional information in an effort to complete its application, or cure any identified defect(s), then the shot clock shall automatically resume running once the additional information is received by the Town, but shall not be deemed to start running anew, except for Type III applications for new SWFs. For these Type III applications, the rejection of an application as incomplete or defective, and subsequent filing of information by an applicant to complete the application, or to cure any defect, shall cause the shot clock to run anew from the date of the filing of the new or correct information.

The applicable shot clock period shall, once again, be tolled if the Building Inspector thereafter provides a second notice that the application is still incomplete or defective, despite any additional submissions which have been received by the Town, from the applicant, up to that point.

(2)

Shot clock extension by mutual agreement.

The Planning Board, in its sole discretion, shall be free to extend any applicable shot clock period by mutual agreement with any respective applicant. This discretion on the part of the Board shall include the Board's authority to request, at any time, and for any period of time the Planning Board may deem reasonable or appropriate under the circumstances, consent from a respective applicant, to extend the applicable shot clock period, to enable the Board, the applicant, or any relevant third party, to complete any type of Undertaking or task related to the review, analysis, processing, and determination of the particular application, which is then pending before the Board, to the extent that any such Undertaking, task, or review is consistent with, or reasonably related to, compliance with any federal, state, or local law, and/or the requirements of any provision of the Town Code, including but not limited to this Article.

In response to any request by the Board, the applicant, by its principal, agent, attorney, site acquisition agent, or other authorized representative can consent to any extension of any applicable shot clock, by affirmatively indicating its consent either in writing or by affirmatively indicating its consent on the record at any public hearing or public meeting. The Planning Board shall be permitted to reasonably rely upon a representative of the applicant indicating that they are authorized to grant such consent on behalf of the respective applicant, on whose behalf they have been addressing the Board within the hearing process.

(3)

Reasonable delay extensions of shot clock periods.

The Town recognizes that there may be situations wherein, due to circumstances beyond the control of the Town and/or the Planning Board, the review and issuance of a final decision upon a Special Use Permit application for a personal wireless facility cannot reasonably be completed within the application shot clock periods delineated within § 260-64D hereinabove.

If, despite the exercise of due diligence by the Town and the Planning Board, the determination regarding a specific application cannot reasonably be completed within the applicable shot clock period, the Board shall be permitted to continue and complete its review, and issue its determination at a date beyond the expiration of the applicable period, if the delay of such final decision is due to circumstances including, but not limited to, those enumerated hereinbelow, each of which shall serve as a reasonable basis for a reasonable delay of the applicable shot clock period.

Reasonable delays which may constitute proper grounds for extending the presumed sufficient periods for rendering determinations under the applicable shot clock periods may include, but are not necessarily limited to, those set forth within § 260-64O, P, Q, and R herein below.

Application requirements.

Applications for Special Use Permits under this section shall be made to the Building Inspector, who shall initially determine whether or not the application is complete and/or free of defects upon receipt of the same.

If the Building Inspector determines that the application is defective or incomplete, they shall promptly mail a Notice of Incompleteness to the applicant, in accord with § 260-64D to toll the applicable shot clock, to ensure that the Town and the Planning Board are afforded sufficient time to review and determine each respective application.

Each application shall include the following materials, the absence of any one of which listed hereinbelow, shall render the respective application incomplete:

(1)

Special use permit and site plan applications.

Completed applications for a Special Use Permit and site plan that shall identify all applicants, co-applicants, site developer(s), and wireless carrier(s) on whose behalf the application is being submitted, as well as the property owner of the proposed site.

(2)

Filing fees.

The appropriate filing fees then being charged by the Town for applications for Special Use Permit applications and other related applications.

(3)

A "Notice Address".

A "Notice Address," that being a specific address to which the Town, Planning Board, and/or Building Inspector may mail any type of notice, and that the mailing of same to such address shall constitute sufficient notice to any applicant, co-applicant, and/or their attorney, to comply with any requirement under this section as well as any local, state and/or federal law.

(4)

Proof of authorization for site occupancy.

Where an applicant is not the owner of the real property upon which it seeks to install its equipment or facility, they shall submit proof of authorization to occupy the site at issue. If the applicant is leasing all or a portion of real property upon which it intends to install its new facility or equipment, then the applicant shall provide a written copy of its lease with the owner of such property. The applicant may redact any financial terms contained within the lease, but it shall not redact any portion of the lease which details the amount of area leased nor the specific portion of the real property to which the applicant has obtained the right to occupy, access, or preclude others from entering.

Where an applicant is seeking to Co-Locate new equipment into an existing facility, it shall provide a copy of its written co-location agreement with the owner of such pre-existing facility, from which it may redact any financial terms.

(5)

A Drawn-to-scale depiction.

The applicant shall submit drawn-to-scale depictions of its proposed wireless support structure and all associated equipment to be mounted thereon, or to be installed as part of such facility, which shall clearly and concisely depict all equipment and the measurements of same, to enable the Building Inspector to ascertain whether the proposed facility would qualify as a small wireless facility as defined under this Article.

If the applicant claims that its proposed installation qualifies as a small wireless facility within this Article, the drawn-to-scale depiction shall include complete calculations for all of the antennas and equipment of which the facility will be comprised, depicting that, when completed, the installation and equipment will meet the physical size limitations which enable the facility to qualify as a small wireless facility.

(6)

Site plan.

The applicant shall submit a site plan and site plan application in accordance with Article VII of the Town Code. The site plan shall show all existing and proposed structures and improvements, including antennas, roads, buildings, guy wires and anchors, parking, and landscaping, and shall include grading plans for new Facilities and roads. Any methods used to conceal the modification of the existing facility shall be indicated on the site plan.

(7)

Engineer's report.

For the construction of all new wireless facilities, the applicant shall provide an engineer's report certifying the integrity and safety of all proposed new towers and/or structures.

To the extent that an application proposes the co-location of new equipment onto an existing tower or facility, the applicant shall provide an engineer's report 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.

(8)

Environmental assessment form.

A completed environmental assessment form (EAF) and a completed visual EAF addendum.

(9)

Visual impact analysis.

A completed visual impact analysis, which, at a minimum, shall include the following:

(a)

Small wireless facilities. For applications seeking approval for the installation of a small wireless facility, the applicant shall provide a visual impact analysis which shall include photographic images taken from the perspectives of the properties situated in closest proximity to the location being proposed for the siting of the facility, as well as those properties which would reasonably be expected to sustain the most significant adverse aesthetic impacts due to such factors as their close proximity to the site, their elevation relative to the site, the existence or absence of a "clear line of sight" between the tower location and their location.

(b)

Telecommunications Towers and Personal Wireless Service Facilities which do not meet the definition of a Small Wireless Facility.

For applications seeking approval for the installation of a telecommunications tower or a personal wireless service facility that does not meet the definition of a small wireless facility, the applicant shall provide:

[1]

A "Zone of Visibility Map" to determine locations from where the new facility will be seen.

[2]

A visual impact analysis which shall include photographic images taken from the perspectives of the properties situated in closest proximity to the location being proposed for the siting of the facility, as well as those properties which would reasonably be expected to sustain the most significant adverse aesthetic impacts due to such factors as their close proximity to the site, their elevation relative to the site, the existence or absence of a "clear line of sight" between the tower location and their location.

The photographic images shall depict the height at which the proposed facility shall stand when completed, including all portions and proposed attachments to the facility, including, but not limited to, the main support structure, all antennas, transmitters, whip antennas, lightning rods, t-bars, crossbars, and cantilever attachments which shall, in whole or in part, be affixed to it, any and all surrounding equipment compound(s), fencing, cellular equipment cabinets, transformers, transformer vaults and/or cabinets, sector distribution boxes, ice bridges, backup generators, including but not limited to equipment boxes, switch boxes, backup generators, ice bridges, etc., to the extent that any of such compound and/or equipment will be visible from properties other than the property upon which the proposed tower and compound are to be installed.

The visual impact analysis shall include an assessment of alternative designs and color schemes, as well as an assessment of the visual impact of the proposed facility, taking into consideration any supporting structure which is to be constructed, as well as its base, guy wires, accessory structures, buildings, and overhead utility lines from abutting properties and streets.

(10)

Alternative site analysis.

A completed alternative site analysis of all potential less intrusive alternative sites which the applicant has considered, setting forth their respective locations, elevations, and suitability or unsuitability for remedying whatever specific wireless coverage needs the respective applicant or a specific Wireless Carrier is seeking to remedy by the installation of the new facility which is the subject of the respective application for a Special Use Permit.

If, and to the extent that an applicant claims that a particular alternative site is unavailable, in that the owner of an alternative site is unwilling or unable to accommodate a wireless facility upon such potential alternative site, the applicant shall provide probative evidence of such unavailability, whether in the form of communications or such other form of evidence that reasonably establishes same.

The alternative site analysis shall contain:

(a)

An inventory of all existing tall structures and existing or approved communications towers within a two-mile radius of the proposed site.

(b)

A map showing the exact location of each site inventoried, including latitude and longitude (degrees, minutes, seconds), ground elevation above sea level, the height of the structure and/or tower, and accessory buildings on the site of the inventoried location.

(c)

An outline of opportunities for shared use of an existing wireless facility as opposed to the installation of an entirely new facility.

(d)

A demonstration of good-faith efforts to secure shared use from the owner of each potential existing tall structure and existing or approved communications tower, as well as documentation of the physical, technical, and/or financial reasons why shared usage is not practical in each case.

(11)

FCC compliance report.

An FCC compliance report, prepared by a licensed engineer, and certified under penalties of perjury, that the content thereof is true and accurate, wherein the licensed engineer shall certify that the proposed facility will be FCC compliant as of the time of its installation, meaning that the facility will not expose members of the general public to radiation levels that exceed the permissible radiation limits which the FCC has set.

The Town of Woodstock, at its own discretion, may hire a licensed engineer to cross check the FCC Compliance Report, with the cost borne by the applicant.

If it is anticipated that more than one carrier and/or user is to install transmitters into the facility that the FCC compliance report shall take into account anticipated exposure from all users on the facility and shall indicate whether or not the combined exposure levels will, or will not exceed the permissible General Population Exposure Limits, or alternatively, the Occupational Exposure Limits, where applicable.

Such FCC Compliance Report shall provide the calculation or calculations with which the engineer determined the levels of RF radiation and/or emissions to which the facility will expose members of the general public.

On the cover page of the report, the report shall explicitly specify: a) Whether the applicant and their engineer are claiming that the appliable FCC limits based upon which they are claiming FCC compliance are the General Population Exposure Limits or the Occupational Exposure Limits. If the applicant and/or their engineer are asserting that the Occupational Exposure Limits apply to the proposed installation, they shall detail a factual basis as to why they claim that the higher set of limits is applicable, b) The exact minimum distance factor, measured in feet, which the applicant's engineer used to calculate the level of radiation emissions to which the proposed facility will expose members of the general public. The minimum distance factor is the closest distance (i.e., the minimum distance) to which a member of the general public shall be able to gain access to the transmitting antennas mounted upon, or which shall be a part of, the proposed facility.

(12)

FCC license.

A copy of any applicable Federal Communications Commission license possessed by any carrier named as an applicant, co-applicant, or whose equipment is proposed for installation as of the time the application is being filed with the Town.

(13)

Effective prohibition claims.

The Town is aware that applicants seeking approvals for the installation of new wireless Facilities often assert that federal law, and more specifically the TCA, prohibits the local government from denying their respective applications.

In doing so, they assert that their desired facility is "necessary" to remedy one or more significant gaps in a carrier's personal wireless service, and they proffer computer-generated propagation maps to establish the existence of such purported gaps.

The Town is additionally aware that, in August 2020, driven by a concern that propagation maps created and submitted to the FCC by wireless carriers were inaccurate, the FCC caused its staff to perform actual drive tests, wherein the FCC staff performed 24,649 tests, driving nearly 10,000 miles through nine states, with an additional 5,916 stationary tests conducted at 42 locations situated in nine states.

At the conclusion of such testing, the FCC Staff determined that the accuracy of the propagation maps submitted to the FCC by the wireless carriers had ranged from as little as 16.2% accuracy to a maximum of 64.3% accuracy.

As a result, the FCC Staff recommended that the FCC no longer accept propagation maps from wireless carriers without supporting drive test data to establish their accuracy. A copy of the FCC Staff's 66-page report is available in the Woodstock Town Clerk's office.

The Town considers it of critical import that applicants provide truthful, accurate, complete, and sufficiently reliable data to enable the Planning Board to render determinations upon applications for new wireless Facilities consistent with both the requirements of this Article and the statutory requirements of the TCA.

Consistent with same, if, at the time of filing an application under this Article, an applicant intends to assert before the Planning Board or the Town that: a) an identified wireless carrier suffers from a significant gap in its personal wireless services within the Town, b) that the applicant's proposed installation is the least intrusive means of remedying such gap in services, and/or c) that under the circumstances pertaining to the application, a denial of the application by the Planning Board would constitute an "effective prohibition" under 47 U.S.C. § 332 the TCA, then, at the time of filing such application, the applicant shall be required to file a written statement which shall be entitled:

"Notice of Effective Prohibition Conditions"

If an applicant files a Notice of Effective Prohibition Conditions, then the applicant shall be required to submit Probative Evidence to enable the Planning Board to reasonably determine: a) whether or not the conditions alleged by the respective applicant exist, b) whether there exists a significant gap or gaps in an identified wireless carrier's personal wireless services within the Town, c) the geographic locations of any such gaps, and d) the geographic boundaries of such gaps, to enable the Planning Board to determine whether granting the respective application would be consistent with the requirements of this Article and the legislative intent behind same, and whether or not federal law would require the Planning Board to grant the respective application, even if it would otherwise violate the Town's Zoning Code, including, but not limited to, this Article.

The additional materials which the applicant shall then be required to provide shall include the following:

(a)

Drive test data and maps.

If, and to the extent that an applicant claims that a specific wireless carrier suffers from a significant gap in its personal wireless services within the Town, the applicant shall conduct or cause to be conducted a drive test within the specific geographic areas within which the applicant is claiming such gap or gaps exist, for each frequency at which the carrier provides personal wireless services. The applicant shall provide the Town and the Planning Board with the actual drive test data recorded during such drive test, in a simple format which shall include, in table format:

[1]

The date and time for the test or test,

[2]

The location, in longitude and latitude of each point at which signal strength was recorded and

[3]

Each signal strength recorded, measured in DBM, for each frequency.

Such data is to be provided in a separate table for each frequency at which the respective carrier provides personal wireless services to any of its end-use customers.

[4]

The applicant shall also submit drive test maps, depicting the actual signal strengths recorded during the actual drive test, for each frequency at which the carrier provides personal wireless services to its end-use customers.

If an applicant claims that it needs a "minimum" signal strength (measured in DBM) to remedy its gap or gaps in service, then for each frequency, the applicant shall provide three signal strength coverage maps reflecting actual signal strengths in three DBM bins, the first being at the alleged minimum signal strength, and two additional three DBM bin maps depicting signal strengths immediately below the alleged minimum signal strength claimed to be required.

By way of example, if the applicant claims that it needs a minimum signal strength of -95 DBM to remedy its alleged gap in service, then the applicant shall provide maps depicting the geographic area where the gap is alleged to exist, showing the carrier's coverage at -95 to -98 DBM, -99 to -101 DBM and -102 to -104 DBM, for each frequency at which the carrier provides personal wireless services to its end-use customers.

(b)

Denial of service and/or dropped call records.

If and to the extent that an applicant claims that a specific wireless carrier suffers from a capacity deficiency, or a gap in service that renders the carrier incapable of providing adequate coverage of its personal wireless services within the Town, then the applicant shall provide dropped call records and denial of service records evidencing the number and percentage of calls within which the carrier's customers were unable to initiate, maintain and conclude the use of the carrier's personal wireless services without actual loss of service, or interruption of service.

(14)

Estimate for cost of removal of facility.

A written estimate for the cost of the decommissioning, removal of the facility, including all equipment that comprises any portion or part of the facility, compound, and/or complex, as well as any accessory facility or structure, including the cost of the full restoration and reclamation of the site, to the extent practicable, to its condition before development in accord with the decommissioning and reclamation plan required herein.

(15)

Property owner consent and liability acknowledgement.

A signed written consent from each owner of the subject real property upon which the respective applicant is seeking installation of its proposed personal wireless service facility, wherein the owner or owners, both authorize the applicant to file and pursue its Special Use Permit application and acknowledge the potential landowner's responsibility, under section § 260-64K for engineering, legal and other consulting fees incurred by the Town.

Design standards.

The following design standards shall apply to all applications for the siting, construction, maintenance, use, erection, movement, reconstruction, expansion, material change, or structural alteration of a personal wireless service facility.

(1)

Small wireless facilities.

Small Wireless Facilities (SWF) shall be sited to inflict the minimum adverse impacts upon individual residential properties, and specifically, to minimize, to the greatest extent reasonably feasible, adverse aesthetic impacts upon residential homes or reductions in the property values of same.

SWFs attached to pre-existing wooden and non-wooden poles shall conform to the following criteria:

(a)

Proposed antenna and related equipment shall meet:

[1]

Design standards which the Town may maintain and update as needed, provided that the Town makes its designed standards publicly available for review by any potential applicant seeking approval for the installation of an SWF within the Town; and

[2]

National Electric Safety Code (NESC) standards; and

[3]

National Electrical Code (NEC) standards.

(b)

Antennas and antenna equipment, including but not limited to radios, cables, associated shrouding, disconnect boxes, meters, microwaves, and conduit, which are mounted on poles, shall be mounted as close to the pole as technically feasible. They shall not be illuminated except as required by municipal, federal, or state authority, provided this shall not preclude deployment on a new or replacement street light.

(c)

Antennas and associated equipment enclosures must be camouflaged to appear as an integral part of the pole or be mounted as close to the pole as feasible. Conduits and cabinets shall cover all cables and wiring to the extent that it is technically feasible if allowed by the pole owner. The number of conduits shall be minimized to the extent technically feasible. To the extent technically feasible, antennas, equipment enclosures, and all ancillary equipment, boxes, and conduits shall match the approximate material and design of the surface of the pole or existing equipment on which they are attached.

SWFs attached to replacement poles and new poles shall conform to the criteria set forth herein above for SWFs attached to pre-existing wooden and non-wooden poles, but shall additionally conform to the following criteria:

(d)

The Town prefers that wireless providers and site developers install SWFs on existing or replacement poles instead of installing new poles, and accordingly, to obtain approval for the installation of a new pole, the provider shall be required to document that installation on an existing or replacement pole is not technically feasible.

(e)

To the extent technically feasible, all replacement poles and new poles and pole-mounted antennas and equipment shall substantially conform to the material and design of the pole being replaced, or in the case of a new pole, it shall conform to the nearest adjacent pole or poles.

(f)

The height of replacement poles and new poles shall conform with the height limitations applicable to the district within which the applicant seeks to install their proposed SWF unless the applicant obtains a variance to obtain relief from any such limitation(s).

(2)

Telecommunications Towers and Personal Wireless Service Facilities which do not meet the definition of a Small Wireless Facility.

The design of a proposed new telecommunications tower or personal wireless service facility shall comply with the following:

(a)

The choice of design for installing a new personal wireless service facility or the substantial modification of an existing personal wireless service facility shall be chosen to minimize the potential adverse impacts that the new or expanded facility may, or is likely to, inflict upon nearby properties.

(b)

Any new telecommunications tower shall be designed to accommodate future shared use by other communications providers.

(c)

Unless specifically required by other regulations, a telecommunications tower shall have a finish (either painted or unpainted) that minimizes its degree of visual impact.

(d)

Notwithstanding the height restrictions listed elsewhere in this chapter, the maximum height of any new telecommunications tower shall not exceed that which shall permit operation without artificial lighting of any kind or nature, in accordance with municipal, state, and/or federal law and/or regulation.

(e)

Accessory structures.

[1]

Accessory structures shall maximize the use of building materials, colors, and textures designed to blend with the natural surroundings. The use of camouflage communications towers may be required by the Planning Board to blend the communications tower and/or its accessory structures further into the natural surroundings. "Camouflage" is defined as the use of materials incorporated into the communications tower design that give communications towers the appearance of tree branches and bark coatings, church steeples and crosses, sign structures, lighting structures, or other similar structures.

[2]

Accessory structures shall be designed to be architecturally similar and compatible with each other and shall be no more than 12 feet high. The buildings shall be used only for housing equipment related to the particular site. Whenever possible, the buildings shall be joined or clustered so as to appear as one building.

(f)

Towers must be placed to minimize visual impacts. Applicants shall place towers on the side slope of the terrain so that, as much as possible, the top of the tower does not protrude over the ridgeline, as seen from public ways.

(g)

Existing vegetation. Existing on-site vegetation shall be preserved to the maximum extent possible. No cutting of trees shall take place on a site connected with an application made under this article prior to the approval of the Special Use Permit use. Any tree cutting after approval of the Special Use Permit use must be in accordance with the approved site plan.

(h)

Screening.

[1]

Deciduous or evergreen tree plantings may be required to screen portions of the telecommunications tower and accessory structures from nearby residential property as well as from public sites known to include important views or vistas.

[2]

Where a site adjoins a residential property or public property, including streets, screening suitable in type, size and quantity shall be required by the Planning Board.

[3]

The applicant shall demonstrate to the approving board that adequate measures have been taken to screen and abate site noises such as heating and ventilating units, air conditioners, and emergency power generators. Telecommunications towers shall comply with all applicable sections of this chapter as it pertains to noise control and abatement.

(i)

Lighting. Telecommunications towers shall not be lighted except where FAA/FCC required lighting of the telecommunications towers is necessary. No exterior lighting shall spill from the site in an unnecessary manner.

(j)

Access.

[1]

Adequate emergency and service access shall be provided and maintained. Maximum use of existing roads, public or private, shall be made. Road construction shall, at all times, minimize ground disturbance and vegetation cutting to the top of fill, the top of cuts, or no more than 10 feet beyond the edge of any pavement. Road grades shall closely follow natural contours to assure minimal visual disturbance and reduce soil erosion potential.

[2]

To the extent feasible, all network interconnections to and from the telecommunications site and all power to the site shall be installed underground. At the initial construction of the access road to the site, sufficient conduit shall be laid to accommodate the maximum possible number of telecommunications providers that might use the facility.

(k)

Parking. Parking shall be provided to assure adequate emergency and service access. The Planning Board shall determine the number of required spaces, but in no case shall the number of parking spaces be less than two spaces.

(l)

Fencing. The telecommunications tower and any accessory structures shall be adequately enclosed by a fence, the design of which shall be approved by the Planning Board. The Planning Board may waive this requirement if the applicant demonstrates that such measures are unnecessary to ensure the security of the facility.

Planning Board initial review.

(1)

Initial review.

Upon their acceptance of an application that appears to be complete, the Building Inspector shall transmit the application to the Planning Board for initial review.

The Planning Board shall then conduct an initial review to consider whether or not to establish itself as Lead Agency pursuant to SEQRA and/or NEPA and whether or not a use or area variance is required for the proposed application such that a referral for an application to the ZBA will be required to be made after the Planning Board has declared itself to serve as Lead Agency and during the process of the Planning Board considering a SEQRA determination of environmental significance. That consideration of granting any required variances by the ZBA is done concurrently with the Planning Board's review and consideration of Special Use Permit and site plan approval.

The Planning Board shall then conduct a public hearing upon each application, and render its determinations in accord with § 260-64I and § 260-64J herein below, and shall ultimately determine whether or not to grant each applicant a Special Use Permit and/or site plan approval.

Hearings and public notice.

(1)

Public hearings.

The Planning Board shall conduct a public hearing upon each Special Use Permit application, consistent with the procedures in Article VI § 260-68, except the Planning Board shall have authority to schedule such additional or more frequent public hearings as may be necessary to comply with the applicable shot clocks imposed upon the Town and the Planning Board under the requirements of the TCA.

(2)

Required public notices.

The Planning Board shall ensure that both the public and property owners whose properties might be adversely impacted by the installation of a wireless facility receive notice of any public hearing pertaining to same and shall ensure that they are afforded an opportunity to be heard concerning same.

Before the date scheduled for the public hearing, the Planning Board shall cause to be published a

"NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR NEW WIRELESS FACILITY"

Each "Notice of Public Hearing for New Wireless Facility" shall state the name or names of the respective applicant or co-applicants, provide a brief description of the personal wireless facility for which the applicant seeks a Special Use Permit, and the date, time, and location of the hearing.

Each "Notice of Public Hearing for New Wireless Facility" shall be published both: a) in one or more newspapers in the manner set forth within, and consistent with Article VI, § 260-68B(1) and b) by mailing copies of such notice to property owners, as provided for herein below.

The face of each envelope containing the notices of the public hearing shall state, in all bold typeface, in all capital letters, in a font size no smaller than 12 point, the words:

"NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR NEW WIRELESS FACILITY"

For Type I and Type III applications, notices of public hearing shall be mailed to all property owners whose real properties are situated within 300 feet of any property line of the real property upon which the applicant seeks to install its new wireless facility. If the site for the proposed facility is situated on, or adjacent to, a residential street containing 12 houses or less, the Planning Board shall additionally mail a copy of such notices to all homeowners on that street, even if their home is situated more than 300 feet from any property line of the property upon which the applicant proposes to install its facility.

For Type II and Type IV applications, the applicant shall mail such notices of public hearing to all property owners whose real properties are situated within 1,500 feet of any property line of the real property upon which the applicant seeks to install its new wireless facility.

The applicant shall additionally post a notice upon the proposed site advising the public of the public hearing.

Prior to the date of the hearing, the respective applicant shall file an Affidavit of Mailing, attesting to whom such notices were mailed by the applicant, the date of the mailing(s), and the content of the notices which were mailed to such recipients.

Factual determinations to be rendered by the Planning Board.

(1)

Evidentiary standards.

In determining Special Use Permit applications for personal wireless service facilities, the Planning Board shall have sole discretion to determine what probative evidence it shall require each applicant to produce in support of its application to enable the Board to make each of the factual determinations enumerated below.

By way of common examples of the types of evidence which the Board may require an applicant to produce are the following:

(a)

Where an applicant is not the owner of the real property upon which it proposes to install a new wireless facility, the Board can require the applicant to provide a copy of the applicant's lease with the property owner (including any schedules, property descriptions, appendices or other attachments), from which the applicant may censor or delete any financial terms which would be irrelevant to the factual issues which the Board is required to determine;

(b)

Where the Board deems it appropriate, the Board can require the applicant to perform what is commonly known as a "balloon test" and to require the applicant to publish reasonably sufficient advance public notice of same, to enable the Board, property owners, and the community, an opportunity to assess the actual adverse aesthetic impact which the proposed facility is likely to inflict upon the nearby properties and surrounding community;

(c)

Where the applicant asserts a claim that a proposed facility is necessary to remedy one or more existing significant gaps in an identified wireless carrier's personal wireless services, the Board may require the applicant to provide drive-test generated coverage maps, as opposed to computer-generated coverage maps, for each frequency at which the carrier provides personal wireless services, to show signal strengths in bins of three DBM each, to enable the Board to assess the existence of such significant gaps accurately, and/or whether the carrier possesses adequate coverage within the geographic area which is the subject of the respective application.

(d)

Where the applicant asserts that a potential less intrusive alternative location for a proposed facility is unavailable because the owner of the potential alternative site is incapable or unwilling to lease space upon such site to the applicant, the Board may require the applicant to provide proof of such unwillingness in the form of communications to and from such property owner, and/or a sworn affidavit wherein a representative of the applicant affirms, under penalty of perjury, that they attempted to negotiate a lease with the property owner, what the material terms of any such offer to the property owner were, when the offer was tendered, and how, if at all, the property owner responded to such offer.

The Board shall have sole discretion to determine, among other things, the relevance of any evidence presented, the probative value of any evidence presented, the credibility of any testimony provided, whether expert or otherwise, and the adequacy of any evidence presented.

The Board shall not be required to accept, at face value, any unsupported factual claims asserted by an applicant but may require the production of evidence reasonably necessary to enable the Board to determine the accuracy of any factual allegations asserted by each respective applicant.

Conclusory factual assertions by an applicant shall not be accepted as evidence by the Board.

(2)

Factual determinations.

To decide applications for Special Use Permits under this section, the Planning Board shall render factual determinations, which shall include two specific types of factual determinations, as applicable.

First, the Board shall render local zoning determinations according to Subsection J(2)(a) hereinbelow.

Then, if, and only if, an applicant asserts claims that: a) its proposed wireless facility or installation is necessary to remedy a significant gap in personal wireless services for an explicitly identified wireless carrier, and b) that its proposed installation is the least intrusive means of remedying a specifically identified significant gap or gaps, the Board shall additionally render TCA determinations, in accord with Subsection J(2)(b) hereinbelow.

The Board shall separately record each factual determination it makes in a written decision and shall reference, or make note of, the evidence based upon which it rendered each of its factual determinations.

Each factual determination made by the Board shall be based upon Substantial Evidence.

For purposes of this provision, "Substantial Evidence" shall mean such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion. It means less than a preponderance but more than a scintilla of evidence.

Evidence which the Board may consider shall include any evidence submitted in support of an application, and any evidence submitted by anyone opposing a respective application, whether such evidence is in written or photographic form, or whether it is in the form of testimony by any expert, or any person who has personal knowledge of the subject of their testimony. The Board may, of course, additionally consider as evidence any information or knowledge which they, themselves, personally possess, and any documents, records or other evidence which is a matter of public record, irrespective of whether such public record is a record of the Town, or is a record of or is maintained by, another federal, state and/or other governmental entity and/or agency which maintains records which are available for, or subject to, public review.

The requirements for specific factual determinations set forth below are intended to enure to the benefit of the Town, its residents, and property owners, and not applicants.

If, and to the extent that the Planning Board fails to render one or more of such determinations, that omission shall not constitute grounds upon which the respective applicant can seek to annul, reverse or modify any decision of the Planning Board.

(a)

Local zoning determinations.

The Board shall make the following factual determinations as to whether the application meets the requirements for granting a Special Use Permit under this Article.

[1]

Compliance with Article VI, § 260-62.

Whether the proposed installation will meet each of the conditions and standards set forth within § 260-62 in the absence of which the Planning Board is not authorized to grant a Special Use Permit.

[2]

Potential adverse aesthetic impacts.

Whether the proposed installation will inflict a significant adverse aesthetic impact upon properties that are located adjacent to, or in close proximity to, the proposed site, or any other properties situated in a manner that would sustain significant adverse aesthetic impacts by the installation of the proposed facility.

[3]

Potential adverse impacts upon real estate values.

Whether the proposed installation will inflict a significant adverse impact upon the property values of properties that are located adjacent to, or in close proximity to the proposed site, or properties that are otherwise situated in a manner that would cause the proposed installation to inflict a significant adverse impact upon their value.

[4]

Potential adverse impact upon the character of the surrounding community.

Whether the proposed installation will be incompatible with the use and/or character of properties located adjacent to or in close proximity to the proposed site or other properties situated in a manner that would cause the proposed installation to be incompatible with their respective use.

[5]

Potential adverse impacts upon historic properties or historic districts.

Whether the proposed installation will be incompatible with and/or would have an adverse impact upon, or detract from the use and enjoyment of, and/or character of a historic property, historic site, and/or historic district, including but not limited to historic structures, properties and/or districts which are listed on, or are eligible for listing on, the National Register of Historic Places.

[6]

Potential adverse impacts upon ridgelines or other aesthetic resources of the Town.

Whether the proposed installation will be incompatible with and/or would have an adverse aesthetic impact upon or detract from the use and enjoyment of, and/or character of, recognized aesthetic assets of the Town including, but not limited to, scenic areas and/or scenic ridgelines, scenic areas, public parks, and/or any other traditionally or historically recognized valuable scenic assets of the Town.

[7]

Sufficient fall zones.

Whether the proposed installation shall have a sufficient fall zone and/or safe zone around the facility to afford the general public safety against the potential dangers of structural failure, icefall, debris fall, and fire.

[8]

Mitigation.

Whether the applicant has mitigated the potential adverse impacts of the proposed facility to the greatest extent reasonably feasible. To determine mitigation efforts on the part of the applicant, the mere fact that a less intrusive site, location, or design would cause an applicant to incur additional expense is not a reasonable justification for an application to have failed to propose reasonable mitigation measures.

If when applying the evidentiary standards set forth in hereinabove, the Planning Board determines that the proposed facility would not meet the standards set forth within § 260-62, or that the proposed facility would inflict one or more of the adverse impacts described hereinabove to such a substantial extent that granting the respective application would inflict upon the Town and/or its citizens and/or property owners the types of adverse impacts which this provision was enacted to prevent, the Planning Board shall deny the respective application for a Special Use Permit unless the Board additionally finds that a denial of the application would constitute an Effective Prohibition, as provided for in Subsection J(2)(b) and J(2)(c) immediately hereinbelow.

(b)

TCA determinations.

In cases within which an applicant has filed a "Notice of Effective Prohibition Conditions," the Planning Board shall make three additional factual determinations, as listed herein below:

[1]

Adequate personal wireless services coverage.

Whether the specific wireless carrier has adequate personal wireless services coverage within the geographic areas for which the applicant claims a significant gap exists in such coverage.

[2]

Significant gap in personal wireless services of an identified carrier.

Whether the applicant has established, based upon probative evidence provided by the applicant and/or its representative, that a specific wireless carrier suffers from a significant gap in its personal wireless services within the Town.

In rendering such determination, the Board shall consider factors including, but not necessarily limited to a) whether the identified wireless carrier which is alleged to suffer from any significant gap in their personal wireless services has adequate service in its personal wireless services at any frequency being used by the carrier to provide personal wireless services to its end-use customers, b) whether any such alleged gap is relatively large or small in geographic size, c) whether the number of the carrier's customers affected by the gap is relatively small or large, d) whether or not the location of the gap is situated on a lightly traveled road, or sparsely or densely occupied area, and/or e) overall, whether the gap is relatively insignificant or otherwise relatively de minimis.

A significant gap cannot be established simply because the carrier's customers are currently using the carrier's personal wireless services, but the frequency at which the customers are using such services is not the frequency most desired by the carrier.

[3]

Least intrusive means of remedying gap(s) in service.

Whether the applicant has established based upon probative evidence provided by the applicant and/or its representative, that the installation of the proposed facility, at the specific site proposed by the applicant, and the specific portion of the site proposed by the applicant, and at the specific height proposed by the applicant is the least intrusive means of remedying whatever significant gap or gaps which the applicant has contemporaneously proved to exist as determined by the Planning Board based upon any evidence in support of, and/or in opposition to, the subject application.

In rendering such determination, the Board shall consider factors including, but not necessarily limited to: a) whether the proposed site is the least intrusive location at which a facility to remedy an identified significant gap may be located, and the applicant has reasonably established a lack of potential alternative less intrusive sites and lack of sites available for co-location, b) whether the specific location on the proposed portion of the selected site is the least intrusive portion of the site for the proposed installation c) whether the height proposed for the facility is the minimum height actually necessary to remedy an established significant gap in service, d) whether or not a pre-existing structure can be used to camouflage the facility and/or its antennas, e) whether or not, as proposed, the installation mitigates adverse impacts to the greatest extent reasonably feasible, through the employ of Stealth design, screening, use of color, noise mitigation measures, etc., and/or f) overall whether or not there is a feasible alternative to remedy the gap through alternative, less intrusive substitute installations, such as the installation of multiple shorter installations, instead of a single microcell facility.

(c)

Finding of effective prohibition or lack of effective prohibition.

If when applying the evidentiary standards set forth in Subsection J(2)(a) hereinabove, the Planning Board affirmatively determines that the applicant has failed to establish either: (i) that an identified wireless carrier suffers from a significant gap(s) in its personal wireless services within the Town, and/or ii) that the applicant has failed to establish that the proposed installation is the least intrusive means of remedying any such gap or gaps, then the Planning Board may deny the application pursuant to Subsection J(2)(b) hereinabove, and such denial shall not constitute an "Effective Prohibition."

If when applying the evidentiary standards set forth in Subsection J(2)(a) hereinabove, the Planning Board affirmatively determines that the applicant has established both: i) that an identified wireless carrier suffers from a significant gap in personal wireless services within the Town, and ii) that the proposed installation is the least intrusive means of remedying such significant gap or gaps, then the Planning Board shall grant the application, irrespective of any determinations the Board may make pursuant to Subsection J(2)(b) hereinabove, because any such denial would constitute an "effective prohibition."

Retention of consultants.

(1)

Use of consultants.

Where deemed reasonably necessary by the Planning Board and/or the Town, the Planning Board and/or the Town may retain the services of professional consultants to assist the Planning Board in carrying out its duties in deciding Special Use Permit applications for personal wireless service facilities. Where the Planning Board uses the services of private engineers, attorneys, or other consultants for purposes of engineering, scientific, land use planning, environmental, legal, or similar professional reviews of the adequacy or substantive aspects of applications, or of issues raised during the course of review of applications for Special Use Permit approvals of personal wireless service facilities, the applicant and landowner, if different, shall be jointly and severally responsible for payment of all the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by the Town for such services. In no event shall that responsibility be greater than the actual cost to the Town of such engineering, legal, or other consulting services.

(2)

Advance deposits for consultant costs.

The Town and/or Planning Board may require advance periodic monetary deposits held by the Town on account of the applicant or landowner to secure the reimbursement of the Town's consultant expenses. The Town Board shall establish policies and procedures for the fixing of escrow deposits and the management of payment from them. After review and approval of itemized vouchers by the Town Board as to reasonableness and necessity of the consultant charges, the Town may make payments from the deposited funds for engineering, legal or consultant services. Upon receiving a request by the applicant or landowner, the Town shall supply copies of such vouchers to the applicant and/or landowner reasonably in advance of audit and approval, appropriately redacted where necessary to shield legally privileged communications between Town officers or employees and the Town's consultant. When it appears that there may be insufficient funds in the account established for the applicant or landowner by the Town to pay current or anticipated vouchers, the Town shall cause the applicant or landowner to deposit additional sums to meet such expenses or anticipated expenses in accordance with policies and procedures established by the Town Board. Consultants shall undertake no review on any matter scheduled before the Planning Board until the initial escrow deposit has been made or requested replenishment of the escrow deposit has been made. No reviewing agency shall be obligated to proceed unless the applicant complies with escrow deposit requirements.

(3)

Reasonable limit upon consultant expenses.

A consultant expense or part thereof is reasonable in amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the customary fee charged by engineers, attorneys, or planners within the region for services performed on behalf of applicants or reviewing boards in connection with comparable applications for land use or development.

The Town may also take into account any special conditions for considerations as it may deem relevant, including but not limited to the quality and timeliness of submissions on behalf of the applicant and the cooperation of the applicant and agents during the review process.

A consultant expense or part thereof is necessarily incurred if it was charged by the engineer, attorney or planner, or other consultants, for a service which was rendered to assist the Planning Board in: a) making factual determinations consistent with the goals of protecting or promoting of the health, safety or welfare of the Town or its residents; b) assessing potential adverse environmental impacts such as those identified within a SEQRA process; c) accessing potential adverse impacts to historic properties, structures and/or districts, and/or d) assessing and determining factual issues relevant to Effective Prohibition claims, as addressed herein, to enable the Board to best comply with the letter and intent of the provision of the TCA which is relevant thereto.

(4)

Audits upon the request of an applicant.

Upon request of the applicant or landowner, the Town Board shall review and audit all vouchers and determine whether such engineering, legal and consulting expenses are reasonable in amount and necessarily incurred by the Town in connection with the review and consideration of a Special Use Permit application for personal wireless service facility. In the event of such a request, the applicant or landowner shall be entitled to be heard by the Town Board on reasonable advance notice.

(5)

Liability for consultant expenses.

For a land-use application to be complete, the applicant shall provide the written consent of all owners of the subject real property, both authorizing the applicant to file and pursue land development proposals and acknowledging potential landowner responsibility, under this section, for engineering, legal, and other consulting fees incurred by the Town. If different from the applicant, the owner(s) of the subject real property shall be jointly and severally responsible for reimbursing the Town for funds expended to compensate services rendered to the Town under this section by private engineers, attorneys, or other consultants. The applicant and the owner shall remain responsible for reimbursing the Town for its consulting expenses, notwithstanding that the escrow account may be insufficient to cover such expenses. No building permit or other permit shall be issued until reimbursement of costs and expenses determined by the Town to be due. In the event of failure to reimburse the Town for such fees, the following shall apply:

The Town may seek recovery of unreimbursed engineering, legal, and consulting fees by court action in an appropriate jurisdiction, and the defendant(s) shall be responsible for the reasonable and necessary attorney's fees expended by the Town in prosecuting such action.

Alternatively, and at the sole discretion of the Town, a default in reimbursement of such engineering, legal and consulting fees expended by the Town shall be remedied by charging such sums against the real property that is the subject of the Special Use Permit application, by adding that charge to and making it a part of the next annual real property tax assessment roll of the Town. Such charges shall be levied and collected simultaneously and in the same manner as Town-assessed taxes and applied in reimbursing the fund from which the costs were defrayed for the engineering, legal and consulting fees. Prior to charging such assessments, the owners of the real property shall be provided written notice to their last known address of record, by certified mail, return receipt requested, of an opportunity to be heard and object before the Town Board to the proposed real property assessment, at a date to be designated in the notice, which shall be no less than 30 days after its mailing.

Setback requirements.

(1)

Small wireless facilities.

(a)

All small wireless facilities shall be set back a minimum of 300 feet from any residential dwelling or structure, unless the small wireless facilities are being co-located upon a pre-existing personal wireless service facility.

(b)

Small Wireless Facilities shall not be built within 300 feet of the boundaries of the Byrdcliffe Historic District, included in the National Registry of Historic Places; nor within the Hamlet Preservation District (as delineated in the Woodstock Zoning Law).

(2)

Cell towers and all personal wireless service facilities that do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility.

(a)

Each proposed personal wireless service facility and personal wireless service facility structure, compound, and complex shall be located on a single lot and comply with applicable setback requirements. Adequate measures shall be taken to contain on-site all icefall or debris from tower failure and preserve the privacy of any adjoining residential properties.

(b)

Each lot containing a personal wireless service facility and personal wireless service facility structure, compound, and complex shall have the minimum area, shape, and frontage requirements generally prevailing for the zoning district where located, in the Schedules of Regulations for Nonresidential and Residential Districts of this chapter, and such additional land if necessary to meet the setback requirements of this section.

(c)

Cell towers and personal wireless service facilities that do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility, shall maintain a minimum setback of a distance equal to 110% of the height of the facility, for front yard setbacks, rear yard setbacks and side yard setbacks, in all zoning districts.

Height restrictions.

(1)

Small wireless facilities.

Personal Wireless Service Facilities which meet the definition of a small wireless facility shall not exceed a maximum height of 60 feet within all zoning districts.

(2)

Non-small wireless facilities.

Personal Wireless Service Facilities which do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility shall not exceed a maximum height of 100 feet above ground level in all zoning districts.

Use restrictions and variances.

(1)

Use restrictions by application type and zoning district.

Type I applications: no use variance required.

Type I applications for co-location of a small wireless facility shall be a Special Use Permit use, requiring an applicant to obtain a Special Use Permit from the Planning Board.

Type II applications: no use variance required unless determined otherwise.

Applications for colocations of a wireless personal services facility, which do not meet the definition of a small wireless facility, shall be considered a Special Use Permit in all Districts and shall require a Special Use Permit and a building permit, but shall not require a use variance, unless the Planning Board, in its sole discretion, determines that the proposed colocation will increase the overall intrusiveness of the site to a sufficient extent that its presence would no longer be compatible with the surrounding properties and/or surrounding community, in which case the Planning Board shall issue a decision determining that the applicant shall be required to obtain a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals in accord with Article VI of the Town Code.

In rendering a determination of whether or not a variance shall be required, the Planning Board shall consider, among other things: a) the physical size, number, and potential intrusiveness of each new item of equipment to be installed as part of the proposed colocation, b) the extent to which the installation of such equipment is to require or effectuate a significant physical expansion of the size or area of the facility or complex, c) the extent to which the addition of such additional equipment will likely increase the adverse aesthetic impact of the facility, and/or any other potentially significant adverse impacts which are likely to cause a significant increase in the overall intrusiveness of the wireless facility, and/or its compound or complex, such that it will no longer be reasonably compatible with the use of nearby or surrounding properties and/or that its presence would be incompatible with the character and use of the nearby properties and/or surrounding community.

If the Planning Board determines that a variance is required for a specific proposed facility, then the applicant shall be required to file an application for a variance to the Zoning Board of Appeals. The ZBA shall thereafter have the authority to: a) determine that no variance is necessary, b) grant the application for a variance, or c) deny the application for a variance.

Type III applications: no use variance required.

Applications for installing new Small Wireless Facilities that meet the criteria for Type III applications shall be considered a Special Use Permit use in all Districts. They shall require a Special Use Permit and building permit but shall not require a variance, unless they do not meet the applicable setback requirements or height limitation.

Type IV applications: variance requirements.

Type IV applications seeking approval for the installation of a new cell tower and/or all other wireless facilities that are not a small wireless facility shall require a Special Use Permit and building permit to be permitted only in those portions of the HC, NC, R3, R5 or R8 District outside of the Scenic Overlay District, and provided that the proposed facility will not have an undue adverse impact on historic resources, scenic views, environmentally preserved or protected areas, residential property values and/or natural or man-made resources, and provided that any personal wireless service facility proposed for the Hamlet Commercial (HC) or Neighborhood Commercial (NC) District shall not include the construction of a tower.

Environmental impacts.

If, and to the extent that, the Planning Board determines a proposed installation bears the potential for a significant adverse impact upon the environment within the meaning of SEQRA and/or the NEPA, then the Board shall be expected to comply with the requirements of SEQRA in determining both a) the extent of adverse impacts upon the environment and/or historic properties and b) what mitigation measures the applicant should be required to undertake to minimize the adverse environmental impacts and/or adverse impacts upon historic sites, structures and/or districts.

If a respective applicant fails to obtain a review from the NYSDEC and/or NEPA and opinion letters from the NYSDEC and the FCC pertaining to its proposed installation prior to a first public hearing before the Planning Board for the respective application, then the Planning Board may make direct requests to the NYSDEC and the FCC for their review of the application. The Planning Board may request SHPO and the FCC's review and input in completing the statutorily-required environmental impact analysis pursuant to SEQRA and NEPA.

In addition, the Planning Board shall comply with the statutory requirements of SEQRA to complete a SEQRA review, make determinations of significance, and where appropriate, require the applicant to complete a draft environmental impact statement, and if additionally appropriate, to thereafter complete a final environmental impact statement and analysis.

So long as the Planning Board acts with reasonable diligence in completing its SEQRA and NEPA review, if compliance with the statutory requirements for environmental review requires a period of effort that extends beyond the expiration of the applicable shot clock period, the delays beyond such period shall be deemed reasonable.

Historic site impacts.

The Planning Board shall consider the potential adverse impacts of any proposed facility upon any historic site, district, or structure, including the Town's Byrdcliffe Historic District and Hamlet Preservation District, consistent with the requirements of the Town's comprehensive plan and SEQRA.

If, and to the extent that, the Planning Board determines that a proposed installation bears the potential for a significant adverse impact upon a historic site or a historic district within the meaning of SEQRA and/or the NHPA (especially if the historic site at issue is listed upon the national register of historic places), then the Board shall comply with the requirements of both SEQRA and Town law in determining both: a) the extent of adverse impacts upon the historic properties, and b) what mitigation measure might the applicant be required to undertake to minimize the adverse environmental impacts and/or adverse impacts upon historic sites, structures and/or district.

Should a respective applicant fail to obtain a SHPO and/or a Section 106 review under NHPA, and opinion letters from SHPO and the FCC pertaining to its proposed installation prior to a first public hearing before the Planning Board for the respective application, then the Planning Board shall make direct requests to SHPO and the FCC for their review of the application. They shall request SHPO and the FCC's review and input in completing the statutorily-required environmental/historic impact analysis pursuant to SEQRA and NHPA.

This request shall include, but not be limited to, a request to the FCC for a Section 106 review, as defined in this Article, as the Town recognizes each application for a Special Use Permit for the installation of a personal wireless services facility shall constitute "an undertaking" for purposes of compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act.

So long as the Planning Board acts with reasonable diligence in completing its SEQRA and NHPA review, if compliance with the statutory requirements for historic preservation review requires a period of effort that extends beyond the expiration of the applicable shot clock period, the delays beyond such period shall be deemed reasonable and shall be recognized as acceptable grounds for extending the period for review and the rendering of final determinations beyond the period allotted under the applicable shot clock.

Force majeure.

In the event that the rendering of a final decision upon a Special Use Permit application under this section is delayed due to natural and/or unnatural events and/or forces which are not within the control of the Town or the Planning Board, such as the unavoidable delays experienced in government processes due to the COVID 19 pandemic, and/or mandatory compliance with any related federal or state government orders issued in relation thereto, such delays shall constitute reasonable delays which shall be recognized as acceptable grounds for extending the period for review and the rendering of final determinations beyond the period allotted under the applicable shot clock.

Eleventh hour submissions.

In the event that an applicant tenders eleventh-hour submissions to the Town and/or the Planning Board in the form of: a) expert reports, b) expert materials, and/or c) materials which require a significant period for review due either to their complexity or the sheer volume of materials which an applicant has chosen to provide to the Board at such late point in the proceedings, the Planning Board shall be afforded a reasonable time to review such late-submitted materials.

If reasonably necessary, the Planning Board shall be permitted to retain the services of an expert consultant to review any late-submitted expert reports which were provided to the Board, even if such review or services extend beyond the applicable shot clock period, so long as the Board completes such review and retains and secures such expert services within a reasonable period of time thereafter, and otherwise acts with reasonable diligence in completing its review and rendering its final decision.

Prohibition against illegally excessive emissions and RF radiation testing.

As disclosed upon the FCC's public internet website, personal wireless services facilities erected at any height under 200 feet are not required to be registered with the FCC.

Of even greater potential concern to the Town is the fact that the FCC does not enforce the RF radiation limits codified within the CFR by either: a) testing the actual radiation emissions of wireless Facilities either at the time of their installation or at any time thereafter, or b) requiring their owners to test them. Relevant excerpts from the FCC's public internet website are in a document available in the Woodstock Town Clerk's office.

This means that when wireless Facilities are constructed and operated within the Town, the FCC will have no idea where they are located and no means of determining, much less ensuring, that they are not exposing residents within the Town and/or the general public to Illegally Excessive levels of RF Radiation.

The Town deems it to be of critical importance to the health, safety, and welfare of the Town, its residents, and the public at large that personal wireless service facilities do not expose members of the general public to levels of RF radiation that exceed the limits which have been deemed safe by the FCC, and/or are imposed under CFR.

In accord with the same, the Town enacts the following RF Radiation testing requirements and provisions set forth herein below.

No wireless telecommunications facility shall at any time be permitted to emit illegally excessive RF Radiation as defined in § 260-64B, or to produce power densities that exceed the legally permissible limits for electric and magnetic field strength and power density for transmitters, as codified within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1), Table 1 Sections (i) and (ii), as made applicable pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(3).

To ensure continuing compliance with such limits by all owners and/or operators of personal wireless service facilities within the Town, all owners, and operators of personal wireless service facilities shall submit reports as required by this section.

As set forth hereinbelow, the Town may additionally require, at the owner and/or operator's expense, independent verification of the results of any analysis set forth within any reports submitted to the Town by an owner and/or operator.

If an operator of a personal wireless service facility fails to supply the required reports or fails to correct a violation of the legally permissible limits described hereinabove, following notification that their respective facility is believed to be exceeding such limits, any Special Use Permit or other zoning approval granted by the Planning Board or any other Board or representative of the Town is subject to modification or revocation by the Planning Board following a public hearing.

(1)

Initial certification of compliance with applicable RF radiation limits.

Within 45 days of initial operation or a substantial modification of a personal wireless service facility, the owner and/or operator of each Telecommunications antenna shall submit to the Building Inspector a written certification by a licensed professional engineer, sworn to under penalties of perjury, that the facility's radio frequency emissions comply with the limits codified within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1), Table 1 Sections (i) and (ii), as made applicable pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(3).

The engineer shall measure the emissions of the approved facility, including the cumulative impact from other nearby Facilities, and determine if such emissions are within the limits described hereinabove.

A report of these measurements and the engineer's findings with respect to compliance with the FCC's Maximum Permissible Exposure (MPE) limits shall be submitted to the Building Inspector.

If the report shows that the facility does not comply with applicable limits, then the owner and/or operator shall cease operation of the facility until the facility is brought into compliance with such limits. Proof of compliance shall be a certification provided by the engineer who prepared the original report. The Town may require, at the applicant's expense, independent verification of the results of the analysis.

(2)

Random RF radiofrequency testing.

At the operator's expense, the Town may retain an engineer to conduct random unannounced RF Radiation testing of such Facilities to ensure the facility's compliance with the limits codified within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1) et seq.

The Town may cause such random testing to be conducted as often as the Town may deem appropriate. However, the Town may not require the owner and/or operator to pay for more than one test per facility per calendar year unless such testing reveals that one or more of the owner and/or operator's facilities are exceeding the limits codified within 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1) et seq., in which case the Town shall be permitted to demand that the facility be brought into compliance with such limits, and to conduct additional tests to determine if, and when, the owner and/or operator thereafter brings the respective facility and/or facilities into compliance.

If the Town at any time finds that there is good cause to believe that a personal wireless service facility and/or one or more of its antennas are emitting RF radiation at levels in excess of the legal limits permitted under 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1) et seq., then a hearing shall be scheduled before the Planning Board at which the owner and/or operator of such facility shall be required to show cause why any and all permits and/or approvals issued by the Town for such facility and/or facilities should not be revoked, and a fine should not be assessed against such owner and/or operator.

Such hearing shall be duly noticed to both the public and the owner and/or operator of the respective facility or facilities at issue. The owner and/or operator shall be afforded not less than two weeks written notice by first-class mail to its Notice Address.

At such hearing, the burden shall be on the Town to show that, by a preponderance of the evidence, the Facilities emissions exceeded the permissible limits under 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1) et seq.

In the event that the Town establishes same, the owner and/or operator shall then be required to establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that a malfunction of equipment caused their failure to comply with the applicable limits through no fault on the part of the owner/operator.

If the owner and/or operator fails to establish same, the Planning Board shall have the power to, and shall revoke any Special Use Permit, variance, building permit, and/or any other form of zoning-related approval(s) which the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Building Inspector and/or any other representative of the Town may have then issued to the owner and/or operator, for the respective facility.

In addition, the Planning Board shall impose a fine of not less than $1,000, nor more than $5,000 for such violation of Subsection S(1) hereinabove, or, in the case of a second offense within less than five years, a minimum fine of $5,000, nor more than $25,000.

In the event that an owner or operator of one or more personal wireless service facilities is found to violate Subsection S(1), hereinabove, three or more times within any five year period, then in addition to revoking any zoning approvals for the facilities which were violating the limits codified in 47 CFR § 1.1310(e)(1) et seq., the Planning Board shall render a determination within which it shall deem the owner/operator prohibited from filing any applications for any new wireless personal services facilities within the Town for a period of five years.

Bond requirements, removal of abandoned facilities and reclamation.

(1)

Bond requirement.

At, or prior to the filing of an application for a Special Use Permit for the installation of a new personal wireless service facility, each respective applicant shall provide a written estimate for the cost of the decommissioning and removal of the facility, including all equipment that comprises any portion or part of the facility, compound and/or complex, as well as any accessory facility or structure, including the cost of the full restoration and reclamation of the site, to the extent practicable, to its condition before development in accord with the decommissioning and reclamation plan required herein. The Planning Board's engineer shall review this estimate.

Upon receiving a Special Use Permit approval from the Planning Board, and a building permit, prior to the commencement of installation and/or construction of such facility or any part thereof, the applicant shall file with the Town a bond for a length of no less than three years in an amount equal to or exceeding the estimate of the cost of removal of the facility and all associated structures, fencing, power supply, and other appurtenances connected with the facility. The bond must be provided within 30 days of the approval date and before any installation or construction begins.

Replacement bonds must be provided 90 days' prior to the expiration of any previous bond.

At any time the Town has good cause to question the sufficiency of the bond at the end of any three-year period, the owner and/or operator of the facility, upon request by the Town, shall provide an updated estimate and bond in the appropriate amount.

Failure to keep the bonds in effect is cause for removal of the facility at the owner's expense. A separate bond will be required for each facility, regardless of the number of owners or the location.

(2)

Removal of abandoned facilities.

Any personal wireless service facility that is not operated or used for a continuous period of 12 consecutive months shall be considered abandoned. At the owner's expense, the owner of said facility shall be required to remove the facility and all associated equipment buildings, power supply, fence, and other items associated with such facility, compound and/or complex, and permitted with, the facility.

If the facility is not removed within 90 days, the bond secured by the facility owner shall be used to remove the facility and any accessory equipment and structures.

ADA accommodations.

The Town of Woodstock seeks to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act and shall comply with same in the event that any person who is disabled within the meaning of the Act seeks a reasonable accommodation, to the extent that they are entitled to same under the Act.

Signs.

Except as provided herein below, no portion of any personal wireless service facility, telecommunications tower or accessory structure shall be used for a sign or other advertising purpose, including but not limited to the company name, phone numbers, banners, and streamers.

Notwithstanding standing the forgoing, the owner or operator of any such facility may post the following signs on their facilities, subject to the requirement that all such signs shall conform to the sign requirements of the Town:

(1)

Any signs required under federal law, but which shall be no larger than required by any such federal law or laws.

(2)

A sign of no greater than two square feet indicating the name of the facility owner(s) and a 24-hour emergency telephone shall be posted adjacent to any entry gate.

(3)

"No trespassing" or other warning signs may be posted on a fence enclosing a wireless facility and/or or wireless compound.

General provisions.

(1)

Balancing of interests.

The Town formally recognizes that, as has been interpreted by federal courts within the Second Circuit, when it enacted the TCA, Congress chose to preserve local zoning authority over decisions regarding the placement, construction, and modification of personal wireless facilities (47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(A)) subject only to the limitations set forth in subsection § 332(c)(7)(b), consistent with the holding of the United States Court of Appeals in Sprint Spectrum L.P.v. Willoth, 176F3d 630 (2nd Cir.1999) and its progeny, and the Town has relied upon such federal courts' interpretations of the TCA in enacting Chapter § 260-64 et seq.

The Town similarly embraces the federal courts' determinations that the TCA was created to effectuate a balancing between the interests of facilitating the growth of wireless telephone service nationally and maintaining local control over the siting of wireless personal services facilities, as the Court additionally articulated in Omnipoint Communications Inc. v. The City of White Plains, 430 F3d. 529 (2nd Cir. 2005). This includes preserving to local governments, including the Town of Woodstock, the power to deny applications for the installation of wireless personal services facilities, based upon traditional grounds of zoning denials, including, but not limited to, the potential adverse aesthetic impacts or a reduction in property values which the construction of any proposed structure may inflict upon nearby properties or the surrounding community.

This additionally includes the recognition that, under this balancing of interest test, "once an area is sufficiently serviced by a wireless service provider, the right to deny applications (for new wireless facilities) becomes broader" Crown Castle NG East LLC v. The Town of Hempstead, 2018 WL 6605857.

It is the intent of the Town that Article VI of the Town Code be applied in a manner consistent with the balancing of interests codified within the TCA.

Consistent with same, the Town rejects and shall reject any current and/or future FCC interpretations of any provision of the TCA which are clearly inconsistent with, and/or are clearly contrary to, both the language of the TCA and binding decisions of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and United States District Courts within the Second Circuit.

This includes a rejection of any FCC interpretations inconsistent with Willoth and any claims that the FCA legally prohibits the Planning Board from denying a Special Use Permit application, based solely upon a claim that an applicant desires the installation of its new facility for "densification" of its existing personal wireless services, or to offer a new service, irrespective of whether or not the carrier already possesses adequate coverage within the Town, and irrespective of the potential adverse impact which the installation of such new facility or facilities would inflict upon the Town, its property owners, citizens and/or communities.

(2)

Conflict with federal or state laws.

To the extent that any provision of this Article is found to conflict with any applicable federal or State law, it is the intent of the Town that the remaining portion of this Article which has not been found to conflict with such law be deemed to remain valid and in full force and effect.

§ 260-65 Repeaters.

Repeaters may be installed at all locations within the Town of Woodstock.

A repeater special use permit (RSUP) shall be required for any (all) repeater(s) to be mounted on an existing or newly permitted tower or non-tower structure, or major modification of an existing structure.

A repeater special use permit may be applied for by an applicant who is currently applying for a special use permit under this chapter, or by an applicant who has previously received a special use permit under this chapter, or by an entity which is providing personal wireless services to the Town of Woodstock from a base station outside the Town. The applicant must submit all information required in Subsection D below, as well as all other required information.

Application requirements.

(1)

The use of repeaters to assure adequate coverage or to fill holes within areas of otherwise adequate coverage while minimizing the number of required towers is permitted and encouraged. An applicant who is currently applying for a repeater special use permit under this chapter or who has received and is in compliance with a current special use permit under this chapter or an entity which is providing personal wireless services to the Town of Woodstock from a base station outside the Town may apply for a special use permit.

(2)

Applicants shall provide the following information:

(a)

Exact location in longitude and latitude, to degrees, minutes and seconds, as well as by street address or pole number (if applicable).

(b)

Ground elevation.

(c)

Height of proposed repeater above ground.

(d)

Type, manufacturer and model number of proposed repeater.

(e)

Proposed output frequency.

(f)

Proposed number of channels.

(g)

Proposed power input.

(h)

Proposed maximum power output per channel.

(i)

Radial plots from any proposed repeater(s) configured as documented above.

(j)

Name, address, phone number and written consent to apply for this repeater special use permit of the owner(s) of the property on which the proposed repeater shall be located and of the owner(s) of the tower or structure on which the proposed repeater shall be located.

(k)

Proposed repeater site layout, grading and utilities at a scale not smaller than one inch equals 40 feet (1:480 or metric equivalent 1:500) showing the entire vicinity within a three-hundred-foot radius of the repeater site with topography drawn with a minimum of two-foot (0.6 meter) contour interval, including:

[1]

Proposed repeater location and appurtenances, if any, and any accessory building (communication equipment shelter or other). Indicate property boundaries of abutters within 300 feet of the repeater and dimensions of all proposed improvements.

[2]

Limits of areas where vegetation is to be cleared or altered and justification for any such clearing or alteration.

[3]

Plans of any proposed access driveway or roadway and parking area at the repeater site. Include grading, drainage, traveled width, and a cross section of the access drive indicating the width, depth of gravel, paving or surface materials.

General requirements.

(1)

No repeater shall be located closer than 50 feet to an existing dwelling unit or residential structure nor less than 25 feet above ground.

(2)

The Planning Board may require the use of screening, painting or camouflage to reduce the visual impact(s) of the repeater(s).

(3)

Repeaters shall be located so as to have the least possible impact on the views of the residents of the Town of Woodstock.

(4)

The provisions of § 260-64I through M of this chapter, as applicable, shall govern the Planning Board's actions with respect to repeaters and special use permits.

§ 260-66 Standards within Scenic Overlay (S-O) District.

[Amended 11-18-2008 by L.L. No. 2-2008; 7-3-2013 by L.L. No. 1-2013; 12-9-2025 by L.L. No. 3-2025]

Prior to the issuance of a building permit for development at a site, including, for example, land development, grading, building pads, the construction of a new house, house addition exceeding 150 square feet in floor area, or accessory structure exceeding 150 square feet in floor area, or any addition or accessory structure of any size, not complying with the standards of § 260-66A(1)(a) through (j) below in this section, or recreational development, or creation of a driveway, or prior to the creation of a cleared right-of-way or any other cleared access greater than six feet in width, or cleared right-of-way or access less than six feet in width where the grading or earthmoving is proposed, the Planning Board shall undertake special use permit review. This special use permit review shall be in accordance with the general standards set forth in § 260-62 above and in accordance with the additional standard that the visual and environmental impact of the proposed development shall be mitigated both within its immediate environs and as viewed from a distance through the measures listed below. Recreational development, for example decks, swimming pools, courts for sporting activities, etc., are to be limited in scope or may be denied at the discretion of the Planning Board. § 260-66C provides additional information regarding prohibited activities.

(1)

The proposed development shall include the following measures:

(a)

The minimization of cut and fill activity and the effective vegetative restoration of all disturbed areas.

(b)

The use of building materials, colors and textures designed to blend with the natural environment and the prohibition of highly reflective materials. Windows shall be minimized. Where window coverage exceeds 25% of any one side of the proposed building, tints, coatings, screens or films designed to reduce exterior glare shall be utilized on the elevation exceeding the standard. The Planning Board reserves the right to require glare-reduction materials where window coverage is less than or equal to 25% and may also determine that the application of antiglare material is unnecessary when there is no potential for the elevation in question to be seen from anywhere beyond the boundaries of the subject property.

(c)

Respect for natural features including foliage, drainageways, contours, and landforms.

(d)

The prohibition of development along and/or projecting above ridge lines. The building envelope of any site plan must preserve a minimum of 100 feet of forest from the physical ridge line. In addition, the restriction of development at other visually prominent locations, so that development is as visually inconspicuous as possible when seen from a distance and from lower altitudes. These measures preserve tree lines, forest canopies, and the environmental and visual value of trees in the Scenic Overlay District.

(e)

The encouragement of natural buffers and other vegetative screening between land uses, as well as between developed areas and public roadways, including the use of conservation easements and similar devices to preserve and protect visually prominent open spaces.

(f)

The shielding of all outdoor lighting fixtures in the manner described in § 260-29C of this chapter.

(g)

The minimizing of tree cutting. The applicant is expected to avoid any non-essential tree cutting, modification, or removal, regardless of size, in the visible canopy of the Scenic Overlay. Activities to be avoided include but are not limited to, clear cutting, topping, limbing, or any practices that would harm the health of these trees. "Non-essential" tree cutting shall be understood to mean trees having no fundamental impact on the buildability of the lot, the personal safety of owners or visitors to the property, or the safety of existing structures. The Zoning Enforcement Officer shall be the final arbiter of essential and non-essential tree cutting. Non-essential tree cutting is only allowed where all other measures have been explored and exhausted by the applicant and the tree cutting plan is approved by the Planning Board. Regarding buildability of a lot, scaling down the development should be given priority over removing trees. The Planning Board must approve the planned area of disturbance, and the removal and/or designation of non-essential trees. The removal of dead trees or severely pest damaged trees is allowed.

(h)

While ensuring preservation of the tree canopy and viewshed from below and from a distance, property owners are permitted to preserve the building envelope area that was approved for the property, and maintain the approved clearing around their building(s) for fire safety.

(i)

The Planning Board may require the applicant to supply recent aerial drone footage and drone photos, done by a legally licensed drone operator, of the entire area impacted prior to the approval of the proposed development; and additional drone footage filmed after the completion of the development in the Scenic Overlay District. The comparison of these drone photos may be used by the Planning Board to determine compliance with the SUP requirements.

(j)

The Planning Board may require a balloon test, verified by a Planning Board member, to assess impact of the project to the viewscape prior to approval of the Site Plan.

(2)

It shall be made part of the special use permit that all future changes to the exterior of any structure shall adhere to the above measures.

The Planning Board may waive the special use permit required for exterior building permits in the Scenic Overlay District provided that the Planning Board finds that the work to be done is of a minor nature and is consistent with the standards set forth in Subsection A above and, due to the elevation and depression of the land, meets either of the following circumstances:

(1)

The structure or area within the Scenic Overlay District is situated so that it cannot be seen from neighboring escarpments, scenic elevations, roadways, and other aesthetically sensitive areas; and/or

(2)

The modification for which a building permit is requested will not be seen from neighboring escarpments, scenic elevations, roadways, and other aesthetically sensitive areas.

The following uses and activities are prohibited in the Scenic Overlay District. Violations of these and/or other standards in Zoning Law § 260-66 pertaining to the Scenic Overlay District, may result in fines and/or cause Special Use Permit(s) from the Planning Board, and/or Certificate(s) of Occupancy from the Building Department to be revoked.

(1)

All non-essential tree cutting, including clear cutting, commercial logging, topping and limbing of trees in any parcel located within the Scenic Overlay District, destruction of trees as described in § 260-66C(2), violating conditions of the Special Use Permit that affect the viewscape, or commencing or engaging in tree removal/modification on any parcel in the Scenic Overlay District prior to receiving a Special Use Permit to do so, shall be punished by a fine up to $2,500 per day, beginning two weeks after notification to the property owner via certified mail, or any two week period during remediation where planning or implementation is not progressing according to plan and contact with the applicant ceases due to unavailability of the applicant or the representative to whom the applicant has assigned lead responsibility. The daily fine(s) shall be paused when a satisfactory remediation plan including a timely implementation schedule is approved by the Zoning Enforcement Officer and is being implemented according to that schedule. The fine(s) will be held in escrow, partially refundable, taking into consideration the amount of damage, and the completeness, effectiveness, permanence, and speed of the remediation.

"Non-essential" shall be understood to mean having no fundamental impact on the safety and buildability of the lot, the personal safety of owners or visitors to the property, or the safety of existing structures, where all other measures have been explored and exhausted. Additional description of non-essential regulations is included in § 260-66A(1)(g). Maintenance is addressed in § 260-66A(1)(h).

To enforce the above-provided penalties and punishment and such other remedies as may now or hereafter be provided by law, the Building Inspector may maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the Town in any court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with or to restrain by an injunction the violation of such article and to recover, by appropriate civil remedies, any fines, cost, expense or damage sustained by the Town in consequence of such violation.

(2)

Actions taken which result in the destruction of trees, including but not limited to girdling and/or unauthorized application of herbicides.

(3)

Personal wireless service facility.

Utilization of a Woodstock Committee in Assisting Enforcement. The Woodstock Town Board shall assign to a committee, for example the Woodstock Tree Committee, the duties of augmenting and assisting the Planning Board and/or Zoning Enforcement Officer in applying the Standards in the Scenic Overlay District. In cases of severe violations, the Planning Board and/or Zoning Enforcement Officer has the option of requiring escrow funds from the applicant to be used to hire an arborist and/or forester to assess the value of the damage caused by unwarranted tree removal. In addition, the arborist and/or forester can be consulted regarding remediation. In an effort to avoid and mitigate any damage from illegal tree modification in the Scenic Overlay District, the Planning Board or Zoning Enforcement Officer may ask this committee for consultation and assistance on an advisory level on assessing issues regarding the enforcement of the Scenic Overlay standards on clear-cutting and excessive topping and limbing of trees. This Committee, or a consulting arborist and/or forester, funded by applicant escrow, may, upon the request of the Planning Board or Zoning Enforcement Officer, conduct annual or semi-annual follow-up visits to applicants to monitor the health/growth of the trees planted towards repairing the viewscape.

§ 260-67 Standards within Gateway Overlay (G-O) District.

Findings and purpose. As outlined in the Town of Woodstock Comprehensive Plan, Woodstock has been long established as a community of the arts and desires to preserve and encourage that character. In addition, it is found that the protection of particular buildings and other improvements of special character or cultural, recreational, historic or aesthetic value, the enhancement of traffic and pedestrian safety along heavily traveled routes, and the protection of scenic and open space vistas within the Town are of public concern and are required for the protection of the people and the economic base of Woodstock. It is further found that these features at, about, and visible from the intersection of State Routes 375 and 212, which constitute the critical gateway to Woodstock and primary access to its commercial center, are particularly important as a reflection of the Town's character and are so located that appropriate property use and development within that area is a public necessity. Accordingly, the purpose of the Gateway Overlay District is to preserve and promote the cultural and aesthetic heritage of the Town's entrance, to enhance traffic safety for vehicles and pedestrians, and to mitigate traffic congestion at a critical intersection.

Within the Gateway Overlay District, no building, structure or improvement which is visible from a public highway shall be demolished or construction undertaken except pursuant to a special use permit issued by the Planning Board. Nothing herein shall prevent the demolition and clearance of any building which the Zoning Enforcement Officer determines in writing poses a clear and present danger to health and safety or internal renovations or improvements which do not substantially change the use or external appearance of existing or permitted structures.

Planning Board finding.

(1)

The Planning Board shall issue such special use permit only where it finds that:

(a)

The project is located and designed in a manner such that it will have no significant adverse impact on the cultural, aesthetic and historic character of the Gateway Overlay District and will be consistent with the objectives thereof as herein defined;

(b)

The project will have no significant adverse impact on the environment, public health or safety; and

(c)

Any demolition will not have a significant adverse impact on the character of the district.

(2)

Adverse impact for the purposes of this part of this chapter shall be evaluated with reference to the following:

(a)

Impact on vehicular and pedestrian traffic on adjacent roadways;

(b)

Building location, configuration and scale, including height, roofline and setbacks in the context of existing adjacent or connected structures and lot lines;

(c)

Facades, including fenestration, materials, transparency, and porches;

(d)

Character and location of uses;

(e)

Preservation of landmark or historic structures;

(f)

Preservation of views and open spaces;

(g)

Road extensions and access safety for vehicles and pedestrians;

(h)

Relationship to other existing Gateway Overlay District properties;

(i)

Street and sidewalk improvements;

(j)

Adequate on-site parking; and

(k)

Signage and lighting.

Application procedure.

(1)

Contents of application.

(a)

An application for a special use permit under this section shall be filed in five copies with the Zoning Enforcement Officer and shall include:

[1]

The name and address of the applicant.

[2]

One or more photographs and a site plan of the property showing the relationship to neighboring properties, existing structures and natural features.

[3]

Any available information, drawings or photographs which describe the history and prior appearance of the property.

[4]

In the case of proposed construction or alteration, the application shall include a full description of the work proposed, including the scale, color, materials, general design and architectural detailing and elevations, intended use and other features of any proposed improvement.

[5]

Where appropriate, information supplied shall include color or material samples.

[6]

In the case of a proposed demolition, the effect of such proposed demolition in light of the individual history, style and prior use of the land or building in question and other information supporting a finding of no adverse impact for demolition pursuant to Subsections C and E.

(2)

All information shall be in sufficient detail to enable the Planning Board to consider the findings required by Subsection C above.

Procedure and required finding.

(1)

Upon receipt of an application, the Zoning Enforcement Officer shall refer the application to the Planning Board. The Planning Board may require the applicant to furnish additional material or information, and the application shall not be deemed complete until such additional information has been furnished. The Planning Board shall evaluate the appropriateness of the proposed work or demolition in light of the objectives and findings required by this section.

(a)

In the case of a proposed demolition, the Planning Board shall also evaluate the proposal in light of the demolition finding in Subsection D above.

(b)

In the case of proposed construction or alteration, the Planning Board shall make a written finding as to the conformity of such project with the required findings for the proposed work.

(c)

In the case of a proposal deemed nonconforming, the Planning Board shall supply general recommendations in writing as to how the proposed work could be modified to warrant issuance of a special use permit, assuming that such modification is possible.

(2)

In order to grant a special use permit under this section, the Planning Board shall explicitly set forth the basis of conformity or nonconformity with the required findings and objectives hereunder.

Uses permitted in the Gateway Overlay District which are not otherwise permitted in R5, R3 and R1.5 and HR Districts:

(1)

Uses permitted:

(a)

Cultural facilities, such as performance and rehearsal facilities, theaters not to exceed 300 seats, museums, archives, art galleries and libraries.

(b)

Retail and/or restaurant uses directly related to, incidental to, and in support of a cultural facility, but not including sales of food to be consumed off the premises. The total of such retail and/or restaurant uses shall be no larger than the cultural facility in total floor area.

(c)

Motels or hotels having not more than 40 sleeping rooms, which may have restaurants seating not more than 100 diners, provided that such hotel, motel or restaurant is situated on the same lot with a cultural facility, which facility shall consist of not less than 50% of the project's lot coverage.

(2)

Any of the foregoing uses shall comply with and be governed by the provisions regulating the Hamlet Commercial (HC) District and shall be subject to the same accessory requirements and allowances as provided therein.

Gateway Overlay District bonuses. In the event that the proposed project is a cultural center and qualifies as a use permitted pursuant to this section, the Planning Board may, at its discretion, grant the developer thereof certain bonuses and relief from other provisions of this chapter, as follows:

(1)

Lot coverage restrictions shall be modified, provided that in no event shall the aggregate lot coverage of all structures on a lot exceed 40%, and provided that on-site parking complies fully with § 260-30 of this chapter.

(2)

Setback requirements may be modified, but in no event shall they be less restrictive than those which are listed for the R1.5 District as listed in § 260-16, the Schedule of Area and Bulk Regulations, of this chapter.

(3)

Accessory uses otherwise limited to residents or occupants of a hotel or motel pursuant to § 260-63M may be made available to the general public.

Gateway Overlay (G-O) District description. The Gateway Overlay District is bounded and described as follows: beginning at the intersection of Riseley Lane and Route 375; south along the center line of Route 375 to the northerly intersection of Birch Lane with Route 375; east along the center of Birch Lane to a sharp bend to the south; northeast from the bend in Birch Lane to the center of the Chestnut Hill Road Bridge crossing Sawkill Creek; north along the center of Chestnut Hill Road to the center line of Route 212; west along the center line of Route 212 to its intersection with Plochmann Lane; north along the center line of Plochmann Lane 300 feet; west along a line parallel to and 300 feet to the north of Route 212 to the intersection of Ferguson Creek passing under Route 212 to the intersection of Ferguson Creek with Sawkill Creek; east along the center of Sawkill Creek to a point 300 feet to the west of Route 375; south along a line parallel to and 300 feet west of Route 375 to Riseley Lane; and east along the center of Riseley Lane to the point of beginning. If any property is partially within and partially without the Gateway Overlay District, the property shall be deemed entirely within the Gateway Overlay District if more than 50% of such property falls within the Gateway Overlay District. If less than 50% of such property falls within the Gateway Overlay District, only such portion thereof as falls within the Gateway Overlay District shall be subject to its provisions.

§ 260-68 Permit procedure.

The Planning Board shall review and act on all special permit uses in accordance with the procedure specified herein.

Application and fee. All applications made to the Planning Board shall be in writing, on forms prescribed by said Board, and shall be accompanied by the following:

(1)

A sketch site plan as otherwise required in § 260-75 of this chapter;

(2)

A list of all contiguous landowners;

(3)

Such additional information as is required for certain uses under § 260-63 above; and

(4)

Payment of the applicable fee in accordance with the fee schedule established and annually reviewed by the Town Board.

Public notice and hearing.[1]

(1)

The Planning Board shall fix a time and place for a public hearing on any such special use permit application and shall provide public notice which shall appear at least five days prior to the public hearing in the official newspaper or newspapers of the Town, as designated by the Town Board. A copy of said public notice shall be mailed by the Planning Board to the applicant, the Ulster County Planning Board and all contiguous property owners at least 10 days before the opening of the public hearing.

(2)

A public hearing on an application for special use permit shall be scheduled and conducted by the Planning Board within 62 days of the date of the Planning Board meeting at which, pursuant to SEQRA, a negative declaration has been adopted or a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) has been accepted as being sufficient to commence the public comment period.

[1]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

Decisions. Within 62 days of the date of completion of the hearing, the Planning Board shall approve, disapprove or approve with modifications the special use permit application and shall specify what modifications, if any, are necessary.[2]

[2]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

When an application for a special use permit involves property that is within 500 feet of an adjacent municipality, as defined in § 239-nn of the General Municipal Law, the Planning Board shall give notice to the adjacent municipality by mail or electronic transmission to the clerk of the adjacent municipality at least 10 days prior to any hearing.[3]

[3]

Editor's Note: Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

§ 260-69 Effect of permit approval.

No building permit shall be issued for any structure regulated by this article until such special use permit has received Planning Board approval and a copy of a resolution to that effect has been presented to the Zoning Enforcement Officer.

No certificate of occupancy or use shall be issued for any structure or use of land covered by this article until the structure is completed or the land developed in strict accordance with the Planning Board resolution of special use permit approval and applicable requirements of this chapter.

Any use for which a special use permit may be granted shall be deemed a conforming use in the district in which it is located, provided that such permit shall be deemed to affect only the lot or portion thereof for which such permit has been granted.

The Planning Board may require in its resolution of approval that a special use permit be renewed periodically. Such renewal may be withheld only after public hearing and upon specific determination by the Planning Board that such conditions as may have been prescribed in conjunction with the issuance of the original permit have not been or are no longer being complied with. In such cases, a period of 60 days shall be granted for full compliance by the applicant prior to denying the renewal of the special use permit.

The granting of a special use permit in a Flood-Fringe Overlay (FF-O) District shall not be held to constitute a representation, guarantee or warranty of any kind by the Town of Woodstock or by any official or employee thereof regarding the practicability or safety of any structure or use or the proper functioning of the proposed facilities and plans and shall not be held to create a liability upon, or cause of action against, such public body, official or employee for any damage or injury that may result pursuant to such development or use.

§ 260-70 Reimbursable costs.

Reasonable costs incurred by the Planning Board for private consultation fees, fees for technical and engineering services, legal fees, or other expenses in connection with the review of a proposed special use permit shall be charged to the applicant. Such reimbursable costs shall be in addition to the fee required in § 260-68A(4) above. The Planning Board shall make a reasonable estimate of the amount of expenses that it expects to incur during the course of each application for a special use permit. The amount so determined by the Planning Board shall be deposited by the applicant in escrow with the Town Clerk prior to the Planning Board's commencing any review of the application. If the amount so deposited is exhausted or diminished to the point that the Planning Board determines that the remaining amount will not be sufficient to complete the review of the application, the Planning Board shall notify the applicant of the additional amount that must be deposited with the Town Clerk. If the applicant fails to replenish the escrow account or there are unpaid amounts for which the applicant is responsible pursuant to this provision, the Planning Board, at its discretion, may:

(1)

Cease review of the application until such amounts are paid; or

(2)

Deny the application.

In no event, however, shall any special use permit be issued until all such sums have been paid in full.

§ 260-71 Expiration of permit.

A special use permit shall be deemed to authorize only one particular special use and shall expire if the activity is not commenced and diligently pursued within 12 months of the date of issuance of the special use permit or if the special use ceases for more than 12 months for any reason. Where the special use permit activity has not commenced within 12 months of the date of issuance of the special use permit, a twelve-month extension of the approval may be granted prior to the expiration date by a majority vote of the Planning Board upon written request by the applicant.

If a condition of approval states that the special use permit must be renewed periodically, the holder of the special use permit shall submit to the Planning Board a written request that the special use permit be renewed. Such request must be submitted prior to the expiration date of the special use permit. The Planning Board may renew the permit only upon the completion of a public hearing.

§ 260-72 Revocation of permit.

A use authorized by special use permit may be revoked by the Planning Board if it is found and determined after notice and a public hearing, held in a manner as provided for by law, that there has been a failure to comply with any of the terms, conditions, or requirements imposed by said special use permit.

§ 260-73 Relief from decisions.

Any person or persons jointly or severally aggrieved by any decision of the Planning Board under this article may apply to the Supreme Court of the State of New York for relief through a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR) of the State of New York. Such proceeding shall be governed by the specific provisions of Article 78, except that the action must be initiated as provided therein within 30 days after the filing of the Planning Board's decision in the office of the Town Clerk.