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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-6118-A Staff AnalysisApril 3, 1997 ITEM NO.: E NAME: LOCATION• OWNER/APPLICANT• PROPOSAL: ORDINANCE DESIGN STANDARDS: 1. Site Location: FILE NO.: Z -6118-A Sprint Spectrum - Revised Conditional Use Permit 8451 Cantrell Road City of Little Rock/Sprint Spectrum by Drew Basham A revised conditional use permit is requested to increase the height of the existing 100 foot tall monopole tower to 140 feet. The property is zoned R-2. The site is located within the Little Rock Municipal Water Works, (Jackson Reservoir) site on Cantrell Road, approximately 1/4 mile east of Reservoir Road. 2. Compatibility with Neighborhood: The existing tower site is located inside the fenced Little Rock Municipal Water Works Reservoir site at 8401 Cantrell Road. The tower is located on the south side of the lake in a large wooded area which is adjacent to and north of Reservoir Park. The 100 foot tall tower site is surrounded by tall, mature trees. The proposed 40 foot height addition to the 100 foot tall monopole tower should have no negative impact on the properties to the east, west and north. Staff is unsure as to the visual impact this proposed 140 foot tall tower will have on the properties to the south. The applicant needs to submit additional information (photos, elevations, etc.) to the Planning Commission. 3. On -Site Drives and Parkin Access to this site is gained by utilizing a 12 foot driveway off of an existing asphalt drive within the park property. Parking is provided at the tower site for a service technician who will occasionally visit the site for maintenance purposes. No additional parking is required. April 3, 1997 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z -6118-A 4. Screening and Buffers: No comments 5. Public Works Comments: No comments 6. Utility and Fire Dg artment Comments: L.R. Fire Department - Fire hydrant required within 500 feet of the site. 7. Staff Analysis: The applicant, Sprint Spectrum, is requesting a revised conditional use permit to increase the height of an existing 100 foot tall monopole tower to 140 feet. The existing site is located within the R-2 zoned Jackson Reservoir property. On April 25, 1996, Sprint Spectrum received a conditional use permit for the construction of a 100 foot tall monopole tower and two small equipment cabinets to be located on their lease site within the Little Rock Municipal Water Works Jackson Reservoir site on Cantrell Road. The tower site is located on the south side of the lake, adjacent to Reservoir Park, in an area which is heavily wooded. Upon final frequency testing of this site, Sprint's radio frequency engineers discovered that the existing height was not adequate to provide the necessary coverage for the surrounding area. Due to the topography, coverage to the north and southwest of this existing site is very limited. Therefore, Sprint Spectrum is requesting to extend the height of the monopole to 140 feet to solve this problem. As with the first conditional use permit, Sprint Spectrum is requesting a variance to allow the tower to be extended to a height of 140 feet. The Zoning Ordinance allows a maximum height of 75 feet for ground -mounted towers. The original conditional use permit (April 25, 1996) allowed a maximum height of 100 feet. A positive aspect of this request is that the height extension will allow for one additional wireless carrier. The increased height will provide an opportunity for another carrier to mount around the 120 foot level. 2 April 3, 1997 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z -5118-A The existing 100 foot monopole is definitely very secluded and has a minimal amount of visibility from the surrounding properties. With the 40 foot height extension, the tower should continue to have minimal visibility from the east, west and north. -However, staff has concerns that the increased tower height may have adverse impacts on the large single family residential area to the south. Staff understands that Sprint Spectrum, as well as the other wireless carriers, is mandated by the FCC to provide a certain level of coverage and service to its customers. Staff suggests that Sprint Spectrum provide justification to the Commission which shows that the increased height is necessary to satisfy this federally mandated level of coverage and service. Staff also suggests that Sprint Spectrum present the Commission with information (photographs, elevations, etc.) which shows exactly what the visual impact will be on the surrounding properties, especially to the south. 8. Staff Recommendation: Staff recommends that the applicant provide the Planning Commission with justification of the 40 foot height extension request and information which shows exactly what the visual impact will be on the surrounding properties. If, based on this information, the Commission approves the revised conditional use permit, staff recommends the following conditions: 1. Compliance with the Little Rock Fire Department Comment 2. The height extension must be constructed to allow a second wireless carrier at or near the 120 foot level. SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT: (JANUARY 30, 1997) Drew Basham and Chris deBin were present, representing the application. Staff gave a brief description of the proposal. Drew Basham presented the Committee with photos depicting the proposed height extension's visibility from surrounding properties. 3 April 3, 1997 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E(Cont.)FILE NO.: Z -6118-A There was a lengthy discussion concerning whether or not the proposed 140 foot monopole would be visible from surrounding properties. The Committee recommended that the applicant notify the single family residents to the south who may be visually impacted by the increased height. After further discussion, the Committee accepted the presentation and forwarded the issue to the full Commission for final action. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (FEBRUARY 20, 1997) The staff informed the Commission that the City Attorney's Office had requested a deferral of this item. Staff also informed the Commission that the deferral would not be charged to the applicant. The Chairman placed the item before the Commission for inclusion within the Consent Agenda for deferral to the April 3, 1997 agenda. A motion to that effect was made. The motion was passed by a vote of 11 ayes and 0 nays. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (MARCH 20, 1997) The City Attorney's Office has requested that staff defer all monopole/tower items on the April 3, 1997 agenda. The City Attorney may wish to brief the Planning Commission as to this matter. Staff recommends that Z -6118-A be deferred to the May 15, 1997 Planning Commission meeting. This deferral will not be charged to the applicants. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Drew Basham, Randy Frazier and representing the application. description of the request. (APRIL 3, 1997) Chris deBin were present, Staff gave a brief Randy Frazier, attorney for Sprint, addressed the Commission in favor of the revised conditional use permit. He gave a brief description of the area and the notices sent by Sprint to the residents to the south. Mr. Frazier presented the Commission with computer-generated graphics to show what the tower will look like after the height extension. Mr. Frazier also addressed the co -location of an additional carrier on this tower at the 120 foot level. 4 April 3, 1997 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E Cant. FILE NO.: Z -6118-A There was a brief discussion concerning the co -location issues associated with this tower. There was further discussion regarding the reasons for the height extension. Ruth Bell spoke to the application. She asked if the tower could be made to look like a pine tree. Randy Frazier stated that it could be done but would not be feasible in this case because the tower was so much taller than the existing trees in the area. A motion was made to approve the application as recommended by staff. The motion passed by a vote of 9 ayes, 1 nays and 1 absent. 0