HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-8570-C Staff AnalysisAugust 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B FILE NO.: Z-8570-C
NAME: Verizon Wireless — Tower Use Permit
LOCATION: 20001 Kanis Road
OWNER/APPLICANT: John Bale/Jim Curley — BTE Management Group
represented by Randal Frazier
PROPOSAL: A tower use permit is requested to allow for the
addition of 15 feet to the height of this existing
150 foot tall monopole cellular tower.
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SITE LOCATION:
The site is located outside the city limits, within the City's Zoning
jurisdiction. The WCF site is located 500± feet south of Kanis Road, west
of Chenal Downs.
COMPATIBILITY WITH NEIGHBORHOOD:
The existing WCF site consists of a tower and equipment within a fenced,
50 ft. X 50 ft. lease area in a 200± acre tract. This portion of the parent
tract is heavily wooded. The parent tract extends for several hundred feet
to the south and west. Properties to the north and extending west are
wooded and undeveloped. The Chenal Downs neighborhood, consisting
of larger homes on 5+ acre tracts, is located to the east. The WCF site is
150 ft. from the common property line between the 200± acre parent tract
and Chenal Downs. The center of the tower is 185 ft. from that property
line. The tower itself is a stealth design with the antennae not extending
out.
Notice of the public hearing was sent to all owners of properties located
within 200 feet of the boundary of the 200± acre parent tract. There is no
neighborhood association in the area that is registered with the City.
3. ON SITE DRIVES AND PARKING -
A gravel driveway within a 30 foot access easement provides access to
the WCF site off of Kanis Road. A gate is located across the driveway at
Kanis. A concrete driveway apron will be installed as required by Public
Works.
August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.
4. SCREENING AND BUFFERS:
FILE NO_: Z-8570-C
Landscaping and screening are to comply with the provisions of Chapter
36, Article XI I, Section 36 — 593 as follow:
(1) All existing and new WCF shall be screened and landscaped as
follows:
(a) All WCF subject to this section shall contain a permanent
six-foot landscape strip parallel with all sides of the primary use
area and outside of the opaque fence but within the lease area,
except for a space for ingress and egress to the primary
use area.
(b) An eight -foot opaque fence shall be constructed, finished side
facing outward, around the primary use area to provide
screening and a background for required landscaping within the
six-foot landscape strip.
(c) The opaque fence shall also satisfy the security fence shall also
satisfy the security fence requirement of subsection (f).
The landscape strip on each side of the primary use area shall
be planted with two (2) trees of a two-inch caliper which will
grow to a spacing of fifteen (15) feet which will grow to a
minimum twenty (20) feet in height at maturity. Each landscape
strip shall also be planted with evergreen shrubs of thirty (30)
inches height at planting, with a maximum spacing of forty-eight
(48) inches on center and which will grow to a minimum height
of sixty (60) inches at maturity.
5. PUBLIC WORKS COMMENTS:
1. Kanis Road is classified on the Master Street Plan as a minor arterial.
A dedication of right-of-way 45 feet from centerline will be required.
2. The driveway should be constructed with a concrete apron per City
Ordinance.
6. UTILITY. FIRE DEPT. AND CATA COMMENTS:
Wastewater: Outside service boundary, no comment.
Entergy: Entergy does not object to the height of the existing cell tower as
long as the electrical distribution facilities serving the existing tower are
not impacted.
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August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-8570-C
Centerpoint Energy: No comment received.
AT&T: No comment received.
Central Arkansas Water: No objection.
Fire Department: No Comments.
Building Codes: Project is subject to full commercial plan review approval
prior to issuance of a building permit. For information on submittal
requirements and the review process, contact a commercial plans
examiner: Structural Plan/Calculations required.
Mark Alderfer at 501.371.4875; malderfer(a-).littlerock.org.
County Planning: No Comments.
CATA: Site located outside of CATA service area.
SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT: (JUNE 10, 2015)
Attorney Randal Frazier was present representing the application. Staff
presented the item. At staffs request, Mr. Frazier briefly discussed the Spectrum
Act and the Federal Communications Commission final rule implementing the
statutory requirements of the Spectrum Act. He stated the FCC's ruling
mandates that the City approve the proposed height increase. Staff stated the
City Attorney's office was reviewing the issue and any information received from
that office would be forwarded to the Commission. The various agency
comments were noted.
The Committee then forwarded the item to the full Commission.
STAFF ANALYSIS:
A Wireless Communication Facility (WCF) is located within a 50 ft. X 50 ft. lease
area on the 200± acre tract at 20001 Kanis Road. The property is outside of the
city limits but within the City's zoning jurisdiction. The property is zoned AF.
The WCF was approved at staff level on June 24, 2010. The proposed WCF
complied with all ordinance standards, allowing the staff level approval. The WCF
is comprised of the 50 ft. X 50 ft. lease area containing a 150 ft. tall, stealth -style,
monopole tower and an equipment shelter for the one wireless carrier currently
occupying the site. The compound is enclosed by a screening fence and
landscaping.
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August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.) _ _ FILE NO.: Z-8570-C
A second carrier, Verizon Wireless, is proposed to locate on the WCF site. In
addition to placing an equipment shelter and generator in the compound, Verizon
is proposing to extend the tower height by 15 feet; from 150 feet to 165 feet. The
proposed tower height extension above 150 feet requires approval from the
Planning Commission through the Tower Use Permit process. Verizon has
submitted the following justification in support of the request to increase the
tower height:
Verizon is currently attempting to improve its coverage in and
around the Chenal Downs subdivision. The current coverage in
the area is relatively weak, which results in drop calls, slow data
speeds, and in extreme cases not being able to make or receive
calls. This site will greatly improve outdoor coverage and
provide good in -building coverage for the Chenal Downs area.
Verizon Wireless desires to deploy LTE and XLTE service in the
Sellette area off of Kanis Road in West Little Rock. The existing
tower, while in an adequate location, currently is not tall enough
to provide sufficient in -building coverage to the homes in the
area. Therefore, Verizon Wireless is requesting to extend the
tower to meet this need.
The tower will have setbacks from the boundaries of the parent tract of 185'5"
East, 1,421'8" West, 527'11" North and 783'1" South. The lease area and WCF
compound will not be enlarged. Access to the site off of Kanis Road will remain
where it is. A concrete driveway apron will be installed and right-of-way for Kanis
Road will be dedicated as noted in Public Works Comments.
On December 4, 2014, the Planning Commission reviewed a tower use permit
application to allow the existing tower to be increased in height from 150 feet
to 170 feet. There was opposition from an adjacent property owner in the
Chenal Downs Subdivision. Staff recommended approval of the request. The
Commission denied the application with a vote of 4 ayes, 4 noes and 3 absent.
The applicant appealed the Commission's action to the Board of Directors. On
February 3, 2015, the Board denied the application with a vote of 5 ayes and
5 noes.
The current application was filed after the effective date of the Federal
Communications Commission Implementation of Statutory requirements.
Although the application was filed less than one year after the Commission
and Board's denial of the 2014 application, typically not allowed per the
Commission's Bylaws, staff believes the change in circumstance justifies the
new application.
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August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-8570-C
The applicant has provided the following summary of the issue:
On February 22, 2012, Congress passed the Middle Class Tax
Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, 47 U.S.C. 1455. §6409(a) of
that statute is commonly known as the "Spectrum Act" and states
in Subsection (a)(1): "...notwithstanding section 704 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 [codified as 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(7)]
or any other provision of law, a State or local government may
not deny, and shall approve, any eligible facilities request for a
modification of an existing wireless tower or base station that does
not substantially change the physical dimensions of such tower or
base station" (emphasis added). Subsection (a)(2) of the Spectrum
Act further defines an "eligible facilities request" as a collocation of
new transmission equipment. The Applicant is proposing to collocate
new transmission equipment on an existing tower —the specific
purpose of the Spectrum Act.
On January 8, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission
("FCC") issued its Final Rule implementing the statutory
requirements of the Spectrum Act which is entitled "Acceleration
of Broadband Deployment by Improving Wireless Facilities Siting
Policies." This Final Rule became effective April 8, 2015 and defines
what constitutes "substantially change". The ruling became effective
April 8, 2015. It holds that for towers outside the public rights -of -way
(the existing tower which is the subject of the Application is outside
of the public right-of-way) a modification of an existing tower
"substantially changes" the physical dimensions of a tower if it meets
either of the following criteria: 1) it increases the height of the tower
by more than ten percent (10%) or 2) it increases the height of the
tower by the height of one additional antenna array with separation
from the nearest existing antenna not to exceed twenty feet (20');
whichever is the greater.
Applying the FCC's ruling, the existing tower which is the subject of
the Application can be increased by twenty feet (20'). The Application
seeks a height increase of only fifteen feet (15') which is ten percent
(10%) of the tower's existing height of one hundred fifty feet (150').
The requested extension does not constitute a "substantial change"
under the Spectrum Act and the FCC's Final Rule. Consequently,
the City of Little Rock "may not deny and shall approve" the height
increase.
Furthermore, pursuant to those portions of the Spectrum Act
highlighted above, the City of Little Rock cannot rely on "any other
provision of law" to deny the Application. This prohibition would
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August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.
FILE NO.: Z-8570-C
include any local procedural rules or regulations of the City of Little
Rock that prohibit substantially similar applications from being
filed within one year of the denial of a previous application. The
Application hereby submitted is a separate and distinct one from a
previous application filed by the Applicant which sought a Tower Use
Permit for a twenty foot (20') increase in the tower height under the
City of Little Rock's Wireless Communications Facilities ordinances,
Article XIII, Sec. 36-590 et. seq. The current Application is being filed
pursuant to the rights afforded the Applicant under the Spectrum Act
and the Final Rule and seeks only a fifteen foot (15') increase in
height of the existing tower.
As stated above, federal, law states that the City "may not deny, and
shall approve" an eligible facilities request. The Application
represents an eligible facilities request.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of the requested Tower Use Permit subject to
compliance with the following conditions:
1. Compliance with the comments and condition outlined in Sections 4, 5 and 6
of the agenda staff report.
STAFF REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION:
On June 15, 2015, the applicant requested deferral of this item to the August 13,
2015 meeting to allow an opportunity to address a neighbor's concerns. Staff
supports the deferral request.
PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (JULY 2, 2015)
The applicant was not present. There were no objectors present. Staff informed
the commission that, on June 15, 2015, the applicant had requested deferral of
the item to allow an opportunity to address a neighbor's concerns. There was no
further discussion. The item was placed on the consent agenda and deferred to
the August 13, 2015 meeting by a vote of 10 ayes, 0 noes and 1 absent.
August 13, 2015
ITEM NO.: B (Cont.
FILE NO.: 7-8570-C
PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (AUGUST 13, 2015)
Staff informed the Commission that on August 4, 2015 the applicant had
requested withdrawal of the item. Staff recommended approval of the withdrawal
request. The item was placed on the consent agenda and approved for
withdrawal with a vote of 9 ayes, 0 noes and 2 absent.
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