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AN ORDINANCE REPEALING, ADOPTING, AND amending Portions of the land development code relating to telecommunication facilities
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Summary and Background Information:
The existing standards for telecommunications facilities were first enacted in 1997, and have not been substantially reviewed or updated since that time. This section of the Land Development Code was identified by staff for updating in the 2015 work plan. Further, during the last round of LDC house-keeping amendments in January 2015, City Council directed staff to draft amendments to the standards for telecommunications in response to citizen and industry feedback about the lack of potential locations for new facilities in the northern range to enhance the coverage and service provided to residents.
Over the last year, staff has researched this issue and believes that these amendments will bring the standards for telecommunications facilities closer in line with other metro-area jurisdictions, as well as address advances in technology over the last 20 years and provide means for better cellular coverage throughout the city while maintaining a high-quality visual appearance. This also provides an opportunity to restructure the existing standards to be more clear and easier to interpret by staff and the industry.
To this end, a new division in Article V - Uses and Accessory Structures will be created for telecommunications facilities. This new division will contain standards for five types of facilities: co-locations on existing facilities; new monopoles, new building-mounted facilities, new concealed facilities, and new pole-mounted facilities. The specific standards address the bulk standards, design requirements, and landscaping for each of the types of new facilities. The use schedule has also been converted from zone districts to land uses to allow greater flexibility in the locations where new facilities can be placed, providing for better coverage while protecting residential use...
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