18J.15.270 Telecommunication Towers and Wireless Facilities

18J.15.270 Telecommunication Towers and Wireless Facilities.

A. Applicability. All telecommunication towers and wireless facilities shall be subject to the applicable standards of this Section.

B. Design Objectives. Provide standards to protect the public health, safety, and welfare and minimize visual impact while furthering the development of enhanced telecommunications and broadband services in unincorporated Pierce County. These standards were designed to comply with federal laws and regulations. The provisions of these regulations are not intended to, and shall not be interpreted to, prohibit or to have the effect of prohibiting telecommunications or personal wireless services.

C. Exemptions. The following are exempt from the provisions of this Section and shall be permitted in all zones:

1. Antennas and related equipment, excluding poles, no more than 3 feet in height.

2. Wireless radio utilized for temporary emergency communications in the event of a disaster.

3. Licensed amateur (ham) radio stations.

4. Satellite dish antennas less than 3 feet in diameter, including direct to home satellite services, when used as an accessory use of the property.

5. Routine maintenance, replacement of equipment of a similar design, size, and color, or repair of a personal wireless service facility and related equipment (excluding structural work or changes in height or dimensions of towers or buildings).

6. Temporary wireless communication facilities, also known as a cell on wheels, or "COW," which are utilized for a limited time. Such facilities shall not be deployed in a permanent manner, shall not have a permanent foundation, and shall be limited to the following purposes:

a. The reconstruction of a permanent facility and limited to a duration of 12 months from the date of approval unless an extension is requested at least 30 days prior to the expiration date; or

b. Large scale community events limited to the duration of the event, plus 10 days prior to the event and 10 days after; or

c. Emergency communications equipment to be used in anticipation of and during a declared public emergency or emergency exercise as declared by the Emergency Management Department.

7. Eligible Facilities Request pursuant to 47 C.F.R. § 1.6100 subject to the provisions of PCC 18J.15.272.

8. Small Wireless Facilities and Distributed Antenna Systems subject to the provisions of PCC 18J.15.275.

D. Priority of Locations Criteria. An applicant siting a facility subject to priority location criteria shall review the criteria contained in the table below. Only when the applicant is unable to meet a group of criteria shall the next group of criteria be considered. The hierarchy of criteria is divided by three separate permitting processes: permitted outright (P), permitted by Administrative Use Permit (A), and permitted by a Conditional Use Permit (C). If the applicant is unable to meet a criterion within an identified permit group below, an increased level of review is required. The order of criteria for locating facilities shall be as follows:

Permitted Outright (P)	Antennas and towers on public property that has been identified by the appropriate jurisdiction as a desirable location for wireless facilities.
	Antennas or dishes that are located a minimum of 100 feet from an existing residential dwelling unit.
	Antennas or dishes on property that is improved with uses that are classified in the commercial or industrial use category.
	Towers in Urban Districts and Centers when they are at least 200 feet from an MSF-zoned property.
Administrative Use Permit (A)	Antennas and towers utilizing a camouflaged or a concealed design to eliminate aesthetic impacts.
	Towers that are screened from abutting property lines by vegetation including, but not limited to, existing Douglas Fir trees.
	Towers in Urban Centers and Districts and Rural Centers that do not exceed the height limitations of the underlying zone.
	Antennas and towers on nonresidential sites including, but not limited to, parks, libraries, or churches.
	Antennas on multifamily residential sites.
	Monopole towers not exceeding 150 feet in height and meeting the criteria for a camouflaged or concealed design in subsection E of this Section.
	Any tower that is proposed on a site that contains multiple towers, such as cellular tower farms.
Conditional Use Permit (C)	Any facility that is unable to meet the Priority of Locations criteria outlined in this subsection.

E. Camouflaged or a Concealed Design Criteria. Macro cell towers determined by the County to meet one or more of the following criteria are allowed under PCC 18A.33.230.A, Level 2:

1. The tower is integrated into the environment as a natural or built object typically appearing in the vicinity, screened from view, or integrated with an existing structure that is not a telecommunication tower. Monopine towers are encouraged where there are existing trees on or adjacent to the relevant parcel or lease area. Utility power poles may be modified or replaced at an increased height. Other acceptable designs include, but are not limited to, wireless facilities disguised as or integrated with playfield or stadium lights, other utility structures, or flagpoles.

2. The tower is placed upon a site in such a way that the topography and/or existing vegetation, together with the proposed landscaping, design, and colors of the facility, significantly screen the facility from view or cause it to blend in with surrounding natural features. Among other design options, a new tower shall be considered to have a concealed design under this subsection if it is placed with trees and vegetation, such as Douglas Fir trees, so as to be significantly screened from view.

F. Decision Criteria. In addition to the other provisions of this Section, the Director and/or Hearing Examiner shall address and satisfy the following criteria when conditioning a permit for a proposed facility:

1. Significant visual impacts of a facility shall be minimized through careful design, siting, landscape screening, and innovative techniques. This may involve increasing, if feasible, or reducing setback standards to achieve the maximum visual buffer.

2. Efforts to mitigate impacts and protect the public health and safety shall be exercised to the extent permitted by federal laws and regulations.

3. Potential impacts to adjacent properties shall be minimized through sound engineering practices and the proper siting of antenna support structures.

4. The facility is proposed in a location where the existing topography, vegetation, buildings, or other structures provide the greatest amount of screening.

5. Consideration has been given so that the placement of a macro cell tower has the least possible impact on adjacent properties and their view of Mt. Rainier, Puget Sound, Olympic Mountains, or other vistas that may increase the assessed value as determined by the Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer.

6. When feasible, the facility is significantly screened by placing it in existing trees to the extent that it does not result in significant signal degradation.

7. A macro cell tower shall not be permitted unless the applicant demonstrates that there are no existing towers or support structures available which can accommodate the applicant's proposed antennas within a one-half mile radius. Reasonable fees, costs, or contractual provisions that are necessary to accommodate collocation may not be used as justification to construct a tower within the required separation.

1. Location Criteria/Tower Separation. To promote collocation, macro cell towers shall maintain a one-half mile separation.

a. If reduced separation is requested, the applicant shall demonstrate why it is necessary from a technical standpoint to have a macro cell tower within one-half mile of another macro cell tower whether it is owned or utilized by the applicant or another provider. The distance shall be measured from tower to tower regardless of property lines and roadways.

b. If a technical dispute arises about the required separation, the Hearing Examiner or the Director may require a third party technical study, as described in subsection H of this Section, to resolve the dispute.

c. If it is demonstrated that a macro cell tower must be located within one-half mile of another macro cell tower for technical reasons, the macro cell tower is subject to the priority of location criteria in subsection D of this Section.

2. Antenna Location Criteria. Antennas and any mechanical equipment on or above a building shall be subject to the following:

a. The antenna shall be mounted on a building's rooftop or on a wall of an existing building in a configuration as flush to the wall as technically possible and when mounted on a wall shall not project above the wall on which it is mounted unless the projection is warranted for technical reasons. In no event shall an antenna project more than 16 feet above the peak of the roof.

b. The antenna shall be constructed, painted, or fully screened to match as closely as possible the color and texture of the building and wall on which it is mounted.

c. The antenna may be attached to an existing conforming mechanical equipment enclosure that projects above the roof of the building but may not project any higher than the enclosure or 16 feet above the peak of the roof, whichever is greater.

d. If an accessory equipment shelter is proposed, it must blend in with the building or structure's architectural character and color. Such facilities will be considered architecturally and visually compatible if they are camouflaged to disguise the facility.

3. Setbacks. The required setback for a macro cell tower shall be based on the setback for the underlying zone, and shall be increased by 1 foot for every foot that the height of the tower exceeds 60 feet, or the tower's highest engineered breakpoint, as certified by a registered structural engineer, except as follows:

a. The setback in the EC, MUC, and FL zones shall be based on the setback of the underlying zone only.

b. That portion of a tower or antenna necessary to accommodate collocation for a current or future provider shall not be used in calculating the required setback.

c. Towers in rural areas shall maintain a setback from city limits and urban growth areas equal to the height of the tower.

4. Tower and Antenna Height. Macro cell towers are exempt from the height requirements of the underlying zone. Height limitations are based upon the Use Category level of the facility.

a. The applicant shall provide documentation to the Department that demonstrates that the macro cell tower is the minimum height required to function satisfactorily. No tower that is taller than this minimum height shall be approved.

b. Macro cell towers that accommodate collocation are permitted to increase the height of the tower to an elevation that will accommodate all necessary antennas. This provision shall not be interpreted to authorize a tower that exceeds the height established by the Use Category level.

5. Color. Towers shall have a color generally matching the surroundings or background that minimizes their visibility, unless a different color is required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

6. Lights, Signals, and Signs. No signals, lights, or signs shall be permitted on towers unless required by the FAA, FCC, or other state or federal authority.

7. Historic Classification. A macro cell tower shall not be permitted on property designated as a landmark or as a part of an historic district, unless such tower has been approved by the Landmarks Commission.

8. Equipment Structures. Ground-level equipment, buildings, and, to the maximum extent feasible, the tower base shall be screened from public view pursuant to this Section. The standards for the equipment buildings are as follows:

a. The maximum floor area is 400 square feet and the maximum height is 12 feet for each provider. The equipment building may be located no more than 250 feet from the tower or antenna and shall comply with the setback regulations for the underlying zone.

b. Ground-level buildings shall be screened from view by landscape plantings, fencing, or other appropriate means as specified herein or in PCC 18J.15.040 of the Development Regulations. Required landscape plantings shall be installed around the perimeter of the required security fence.

c. Equipment structures mounted on a roof shall have a finish similar to the exterior building walls. Equipment for a roof-mounted antenna may also be located within the building on which the antenna is mounted.

d. In instances where equipment structures are located in residential zones or adjacent to existing residential land uses, and if the equipment structure houses motorized or electronic equipment, airborne sound transmission shall not exceed the noise levels prescribed by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.

e. An alternative to the landscaping and screening requirement may be approved by the Director or Examiner in review of an Administrative Use Permit or Conditional Use Permit. Alternatives include, but are not limited to, exemplary architectural design of the equipment structure.

9. Fencing. For new macro cell towers and equipment shelters, a wall, slatted chain link fencing, or wooden fence not less than 6 feet in height from the finished grade shall be provided. Access to the tower shall be through a locked gate. This standard shall not apply to towers and equipment shelters mounted onto, or located inside, an existing building.

10. Required Parking. Except for wireless facilities in the right-of-way, at least one off-street parking stall, or its equivalent, shall be required for maintenance workers.

11. Federal Requirements. All towers must meet or exceed current standards and regulations of the FAA, the FCC, and any other agency of the Federal government with the authority to regulate towers and antennas.

H. Standards – Third-Party Technical Review. The Hearing Examiner or Director may, at his or her discretion, require a technical review by a third-party expert. The selection of the third-party expert shall be by mutual agreement by the provider and the County or at the discretion of the Examiner. The costs of the technical review shall be borne by the provider. A third-party technical review may include, but is not limited to, a review of:

1. The technical accuracy and completeness of submissions;

2. The technical applicability of analysis techniques and methodologies;

3. The validity of conclusions reached by the applicant; and/or

4. Other specific technical issues as identified by the Hearing Examiner.

I. Standards – Abandonment. The telecommunications service provider for a specific facility shall provide the Department with a copy of the notice to the FCC of intent to cease operations and shall remove the obsolete tower, antennas, and associated structures within one year from the date of said notice.