§ 27-28. Communication towers.

(a)

Purpose. These regulations are intended to provide for the appropriate location and development of communication towers and antennas to serve the residents and businesses of the City of Hurst;

(1)

Minimize any adverse visual impact of towers and antennas through careful design, siting, landscaping and screening;

(2)

Avoid potential damage to adjacent properties from tower failure through engineering and careful siting of tower structures;

(3)

Maximize use of any new or existing communication towers so as to minimize the need to construct new towers and minimize the total number of towers throughout the city;

(4)

Maximize and encourage use of alternative tower structures as primary options rather than construction of additional single-use towers.

(b)

Applicability. The regulations contained in this section shall be applicable to all new towers or antennas in the City of Hurst except as provided below:

(1)

Amateur radio station operators/receive only antennas. This section shall not govern any tower, or the installation of any antenna, that is under forty-five (45) feet in height and is owned and operated by a federally licensed amateur radio station operator or is used exclusively for receive only antennas.

(2)

Pre-existing towers or antennas. Pre-existing towers and pre-existing antennas shall not be required to meet the requirements of this section, other than those required by chapter 23.5.

(3)

All municipal/public domain property and city employees or authorized contractors.

(c)

Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

Administrative official: The City of Hurst City Manager or designee.

Alternative tower structure: Manmade structures such as clock towers, bell towers, church steeples, light poles, electrical transmission towers and similar alternative design mounting structures that camouflage or conceal the presence of antennas and towers.

Antenna: Any exterior apparatus designed for telephonic, radio, or television communications through the sending and/or receiving of electromagnetic waves, excluding satellite dish antennas.

FAA: The Federal Aviation Administration.

FCC: The Federal Communications Commission.

Height: When referring to a tower, or other structure means the distance measured vertically from the finished grade to the highest point on the tower, antenna or structure.

Shared use: The act of locating wireless communications equipment for more than one (1) use on a single antenna facility.

Telecommunications or communications: The transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of audio and/or visual information of the user's choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received.

Tower or structure: A structure constructed as a freestanding structure or in association with a building, other permanent structure or equipment, on which is located one (1) or more antennas intended for transmitting or receiving television, AM/FM radio, digital, microwave, cellular, telephone, or similar forms of electronic communication. The term includes radio and television transmission towers, microwave towers, common carrier towers, and cellular telephone towers. A tower does not include a receive-only home television antenna, or any satellite dish antenna two (2) meters or less in diameter.

Tower, guyed: Any telecommunications tower supported in whole or part by cables anchored to the ground.

Tower, monopole: A self-supporting telecommunications tower which consists of a single vertical pole fixed into the ground and/or attached to a foundation.

(d)

Building permit required. No communications tower or antenna shall be constructed or erected without first obtaining a building permit.

Furthermore, as specified in this section, no communications tower shall be constructed except with approval of a planned development site plan by the Hurst Planning and Zoning Commission and the Hurst City Council. The application procedures contained in this section relating to the application, processing, and determination of whether to grant a site plan approval as specified herein, are in addition to any other provisions and requirements contained in other sections of the City of Hurst Zoning Ordinance.

(1)

Communication towers shall be permitted in nonresidential districts.

(2)

Communication towers are permitted on existing nonresidential buildings or on alternative structures with approval of a building permit, but without obtaining a site plan approval if the nonresidential building or alternative tower structure exceeds fifty (50) feet in height and the antenna will add no more than twenty (20) feet total to the height of the existing building or structure.

(3)

All telecommunication facilities requiring rezoning or site plan approval including towers and related equipment buildings shall be located on a platted lot.

(4)

The effects of radio frequency emissions on persons or the environment shall not be considered in a proceeding involving an application for a permit of a communications tower.

(5)

No telecommunications tower may be constructed if there is a technically suitable space available on an existing tower, building structure, or alternative technology within the service area that the new tower is to serve.

(e)

Application procedures for constructing a communications tower. Application for a building permit or a site plan approval to construct a communications tower must contain the following information and will not be considered until all information is complete:

(1)

An inventory of the applicant's existing towers that are either within the city or within one (1) mile of the border thereof, including specific information about the location, design, and height of each tower. The administrative official may share such information with other applicants applying for administrative approvals or variances under this section or with other organizations seeking to locate antennas within the city; provided, however, that the administrative official is not, by sharing such information, in any way representing or warranting that the sites are available or suitable.

(2)

A site plan drawn to scale clearly indicating the location, height, and design of the proposed tower, equipment cabinets, transmission buildings and other accessory uses, access, parking, fences, and masonry screening walls.

(3)

A legal description of the site.

(4)

The separation distance from other towers within a one-mile radius of the proposed tower site.

(5)

A description of anticipated maintenance needs, including frequency of service, personnel needs, equipment needs, and traffic, noise or safety impacts of the maintenance.

(6)

A report from a professional structural engineer licensed in the State of Texas, documenting the following:

a.

Tower height and design, including technical, engineering, economic, and other pertinent factors governing selection of the proposed design. A cross-section of the tower structure shall be included.

b.

Total anticipated capacity of the structure, including the number and types of antennas which can be accommodated.

c.

Evidence of the structural integrity of the tower structure.

d.

Failure characteristics of the tower and evidence that site and setbacks are of adequate size to contain a failure within the site.

e.

Certification that the tower will meet all applicable FCC, FAA and local building codes.

(7)

A letter of intent from the landowner agreeing to lease excess space on the tower structure and to lease additional excess land on the tower site, if structurally and technically possible.

(8)

The administrative official shall maintain and provide, on request, records of response from each owner. Once an owner demonstrates an antenna of the sort proposed by the applicant cannot be accommodated on the owner's tower as described below, the owner need not be contacted by future applicants for antennas of the sort proposed.

(9)

Shared use is not precluded simply because a reasonable fee for shared use is charged, or because of reasonable costs necessary to adapt the existing and proposed uses to a shared tower. The city council may consider expert testimony to determine whether the fee and costs are reasonable.

(10)

Any other information which may be requested by the administrative official to fully evaluate and review the application and the potential impact of a proposed tower or antenna.

(f)

Documentation of need of communications tower. No new communications tower shall be permitted unless the applicant demonstrates to the reasonable satisfaction of the administrative official or, when applicable, the city council, that no existing tower, building, structure, or alternative technology that does not require the use of a tower can accommodate the applicant's proposed antenna. The applicant shall submit information related to the availability of suitable existing towers, other structures or alternative technology which will demonstrate that no existing tower, structure or alternative technology can accommodate the applicant's proposed antenna. Such information may consist of any of the following:

(1)

No existing towers or structures are located within the geographic area which meets the applicant's engineering requirements.

(2)

Existing towers or structures are not of sufficient height to meet the applicant's engineering requirements.

(3)

Existing towers or structures do not have sufficient structural strength to support the applicant's proposed antenna and related equipment.

(4)

The applicant's proposed antenna would cause electromagnetic interference with the antenna on the existing towers or structures, or the antenna on the existing towers or structures would cause interference with the applicant's proposed antenna.

(5)

The fees, costs, or contractual provisions required by the owner in order to share an existing tower or structure or to adapt an existing tower or structure for sharing are unreasonable.

(6)

The applicant demonstrates that there are other limiting factors that render existing towers and structures unsuitable.

(7)

The applicant demonstrates that an alternative technology that does not require the use of towers or structures, such as a cable microcell network using multiple low-powered transmitters/receivers attached to a wireline system, is unsuitable. Costs of alternative technology that exceed new tower or antenna development shall not be presumed to render the technology unsuitable.

(8)

If the administrative official is not satisfied that the applicant has provided adequate documentation of need for the proposed site, the application shall be automatically scheduled for the next available public hearing by the city council for consideration.

(g)

General requirements.

(1)

No advertising sign shall be allowed on a communications tower.

(2)

No signs or illumination shall be allowed on a communications tower unless required by the FCC, FAA or other state or federal agency of competent jurisdiction, in which case the administrative official may review the available lighting alternatives and approve the design that would cause the least disturbance to the surrounding uses and views.

(3)

No equipment cabinet or building shall be greater than eight (8) feet in height and one hundred (100) square feet in gross floor area. All buildings or cabinets shall be constructed of brick or solid concrete with exposed aggregate exterior surfaces, except for those with less than twenty-five (25) square feet of gross floor area.

(4)

Equipment buildings shall not be used for offices, vehicle storage or other outdoor storage.

(5)

All communication towers as well as guys and guy anchors shall be located with in buildable area of the lot not within the front, rear, or side yard setbacks.

(h)

Spacing and development requirements.

(1)

Maximum height and setback: No communications tower shall exceed one hundred thirty (130) feet in height. Every communications tower shall be set back from all residential structures at a ratio of two (2) feet of setback for each one (1) foot of tower height.

(2)

Spacing: All communications towers constructed shall conform to the minimum tower separation requirements listed in Table 1. An antenna mounted on an existing communications tower or on an alternative tower structure shall be exempt from these minimum separation distances.

Table 1

SEPARATION DISTANCE
Existing Tower Height	Proposed Tower Height
	<65 ft.	65—130 ft.
<65 ft.	1000 ft.	1250 ft.
65-130 ft.	1250 ft.	1500 ft.

 

(3)

Maximum number of towers: No more than one (1) communications tower shall be allowed on a lot or parcel, provided, however, that additional towers may be approved on the lot with a site plan approval.

(i)

Visual impacts. Communications towers and any equipment building and related structures shall, to the extent possible, use materials, colors, textures, screening, and landscaping that will blend the tower and related facilities to the natural setting and built environment.

(1)

All towers shall either maintain a galvanized steel finish or, subject to any applicable standards of the FAA or other applicable federal or state agency, be painted a neutral color, so as to reduce visual obtrusiveness.

(2)

If an antenna is installed on a structure other than a tower, the antenna and supporting electrical and mechanical equipment must be of a neutral color that is identical to, or closely compatible with, the color of the supporting structure so as to make the antenna and related equipment as visually unobtrusive as possible.

(3)

All towers shall be of monopole construction unless the city council approves an alternate design.

(4)

Building finish: The exterior of all equipment buildings and/or metal equipment cabinets must have a neutral aggregate finish or be painted to reflect the color and character of adjoining structures or blend with adjacent landscaping and other surroundings.

(5)

Masonry screening walls: All free standing communication towers shall be screened by a masonry wall not less than six (6) feet in height and/or must screen all related equipment. The city council may require additional masonry screening walls to mitigate an adverse condition or may waive such masonry screening wall requirement when considering a request for a site plan approval.

(j)

Shared use. All new towers shall be designed to structurally accommodate the maximum number of additional users technically practicable.

(1)

To encourage shared use of towers, no site plan approval shall be required for the addition of antenna(s) to an existing tower so long as the height of the tower or structure on which the antenna is placed is not increased and the requirements of this section are met.

(2)

Any site plan approval which is granted for a new communications tower is specifically subject to the condition that the tower owner abide by the following provisions relating to shared use, regardless of whether or not the ordinance granting the permit contains such conditions:

a.

The tower owner shall respond in a timely, comprehensive manner to a request for information from a potential shared use applicant;

b.

The tower owner shall negotiate in good faith for shared use by third parties;

c.

The tower owner shall allow shared use where the third party seeking the use agrees in writing to pay reasonable, pro rata charges for sharing, including all charges necessary to modify the tower and transmitters to accommodate shared use, but not total tower reconstruction, and to observe whatever technical requirements are necessary to allow shared use without creating interference.

d.

The willful failure of an owner whose tower was approved under this chapter to comply with the requirements of this chapter shall be grounds for withholding approval of any application by the owner for a building permit for the approved tower, for revoking the building permit granted for the tower, and for refusing to approve a new building permit for any new tower or antenna.

(k)

Removal of unsafe or non-compliant antennas and towers. All towers and antennas shall be maintained in compliance with standards contained in applicable building codes so as to ensure the structural integrity of the towers. If upon inspection by the administrative official the tower is determined not to comply with the code standards or constitutes a danger to persons or property and the tower is not made safe or removed within sixty (60) days of notification from the city notifying the landowner and the owner of the unsafe tower or antenna, the city may remove the tower or antenna and place a lien upon the property for the costs of the removal.

(l)

Abandoned towers. Any antenna or tower that is not operated for any continuous period of twelve (12) months shall be considered abandoned, and the owner of such antenna or tower and the owner of the property where the tower is located shall remove the tower or antenna within ninety (90) days after notification from the city to remove the tower or antenna.

(1)

If the tower or antenna is not removed within the notification time period, the city may remove the tower or antenna and place a lien upon the property for the costs of the removal.

(2)

If the owner of an abandoned tower or antenna wishes to use the abandoned tower or antenna, the owner first must apply for and receive all applicable permits and meet all of the conditions of this chapter as if the tower or antenna were a new tower or antenna.

(m)

Pre-existing towers and nonconforming uses. All communication towers operative prior to the effective date of this section, shall be allowed to continue their present usage as a nonconforming use and shall be treated as a nonconforming use in accordance with the zoning regulations. Routine maintenance shall be permitted on the existing towers. New construction other than routine maintenance on an existing communication tower shall comply with the requirements of this section.

(Ord. No. 1830, § 1, 9-10-02; Ord. No. 2134, § 1, 1-26-10)