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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSP201200020 Resubmittal 2012-08-10l June 18, 2012 County of Albemarle Department of Community Development 401 McIntire Road Charlottesville, VA 22902 1150 Shenandoah Village Drive Waynesboro, VA 22980 RE: NTELOS Tier III Application — Personal Wireless Service Facility at GV830 Glendower (Schmidt Family Limited Partnership) Dear Sir /Madam; Virginia PCS Alliance, L.C. (` NTELOS') requests the consideration of the Albemarle County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors for the construction of a Tier III personal wireless service facility by NTELOS located on property owned by Schmidt Family Limited Partnership described as tax parcel 12100- 00- 00- 082H0, containing approximately 275.340 acres, and zoned Rural Areas (RA) in the Scottsville Magisterial District. The property is located within an Entrance Corridor and is within the Southern Albemarle Rural Historic District. The proposed facility is located on the east side of Rte. 20, just north of Glendower Road at 6507 Scottsville Road, Scottsville. NTELOS is in the process of expanding its wireless telecommunications network along the Rte. 20 South corridor of Albemarle County, beginning just south of Avon Street Extended to the Town of Scottsville and continuing into Buckingham County south of the James River. The proposed facility on the Schmidt Family Limited Partnership property is one of eight proposed wireless facilities that will expand the NTELOS wireless telecommunication network along Rte. 20 (Scottsville Road) (see attached map titled " NTELOS Proposed Build Plan along Rte. 20 from Charlottesville to Scottsville). The proposed personal wireless service facility shall follow the Tier III treetop facility guidelines as set forth in the Personal Wireless Service Facility Guidelines Policy (the "Policy ") adopted by Albemarle County. In 2011, Clear Signal Towers was granted a Tier III application for an 80 ft. PWSF within an 80 ft. x 125 ft. ground lease area for AT &T at this location (SP 2011 - 07). With this application, NTELOS is proposing another PWSF within the lease area of Clear Signal Towers. The NTELOS proposal will be adjacent to the AT &T tower site and will utilize the same Reference Tree as the previous Tier III application. ATTACHMENT A Attached is a site plan of the location and design of the proposed facility. The proposed Tier III treetop facility includes a steel monopole tower painted brown, 91.3 ft. in height, with a top elevation of 555.1 ft. Above Mean Sea Level. The 69.9 ft. tall oak tree identified on the site plan as the reference tree ( "149 ") has a top elevation of 535.1 ft. Above Mean Sea Level. The monopole will have a flush - mounted antenna array consisting of three (3) panel antennas measuring 74.9 in. (L) x 6.5 in. (W) x 3.3 in. (D) each. The antennas shall not project more than twelve (12) inches from the facility. The antennas and cabling will be painted Sherwin Williams Umbra brown to further camouflage the facility. The proposed ground equipment will be located within the 20 ft. x 30 ft. leased compound area as shown. NTELOS will enter the proposed facility by the existing entrance to the property off Scottsville Road and will utilize the newly constructed access road to the Clear Signal /AT &T site to the proposed facility. A Tree Conservation Plan by Bartlett Tree Experts has been requested and will be submitted prior to obtaining a building permit. Once constructed, the proposed facility will be visited approximately 1 -2 times per month for normal routine maintenance checks. Outdoor lighting for the facility shall be only used during maintenance checks. While it is the goal of Albemarle County to protect its natural, scenic and historic resources and to retain the attractiveness of the County, the proposal by NTELOS has been maintained by complying with the guidelines established by the Policy. The brown monopole type flush - mounted design, the height above the tree tops and the strategic location of the facility are designed to minimize the visibility of the facility while still providing significant improvement to the NTELOS coverage objective (see attached propagation map - "CV830 Proposed Coverage "). The proposed facility is located within a grove of deciduous and evergreen trees on the property. A balloon simulation visibility test has been conducted at the site and indicates the proposed facility would appear only minimally from Rt. 20 (see attached photo simulations). A balloon visibility test was done at 10 ft., 20 ft. and 30 ft. above the Reference Tree to determine the visual impact of the proposed facility to the surrounding area. Due to its minimal visual impact, NTELOS is proposing the site at 20 ft. above the Reference Tree because of increased coverage needs to meet the coverage predicted at a site proposed to the north on Rt. 20 at Keene (CV829 on attached map) and the minimal visual impact at the location proposed. A balloon test will be scheduled with County staff to view its visibility following receipt of the application. The design of the proposed facility is compatible with the area's rural setting. A determination from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources has been requested but not yet received. The proposed facility is fully consistent with the County's Wireless Telecommunications Policy. It is a treetop monopole structure, has flush mounted antennas, has minimal visual impact on the surrounding area, and provides adequate height and coverage objective for NTELOS. As a personal wireless service facility, this proposal will serve the public health and safety needs to the community by providing reliable wireless voice and high speed data services to this well traveled area. I look forward to receiving your comments regarding this proposal. Please feel free to contact me if you need additional information. Sincerely, Qj�w�� Jessica L. Wilmer NTELOS (540) 941 -3610 CC: Valerie Long — Williams Mullen 1 150 Shenandoah Village Drive Waynesboro, VA 22900 wireless July 30, 2012 Joanne Tit Purtserova, Planner County of Albemarle Department of Community Development 401 McIntire Road Charlottesville, Virginia 22902 Its: SP 2012 -00020 Glendower /Schmidt Property Tier III PWSF NTELOS Site CV830 Glendower Dear Ms. Purtsezova: Please accept the attached resubmital of site plans dated July 18, 2012 for SP 2012 -00020 for the installation of a wireless telecommunications facility by Virginia PCS Alliance, L.C. (NTELOS) located on tax parcel 12100- 00- 00- 0821-10, owned by Schmidt Family Limited Partnership. The following items have been addressed: 1. As you requested, I have enclosed several photographs of the existing AT &T /Clear Signal Towers wireless facility already on the property. The existing tower is only minimally visible from the intersection of Rt. 20 and Riding Club Road, and blends in well with the existing trees due to its design, siting and color. I have also included several photographs of the existing tower taken from the interior of the Schmidt property. 2. All trees to be removed are shown on slieet C -6 of the site plans. The notes per item #2 of your comment letter have been removed. A Tree Conservation Plan will be prepared by a certified arborist and submitted prior to the issuance of a building permit. If any additional trees are recommended to be removed by the certified arborist, a request will be made at that time. A 6' chain link fence with barbed wire is proposed surrounding the base of the tower and ground equipment. The proposed fence will protect the facility from livestock and wildlife on this farm. As proposed, the fence will not be detrimental to the character of the area as it will match the existing fence at the adjacent tower site, which is not visible from adjacent properties or the Entrance Corridor, nor will it be detrimental to the public health, safety or general welfare. The elevation of the lease area relative to Route 20, Riding Club Road, and adjacent properties, coupled with the heavily wooded nature of the property at the proposed facility location will effectively screen the proposed fence from Route 20, Riding Club Road and adjacent properties. To the extent that a special exception is required for the agent to reach a finding that the criteria for permitting a fence pursuant to Section 5.1.40(c)(9) has been met, please allow this letter to serve as the special exception request. Should you require any fiu•tlier materials or information to July 30, 2012 Page 2 process the special exception in the event one is needed, please contact me right away and we will provide you with the requested information. Section 5.1.40((1)2 states that "the site shall provide adequate opportunities for screening and the facility shall be sited to minimize its visibility from adjacent parcels and streets, regardless of their distance from the facility." As the balloon test demonstrated, the proposed facility will be only momentarily visible along Route 20, and only visible from the intersection of Route 20 and Riding Club Road for a brief moment, just above the tops of the existing trees surrounding the facility. The heavily wooded parcel upon which the facility is proposed to be located provides far more than "adequate opportunities for screening." Similarly, the fact that the proposed facility will only be visible from the two locations mentioned above demonstrates that the facility will be "sited to minimize its visibility from adjacent parcels and streets." Any visibility of the facility will be nominal, and the design and color of the pole, being painted brown, and with flush - mounted antennas, will fully mitigate any visibility as required by the ordinance and the County Wireless Policy. Furthermore, by locating the facility on a parcel that has an existing access road and established utility easements enables the facility to be constructed with fewer disturbances to the land, makes the tower less visible from the surrounding area, and allows fewer trees and vegetation to be cleared at the proposed tower location. The subject parcel is a large parcel containing 275 acres. Approximately one (1) mile of the perimeter of the subject parcel along Rt. 20 contains a significant tree buffer which provides a natural vegetated visual buffer between the proposed site and Route 20, including adjacent properties to the west. "rile existing tree canopy at the facility site will provide adequate screening for views from the west and provide complete screening coverage for views from the north and south. NTELOS is requesting a height of twenty (20') feet above the Reference "free. The proposed facility requested will be 91.3' in height. The increased height is requested in order to enable the facility to effectively "connect" with proposed facilities in the NTELOS network to the north and south along Route 20 to provide seamless coverage along the entire span of Route 20. As discussed above and further demonstrated by the balloon test photographs and photosimulations, the proposed height of 20 feet above the Reference Tree will not result in any adverse visual impact to adjacent properties or roadways, including the Route 20 Entrance Corridor. If the proposed height is not approved, NTELOS' radio frequency engineers predict that a gap in its wireless coverage along Route 20 will occur in this area. Because this application is a Tier III application and special use permit, the Board has the authority to approve a facility at any height above the reference tree that it deems appropriate. Please allow this letter to serve as the special exception request to permit the increased height. July 30, 2012 Page 3 6. The vicinity map on sheet T -1 of the site plans has been corrected. 7. The right -of -way of Rt. 20 (Scottsville Road) and of Rt. 714 (Riding Club Road) has been added to the site plans. 8. A check in the amount of $785.93 for notification and advertisement fees has been submitted to the Intake Counter on July 30, 2012. I look forward to receiving your comments regarding this resubmittal request. Please contact me if you have any questions or need any additional information at (540) 941 -3610 or by email at wilmerj a ntelos.com. Sincerely, Jessie Wilmer NTEI.OS CC: Valerie Long, Williams Mullen W, - 14 nF. W, - 14 m i TP A. WWI pi i TP A. :t a a� �: • r J.. t yg>a{ r it :t a