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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSP201100022 Legacy Document 2012-01-19 (2)VERIZON WIRELESS: SOUTHWEST MOUNTAIN (AMERICAN TOWER CORP.) MODIFICATION OF TIER III PERSONAL WIRELESS FACILITY Project Description: Alltel Communications LLC, trading as Verizon Wireless, respectfully requests approval of a special use permit to allow antenna modifications on a guyed tower in order to support the attachment of a new antenna array in a second vertical array below the company's existing antennas. The proposed modifications are part of a larger project to improve Verizon Wireless' existing network of facilities by adding fourth generation ( "4G ") services to the existing Cellular services that once were operated by Alltel, as well the company's Personal Communications Service ( "PCS "), which is already available to residents in most parts of Albemarle County. Verizon Wireless currently owns and operates equipment at this site the existing Personal Wireless Service Facility ( "PWSF" or "Facility ") located on property identified in Albemarle County records as Tax Map 78 / Parcel 51C (the "Property "). It lies in the Rivanna Magisterial District of Albemarle County, between the Ashcroft and Shadwell Mountain subdivisions, approximately 1/2 -mile from the intersection of Lego Drive and Hansen's Mountain Road. Verizon Wireless was recently allowed to remove and replace a total of four omni- directional whip antennas that had been originally installed by Alltel in two sets of split arrays with the original installation. The recently installed panel antennas were allowed by -right at the same height where the highest set of whip antennas were once attached. Verizon Wireless' installation now consists of an array containing flush - mounted, dual - band, dipolar panel antennas that support Alltel's original Cellular network as well as the newly integrated PCS (3G) network. However, a second application to now allow the installation of Verizon Wireless' LTE antennas where the lower whips were once attached to the tower was recently denied as a by -right building permit for being in conflict with the existing special use permit conditions. The new antennas will be painted a color that closely matches the light gray hue of the existing tower and all supporting transmitting equipment will be installed inside Verizon Wireless' existing shelter at this site. However, the new antennas would have exceeded the total number of flush - mounted antenna arrays allowed by the current special use permit conditions. Once approved, these upgrades will provide expanded services to nearby residences and businesses as well as reliable in -car coverage for those who are travelling along U.S. Route 250, and Interstate 64 near the Shadwell exit and interchange as well as nearby local roads. The antenna modifications / replacements will meet most of the design criteria set forth in Section 5.1.40(c) for Tier I PWSFs as by -right collocations. However, this application requires an amendment of the special use permit (SP- 2003 -045) because the conditions currently limit the number of flush - mounted antenna arrays on the tower to a total of five, whereas Verizon Wireless' application results in six. Verizon Wireless Page 1 Southwest Mountain (Tier III) Network Objectives: Verizon Wireless is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to provide state -of -the -art wireless communications services within Albemarle County, including 4G services which will be delivered through Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless technology (which utilizes the 700 MHz frequency band). Verizon Wireless plans to launch new 4G service in Albemarle County, the City of Charlottesville and surrounding counties during the first quarter of 2012 if zoning approvals can be timely obtained. 4G will offer data upload, download and transmission speeds up to ten times faster than current technologies. It is important to note that, though the antennas for Verizon Wireless' PCS (which utilizes the 1900 MHz frequency band) and Cellular (utilizing the 850 MHz frequency band) services can be combined in one set of flush - mounted antennas, LTE utilizes a frequency band which is too close to the Cellular band's frequency in the federally government's licensed radio spectrum. This makes it impossible to combine the LTE and Cellular signal transmissions within a single set of flush - mounted antennas without interference between the signals. Therefore, the LTE and Cellular antennas must be physically separated on the tower, requiring either adequate height to allow vertical separation, or a much wider horizontal distance between the two antennas. In this case, Verizon Wireless is proposing that the antennas be split between two vertical arrays on the existing guyed tower in order to meet the County's preference for flush - mounting. In order to integrate all three of these technologies into the network's existing PWSFs, all of Verizon Wireless' existing sites, including former Alltel sites, must be upgraded and modified to accommodate the new antennas and equipment required for these services. After Verizon Wireless merged with Alltel Communications in January of 2009, the company evaluated former Alltel 850 MHz Cellular Service resources and facilities in this market. In this particular case, there is adequate vertical space available where Alltel's lowest set of whip antennas were once attached on the tower. Character of the Area: The Property is zoned Rural Areas (RA) and all of the surrounding properties are zoned Rural Areas (RA) mostly within in the Ashcroft and Shadwell Mountain Subdivisions. The proposed modifications to this PWSF will not substantially impact the character of the surrounding area due the fact that the tower, which was both shortened and structurally modified in 2004 has been in place for many years. The proposed flush - mounted panel antenna will be in the same location where a set of set of whip antennas were once attached on this tower, so the tower's height will not be increased. Furthermore, the Albemarle County zoning ordinance recognizes both flush - mounted panel antennas and whip antennas of a certain size as being virtually interchangeable. Therefore, the appearance of existing tower will remain unchanged. Compliance with Section 31.6.1 of the Zoning Ordinance: A Tier III facility requires approval of a special use permit issued pursuant to Section 31.6.1 of the Zoning Ordinance, which states "The board of supervisors hereby reserves unto itself the right to issue all special use permits permitted hereunder. Special use Verizon Wireless Page 2 Southwest Mountain (Tier III) permits for uses as provided in this ordinance may be issued upon a finding by the board of supervisors that such use will: (1) not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property: (2) that the character of the district will not be changed thereby; and, (3) that such use will be in harmony with the purpose and intent of this ordinance; (4) with the uses permitted by right in the district, (5) with additional regulations provided in section 5; and, (6) with the public health, safety and general welfare. Verizon Wireless will address these six criteria as below: 1. Will the use be of substantial detriment to the adiacent property? The existing structure, which began as a radio tower, has been in place for more than 40 years at this site without disrupting the daily activities or quality of life for any of the neighboring residents and /or property owners. In fact two rural / residential subdivisions have both been established and grown around the property where the facility is located despite the presence of this tall tower. Aside from the limited construction activity required to install the proposed antennas, the proposed modification extension will not impose any additional activity, such as noise or traffic, upon the immediate area. The tower's height and location will not change, nor will these factors encroach further upon any of the property lines. Therefore, this proposal to modify the facility will not be of any substantial detriment to adjacent properties. 2. Will the use change the character of the district surrounding the property? As stated in the previous section, the the tower supporting this existing PWSF has been in place for more than 40 years, and prior to Verizon Wireless' merger with Alltel. When the tower was shortened and structurally fortified with a new outer structure in 2004, conditions were applied to restrict the total number of panel antenna arrays to a total of five and whip antenna arrays were restricted to a two. Verizon Wireless i� now requesting an amendment or removal of that cQndition order to allow the necessary LTE upgrades. Although t ere are only four total flush - mounted panel arrays on the existing tower, another carrier recently requested building permit approval to install their own second array of antennas which will reach the current maximum of five. Furthermore, no additional ground disturbance or tree removal would be necessary, as all of Verizon Wireless' licensed technologies could be deployed from the split array, as opposed to needing to install full sectored array to accommodate all of the antennas at a single height. Finally, this condition predates the adoption of Section 5.1.40 (Personal Wireless Service Facilities), which views both panel and whip antennas as being interchangeable. Therefore, Verizon Wireless is confident that the proposed modifications and tower replacement will not change the character of the area. 3. Will the use be in harmony with the purpose and intent of the zoning ordinance? The "Purpose and Intent" are set forth in Section 1.4 of the Zoning Ordinance. Verizon Wireless' request to amend this special use permit will allow additional 4th Generation services to be provided by this existing facility. The purposes and intents that most closely match these improvements include, but are not limited to the following sections: • 1.4.3 - To facilitate the creation of a convenient, attractive and harmonious community: In recent years, as more and more people have forgone the use of in- Verizon Wireless Page 3 Southwest Mountain (Tier III) &1 home telephone service lines in exchange for reliable access to the quality options that are now available in the wireless communications market, the demand for reliable in- building and on- street service has increased. Recent independent studies have indicated a growing correlation between home sales and access to wireless communications in a given area. In addition to the standard voice options, several wireless carriers now plan to deploy wireless intemet service packages (such as Verizon Wireless' LTE service), that approach broadband speeds as another option competing with similar to those of DHL and cable internet. The federal government's National Broadband Plan recognizes that broadband service access is a key component in educational advancement growth in today's society, which will rely heavily on instant access to information and various research tools. In fact many school systems (including Albemarle County's) are replacing textbooks with tablet computers and instructional websites and /or requiring homework assignments to be uploaded to designated web portals and sent via e -mail. By providing another mobile option for these services at the most effective Personal Wireless services, should be viewed as furthering the County's goal of fostering a convenient, attractive, and harmonious community. • 1.4.7 To encourage economic development activities that provide desirable employment and enlarge the tax base: Whereas technological advances such as cellular and broadband services were once largely viewed as a mere conveniences, access to reliable Personal Wireless services can be seen as an essential component to economic growth in several ways. Most companies now rely as heavily on these services, as they do on other essential utilities such as power, water and gas, as defining components for a successful business. Often, companies that provide services on the road and/or do most of their work in the field no longer use two -way radio systems, instead opting for mobile phones and computers to send information and pictures to headquarters using instant texting or e -mail. Additionally, a growing number of home -based small businesses, as well as established companies, which are allowing telecommuting as an alternative to transferring their employees regionally and nationally, place increasing demands on wireless systems. All of these activities are examples of ways that the proposal represented in this and similar requests can contribute to economic development in the County. • 1.4.8 To provide for the preservation of agricultural and forestal lands and other lands of significance for the protection of the natural environment: Verizon Wireless' proposed modifications at this site will promote the achievement of this objective by combining all three of the company's federally licensed services and frequencies on a single tower and in an existing shelter within the confines of the facility's compound. Therefore, no additional disturbance will be required in order to construct additional facilities and accommodate services offered by the proposed modifications. The design and siting aspects of the existing facility were all allowed through the approval of an existing special use permit. However, the proposal to allow the flush - mounted panel antennas as replacement for whip antennas that were previously removed would have been allowed by right were it not for the plans of another personal wireless service provider to install their own additional antenna array. Because the total number Verizon Wireless Page 4 Southwest Mountain (Tier III) of flush - mounted panel antennas to be attached on the tower will be the only deviation from the requirements of currently applied special use permit conditions, thevisual impacts of the tower will not be increased. Therefore, the proposed facility modifications will continue to be in harmony with other by -right uses in the RA district. 5. Will the use comply with the additional regulations provided in Section 5.0 of this ordinance? Section 5.1.40, sets forth the provisions by which Personal Wireless Service Facilities are to be permitted, with an emphasis on mitigating any adverse "visual impacts" (not simply visibility) that may be upon the surrounding area. It should first be noted that the adversity of any visual impacts are most often subject to the perception of the specific individual that is viewing a facility at any given point or distance within a scope of 360 degrees surrounding a facility. Furthermore, when focusing on the visual impacts of a particular facility, the least objective judgment of the impacts is likely to be made by those people who are tasked specifically with finding and /or remembering where these sites are located such as telecommunications consultants and county staff. Therefore, the more objective way of considering the whether the perceived impacts are truly adverse, even when a facility is clearly visible, is to consider whether or not it would be obtrusive to the average person driving past the site, or even at static points to those who might glance at it by chance. In this particular case, the facility was constructed many years ago and then redeveloped in 2004 with a special use permit by the Board of Supervisors prior to the adoption of the current regulations that govern the design and siting of PWSFs. Those current regulations allow flush - mounted panel antennas and whip antennas t onl stating ghat the total num er on arrays must not exceed three. Furthermore, the ordinance also views those two types of antennas (panels and whips) as being interchangeable when counted toward the total number of arrays. Therefore, as demonstrated with the by -right replacement that was as approved through a building permit earlier this yearany perceived visual impacts of the proposed modifications will be minimal, if even evident at all. 6. Will the public health, safety and general welfare of the community be protected if the use is approved? The existing facility and all wireless handsets are required to support the federally - mandated E -911 calling and location services. Verizon Wireless currently provides these emergency services locally through licenses for the company's Cellular (850 MHz) network, and growing PCS (1900 MHz) network. In order to ensure that there is no interference between the Cellular and new LTE service, the antennas must have vertical separation, as proposed with this application, or horizontal separation utilizing non -flush sector mounts. The offering of a fully functional wireless network that offers a combination of various services while also ensuring that there is no interference should be seen as promoting this objective. Conclusion: The PWSF modifications proposed in this application require the amendment of an approved special use permit simply due to the proposed total number of flush - mounted Verizon Wireless Page 5 Southwest Mountain (Tier III) , it, panel antennas. Verizon Wireless is confident that this proposal complies with all other design criteria for Tier I facilities and thus does not increase the visual impacts of this structure will be mitigated. Further, this request meets the goals and objectives of the Albemarle County Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance's criteria for personal wireless facilities and special use permits. The proposed antenna modifications meet the County's design preferences for flush - mounted antennas painted to match the color of the mounting structure. In addition to meeting this preference, the proposed split array will also allow the antennas to effectively provide the full range of wireless services to the target coverage area using a single facility. Approval of this request will enable Verizon Wireless to provide County residents in the area, as well as those traveling on nearby roads, access to high quality, high speed 4G services which are more advanced than those currently available in this market. Approval will also facilitate Verizon Wireless' development of an improved wireless network offering such advanced services throughout Albemarle County. Sincerely, Step en aller, AICP GDNsites Site Development Consultants to Verizon Wireless Verizon Wireless Page 6 Southwest Mountain (Tier III)