* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [Development Services Committee on December 12, 2021.] [00:00:02] WELL TO MAKE IT IN PERSON WITH ENOUGH HEADS UP ENOUGH NOTICE HE SAYS HE'S IN THIS AREA A LOT. SO, UH, BUT I DO HAVE A STAFF PRESENTATION TO KIND OF GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF, UM, THE DE GDC REGULATIONS AS IT RELATES TO CELL TOWERS. SO, UM, I COULD DO THAT IF YOU'D LIKE MR. CHAIRMAN AND THEN JUST OPEN IT UP. SEE WHAT KIND OF QUESTIONS CONCERNS THE COMMITTEE HAS AND WE TAKE IT FROM THERE. GREAT. YEP. OKAY. YES, SIR. WELL, THE PRESENTATION, LET ME FIX THIS. HERE WE GO. UM, THE PRESENTATION IS FAIRLY HIGH LEVEL. I WON'T GO INTO THE WEEDS OF EACH AND EVERY SCENARIO AND, AND REGULATION OF THE GDC, BUT I'LL GIVE KIND OF AN OVERVIEW OF THE GENERAL REGS AND WHAT TYPES OF EXEMPTIONS THERE ARE. AND WHAT I THINK, UM, PROBABLY WAS THE IMPETUS FOR THIS THAT HAS BEEN AN ISSUE FOR, UM, FOR SOME CARRIERS. SO, UM, I'LL KIND OF START WITH JUST SOME OF THE EXEMPTIONS OF WHAT THE GENERAL REGULATIONS DON'T NECESSARILY APPLY TO. UM, CAN YOU SEE THE PRESENTATION? OH, OKAY. SHOWING THE LIVE VIDEO ABOUT THAT. OKAY. I CAN SEE THE BACK OF MY HEAD, BUT COURTNEY, IS THERE ANY WAY TO, UM, PULL UP THE SLIDES HERE? OH, UH, JUST, UM, LOADED THE PRESENTATION JUST SO THEY CAN SEE IT. OKAY. YEAH. I TURNED THEM ON LAPTOP AND THERE YOU GO. ALL RIGHT. THERE WE GO. ALRIGHT, HOLD UP. OKAY, GREAT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANKS DAN. UM, WE'LL JUMP RIGHT IN, START WITH THE EXEMPTIONS OF WHAT THE GENERAL REGULATIONS, UM, AND SEP REQUIREMENTS DON'T APPLY TO, UM, PER THE GDC, UM, ANTENNAS THAT ARE MOUNTED ON CITY OF GARLAND WATER STORAGE TANKS, UH, PUBLICLY OWNED ANTENNA, UH, SUCH AS PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNICATIONS. UM, THIS IS KINDA NEW GIS D UM, IS, UH, PROPOSING SOME WI-FI TOWERS, UM, AROUND GARLAND TO, UM, YOU KNOW, IMPROVE, UM, A LOT OF THE STUDENTS THAT DON'T HAVE THAT ACCESS. UM, SO THEY, THERE ARE SOME, UM, UH, KIND OF WIFI DESERTS IF YOU WILL, AROUND GARLANDS. SO WE'RE GOING TO SEE SOME OF THOSE COME UP. SO THE CITY ATTORNEY HAS OPINED THAT THE, UM, GIS D WOULD BE EXEMPTED FROM THE ZONING RELATED REGULATIONS. SO FOR INSTANCE, THE 5,000 FOOT DISTANCE REQUIREMENT AND GOING THROUGH AN SUP PROCESS, OR THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO GET PERMITTED AS, AS THEY MEET THEIR BASIC SETBACK, UM, KIND OF FALLS ON REQUIREMENTS, THOSE SORTS OF THINGS, UM, AND, YOU KNOW, GET THEIR PROPER PERMITS FROM, UM, BUILDING INSPECTIONS, UH, LICENSED AMATEUR COMMUNICATIONS HAVE EXEMPTIONS AND, UM, UH, DIRECT BROADCAST, SATELLITE RECEPTION, UH, TV RADIO, UM, HAVE SOME EXCEPTIONS IF THEY'RE, UM, UH, UNLESS THEY'RE A MOUNTED ON A POLAR MASS THAT IS 20 FEET OR MORE IN HEIGHT. UM, SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE, UH, EXEMPTIONS, BUT HERE ARE THE GENERAL STANDARDS, UM, FROM THE GDC, AS IT RELATES TO, UM, TOWERS, CELL TOWERS, UH, COMMERCIAL ANTENNAS DO REQUIRE AN SUP. UM, THIS IS A NON RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS. UM, THEY REQUIRE AN SUP IF THEY EXCEED THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT REQUIREMENT FOR THE ZONING DISTRICT IN WHICH THEY'RE PROPOSED. SO FOR EXAMPLE, IF IT'S A SHOPPING CENTER AND A CELL TOWER WANTS TO LOCATE THERE AND ITS OWN COMMUNITY RETAIL, THE MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT AND COMMUNITY RETAIL IS 35 FEET. SO ANYTHING ABOVE 35 FEET, THEY WOULD, THAT WOULD TRIGGER THE SUP UH, PROCESS. UM, THEY'RE GENERALLY PROHIBITED IN RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS. UM, THERE ARE SOME EXCEPTIONS FOR ATTACHING TO UTILITY STRUCTURES AND, UM, STEALTH DESIGN. SO WHERE IT'S KIND OF ENCLOSED IN A BUILDING OR DESIGNED IN A WAY WHERE IT'S IN NO WAY APPARENT, UM, THAT IT'S A CELL TOWER. UM, NEW SUPPORT STRUCTURES MUST ACCOMMODATE CO-LOCATION PER THE GDC. THAT'S HIGHLY ENCOURAGED. UM, UH, CO-LOCATION IS HIGHLY ENCOURAGED. SO NEW SUPPORT STRUCTURES MUST BE ABLE TO CARRY, UM, MORE THAN JUST ONE CARRIER. UH, THE SETBACK FOR COMMERCIAL ANTENNAS FROM RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICT BOUNDARIES IS THREE TIMES THE HEIGHT OF THE TOWER. AND THEN THIS LAST ONE I I'VE, UH, FIGURE IS GOING TO BE A POINT OF DISCUSSION. FREESTANDING COMMERCIAL ANTENNA SUPPORT STRUCTURES MUST BE A MINIMUM DISTANCE OF 5,000 FEET FROM OTHER WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS IN TENA. AND, UM, JEN AND I WERE DISCUSSING THIS AND, UM, THOUGHT WE'D KIND OF POKE AROUND AND SEE WHAT OTHER CITIES REQUIRE IF THEY REQUIRE A SIMILAR THING. I'LL KIND OF GO THROUGH THAT. UM, THIS IS IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER. UM, SURPRISINGLY THE, MOST OF THE CITIES I FOUND DO HAVE SOMETHING SIMILAR. UM, JUST STARTING [00:05:01] WITH PLANO, THEY HAVE A LITTLE CHART HERE DEPENDING ON THE, UM, SUPPORT STRUCTURE TYPE. BUT IF YOU SEE THE MONOPOLE 75 FEET IN HEIGHT OR GREATER, MONOPOLE, MONOPOLES 75 FEET IN HEIGHT OR GREATER THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THOSE A MINIMUM OF 1500 FEET. UM, THAT'S ACTUALLY THE LESS RESTRICTIVE OF SOME OF THESE OTHER CITIES, INCLUDING GARLAND ARLINGTON HAS A, UH, VERY SIMILAR, UM, REQUIREMENT OF AS GARLAND ANY NEW TOWN TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER IN EXCESS OF 180 FEET IN HEIGHT MUST BE LOCATED A MINIMUM OF ONE MILE FROM AN EXISTING TOWER. THAT'S OVER 180 FEET. UH, DENTON, I BELIEVE HAS THE, UM, THE SAME REQUIREMENT, MINIMUM ONE MILE SEPARATION DISTANCE BETWEEN 180 FOOT TOWERS. BUT IF THE TOWER, THE NEW TOWER IS 180 FEET OR LESS THAN NO MINIMUM SEPARATION IS REQUIRED, A GRAND PRAIRIE, ANY NEW TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER IN EXCESS OF 180 FEET, UH, IN, UH, IN HEIGHT MUST BE LOCATED MINIMUM OF ONE MILE. UM, SO YEAH, SAME REQUIREMENT FROM ANOTHER TOWER. THAT'S 180 FEET IN HEIGHT. UH, IRVING IT'S IT'S 5,000 FEET, NEW COMMUNICATION TOWERS, UH, JUST IN GENERAL, IT MUST BE A MINIMUM 5,000 FEET. UM, ALTHOUGH I DID SEE A REGULATION THAT SAYS TOWER HEIGHT, INCLUDING ANY ANTENNA ARRAY MAY NOT EXCEED 120 FEET. THAT SEEMS TO BE A, UH, KIND OF A CAP, UM, FOR THEM. UH, BUT INTERESTINGLY RICHARDSON, UH, AND, AND I SPOKE TO THEM EARLIER, THEY CONFIRMED, THEY DO NOT HAVE A MINIMUM DISTANCE BETWEEN FREESTANDING CELL TOWERS. SO I'M NOT SURE IF THEY USED TO AND KIND OF GOT AWAY FROM THAT OR IF THEY NEVER DID IN THE FIRST PLACE, BUT, UM, THEY DO NOT. UH, BUT THE CLOSEST THING WAS THAT IS THAT THEY HAVE A MAXIMUM OF THREE ANTENNAS AND EQUIPMENT BUILDINGS, UH, THAT CAN BE LOCATED ON A SINGLE WATER STRUCTURE. SO YOU CAN ONLY HAVE SO MANY PER LOT, BUT THEY DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE A DISTANCE REQUIREMENT. SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS INTERESTING. UM, BUT WITH THAT COMMITTEE, UM, AGAIN, I APOLOGIZE THE, UM, UH, GENTLEMEN FROM THE INDUSTRY COULDN'T MAKE IT, BUT, UM, I'LL KIND OF OPEN IT UP AND SEE WHAT KIND OF QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS YOU WILL HAVE. AND LET ME KIND OF TAKE IT FROM THERE. UM, WELL, DO YOU KNOW, WHAT DOES THAT AVERAGE HEIGHT OF THE, OF A CELL PHONE TOWER? UM, I DON'T THINK I HAVE THAT INFORMATION. I MEAN, I THINK WE SEE A LOT OF, UM, JIM SEE A LOT OF LIKE 120 FOOT HIGHWAY TO EVERYTHING FROM USUALLY AROUND THE MINIMUM 70, 75 FEET IS USUALLY WHERE YOU SEE YOUR LOWEST ANTENNAS AND THEN TOWERS WILL BE A HUNDRED, 120 FEET SO THAT THEY CAN HAVE MULTIPLE CARRIERS ON THEM. BUT AROUND HERE ABOUT 120 FEET IS USUALLY ABOUT WHAT YEAH. BUT 120. OKAY. SO CAN YOU GO BACK TO SOME OF THE SLIDES WHERE THEY TALKED ABOUT 180 FEET? YES, SIR. LET'S SEE. HERE'S GRAND PRAIRIE. OKAY. SO, ALL RIGHT. SO WHAT ARE SOME OF THESE OTHER CITIES HAVE AS IF THAT'S LESS THAN 180 FEET? UM, SO I WANT TO COMPARE APPLES TO APPLES. YEAH. DIDN'T ACTUALLY, UM, SPELLED OUT THAT IF THE NEW TOWER IS 180 FEET OR LESS THAN NO MINIMUM SEPARATION IS RECORDED, THE OTHER CITIES NOT HAVING ANYTHING WRITTEN IN ON IF IT'S UNDER 180, UM, IT, THAT SEEMED TO BE THE CASE NOW, PLANO KIND OF BROKE IT DOWN HERE. I'M NOT SURE WHAT ALL THOSE WORDS MEAN ON THIS PAGE. YEAH, I'M ON IT. SO MONOPOLE, THAT WOULD BE YOUR STANDARD FOR TESTING SELDOM AND WHERE TO UNDERSTAND AND LIKE, OKAY, I KNOW WHAT LATTICE IS, BUT THE REST OF THAT, UH, IS WITH A SUPPORTING WIRES COMING DOWN. OH, OKAY. YEP. OKAY. GUIDEWIRE, THEY DO HAVE MONOPOLES THAT ARE LESS THAN 75 FEET IN HEIGHT. UM, THE DISK, THEY DO STILL HAVE A MINIMUM DISTANCE, BUT IT'S ONLY 750, 150 FEET FROM ONE ANOTHER FROM ANOTHER, UM, YEAH. WELL THAT'S FROM ANY TOWER THAT 75 FEET, RIGHT? YES, SIR. OKAY. AND OURS IS CURRENTLY 5,000, NO MATTER WHAT THE HEIGHT IS, IS THAT CORRECT? YES, SIR. ANY FREESTANDING COMMERCIAL ANTENNA, REGARDLESS OF HEIGHT. OKAY. AND DO WE KNOW WITH, UM, THE 5G NETWORKS? CAUSE IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THE 5G NETWORK REQUIRES IS LIKE NEW TOWERS OR DOES THAT CORRECT? DO YOU KNOW WHERE WE'RE HEARING THAT AND ARE THEY, ARE THEY SHORTER? CAUSE I KNOW 5G REQUIRES MORE LIKE A LOT MORE CAUSE I HAVE TO BE A LOT CLOSER. SURE. UM, BUT DO WE HAVE ANY IDEA, LIKE HOW TALL ARE THOSE? I THINK PROBABLY THE LATEST ONE THAT WENT THROUGH THE PROCESS WAS PROBABLY A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THAT. THAT WAS, UM, A HUNDRED AND 120, 150 RANGE. UM, AS WE DISCUSSED, UM, I KNOW THEY FEEL LIKE THEY DIDN'T NEED ANY MORE THAN THAT. THERE WAS NO DISCUSSION ABOUT IT GOING TO 180 FEET. UM, BUT THAT I'M GOING TO 5G NODES. THEY CAN BE ON A LIGHT POLE, THEY CAN BE ON A SUIT. SO THAT'S WHAT I'VE HEARD. THERE WAS A LOT MORE OF THEM, BUT THERE ARE A LOT LOWER, THERE ARE MUCH DENSER. AND SO THEY PICK UP MORE, UM, USERS AND YOU'LL FIND THEM IN THE DANCER LOCATIONS, [00:10:01] DOWNTOWN AREAS, CLOSE TO COLLEGE CAMPUSES, HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUSES, WHERE YOU GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE TRYING TO GET ON AT ONE TIME. AND SO THEY ARE MUCH TIGHTER AND THEY'RE MUCH LOWER BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE TO GET OUT OF. SO DO WE HAVE THE SAME 5,000 FOOT RESTRICTIONS ON THOSE? NOT WHEN THEIR NODES, NO. OKAY. OKAY. SO, OKAY. SO THE NODE IS DIFFERENT THAN A TOWER? YES. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. WENT DOWN MY LIST. THAT'S RIGHT. US PEEKING OVER YOUR SHOULDER. UM, WELL IT, IT DOES SEEM LIKE WE'RE SOMEWHAT, IF I MAY, MR. CHAIR SOMEWHAT OUT OF STEP, UM, WITH NEIGHBORING CITIES THAT WE, WE DON'T ALLOW A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF HEIGHT WITHOUT SEPARATION. IT SEEMS LIKE WE'VE, UM, IF IT'S, YOU KNOW, 12 FEET TALL, THEY, THEY HAVE TO SEPARATE IT BY 5,000 FEET. SO THAT DOES SEEM IF WE'RE UNDULY RESTRICTIVE, WE SHOULD NOT BE. YEAH. AND THIS IS WHERE, WHEN I WAS TALKING ABOUT HAVING AN INDUSTRY EXPERT, COME TALK TO US, THIS IS WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO GET THEIR INPUT BECAUSE WE DO, I MEAN, WE DON'T WANT TO BE RESTRICTIVE AND WE DON'T WANT TO, YOU KNOW, BE OUT OF STEP WITH OTHER PEOPLE. SO, UM, GENERALLY IF I CAN, APPARENTLY I THINK THE INTENT, THE ORDINANCE BACK WHEN IT WAS, WAS TO ENCOURAGE CO-LOCATE, YOU KNOW, SO WE REDUCED THE NUMBER OF TOWERS OVER. YEAH. CAUSE THAT USED TO NOT BE THE NORM 30, 30 YEARS AGO. THAT WAS NOT THE NORM. THEY ALL HAVE THEIR OWN TOWERS. YEAH. AND SO, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, AND YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE, UH, YOU KNOW, ONE TOWER AND THEN 500 FEET AWAY, ANOTHER TOWER AND THEN ANOTHER TOWER. RIGHT. SO I THINK THAT WAS INITIALLY THE GOAL WAS TO TRY ENFORCE MORE CO LOCATES. THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT HAS ROUTINELY GRANTED VARIANCES WHEN SOMEBODY CAN THE NEED. UM, SO WE DO HAVE A, AN APPEAL RIGHT TO THAT. IF SOMEBODY SAYS, HEY, I NEED TO GO, YOU KNOW, IN A LESS DISTANCE. AND I THINK THE SUP CAN, UH, SOMEWHAT ADDRESS THAT TOO. I KNOW THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT IS GRANTED VARIANCES WHEN THE NEED CAN BE DEMONSTRATED. I IDEALLY I WOULD THINK THAT, UM, I DUNNO, I GUESS PERSONALLY, I'D LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO CONDUCT BUSINESS, THEN MAKE IT HARDER FOR THEM TO, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, SITTING ON AN ADMINISTRATIVE SIDE, IT'S REAL EASY TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN GRANT VARIANCES, WE CAN GO THROUGH STPS, ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF, BUT THAT DOESN'T TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TABLE, YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S, UH, UH, I'D REALLY LIKE TO SEE MORE OF US CONSIDERING, YOU KNOW, THE, THE OTHER SIDE OF WHEN WE'RE DOING THESE THINGS AND UM, MR. HUGH BINGER, UM, HE WAS ACTUALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION. HE MENTIONED HE'S HAD SEVERAL OR SIMILAR CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER CITIES. HE'S GOING TO HELP THEM BE AT THE TABLE AS FAR AS LOOKING AT THE REGULATIONS AND RECOMMENDING AND PROVIDING SOME ADVICE AND FEEDBACK BASED ON THE INDUSTRY STANDARDS. HE MENTIONED THE CITY OF BROWNSVILLE AND MAYBE ONE OR TWO OTHERS. SO, UM, THAT, THAT WILL DEFINITELY BE HELPFUL. YEAH. MR. CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO, I'D LIKE TO, I GUESS, PUT TABLE THIS UNTIL WE CAN HEAR FROM A FEW QUESTIONS THOUGH, IN DISCUSSION THAT I KNOW YOU WENT THE RUNDOWN OF ALL THE OTHER CITIES, ARE THOSE REGULATIONS DEPENDENT ON THE ZONING IN WHICH IS LOCATED AS, OR JUST A STRICT DISTANCE? NO MATTER THE ZONING. OH, I DON'T RECALL. I THINK SOME CITIES AND I CAN PROVIDE A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION. I THINK IT DOES DEPEND, UM, THEY DO HAVE A LAND USE MATRIX. I'D HAVE TO DOUBLE CHECK ALL THEIR LAND, USE MATRICES TO SEE IF THEY, UM, UH, KIND OF DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN RESIDENTIAL VERSUS NON-RESIDENTIAL. SO I'D LIKE JUST IMPROVISE. I KNOW ONE THING IS PEOPLE DON'T LIKE HAVING CELL TOWERS RIGHT. IN THEIR BACKYARD, IF THEY CAN AVOID IT. SO ABSOLUTELY SEEN WHAT'S, UH, I'M ALL FOR HAVING MORE HEIGHT OR MORE TOWERS, BUT IN THE RIGHT AREAS, IF THIS NEW COMMUNICATION 5G SYSTEM, THIS NEEDING THOSE TO BE IMPLEMENTED, THEN WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THEY GO IN THE RIGHT PLACE. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. AND AS A REMINDER, UM, GDC, UM, KIND OF ADDRESSES THAT THROUGH GENERALLY PROHIBITING THEM A RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS, BUT THEY DO PROVIDE, UM, THAT NEEDS TO MEET A SETBACK OF THREE TIMES THE HEIGHT OF THE TOWER IF IT'S, UM, NEAR A RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICT. SO ONE OTHER THING ABOUT THAT, SIMILAR, AS YOU DO SAY HERE, THERE'S EXEMPTIONS FOR ATTACHING UTILITY STRUCTURES OR STEALTH DESIGN. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT, WHAT THAT IS, UH, SURE. I'M ATTACHING YOU TO UTILITY STRUCTURES. I THINK THAT, UM, THAT MAY BE IF THERE'S ANY EXISTING, UH, WATER TOWERS, UH, MAYBE SUBSTATIONS, THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT IT COULD ATTACH TO, UM, UH, THE STEALTH DESIGN IS IF, IF IT'S WITHIN A BUILDING ON A ONE TO ONE EXAMPLE THAT, UM, I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE HAD ANY GARLAND, MAYBE ONE IN THE PAST, BUT SOMETIMES CHURCHES, IF THEY WANT TO PROPOSE TO GET A CELL TOWER AND THEY'LL KIND OF HIDE THEM IN THE STEEPLE. AND SO I BELIEVE THE GDC PERMITS THAT [00:15:01] AND THEY WOULD, IT WOULD MEET THAT EXEMPTION. YEAH. WHEN THEY HAVE A TRIANGLE OR STEEPLE CHURCH THAT SEEMS TO GO UP REAL HIGH. IT'S A STEALTH ANTENNA. YEAH. I KNOW. WE'VE HAD SEVERAL STEALTH DESIGNS COME THROUGH. I THINK THAT ONE WAS THE CLOCK TOWER THAT ACTUALLY YES, YES, YEP. DISCUSSED. BUT, UM, WELL THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAVE. IF THERE'S NO OTHER QUESTIONS, I'M FINE WITH TABLING THIS DISCUSSION UNTIL WE GET OUR INDUSTRY EXPERT TO COME BACK. I ASSUME IT WOULD BE GOOD BEGINNING OF THE NEXT YEAR FOR WHEN, IF SEE HIS AVAILABILITY AND HOPEFULLY IT'LL MATCH UP WITH OUR NEXT MEETING TIME. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. AND IF HE'S ABLE TO MAKE AN IMPERSONAL OR REQUEST THAT POSSIBILITY FOR YOU. AWESOME. WELL, THERE'S A, WITH THAT ITEM BEING TABLED FOR NEXT MEETING, IF THERE'S NO OTHER ITEMS, BE DECEMBER 13TH, 2021 DEVELOPMENT SERVICE COMMITTEE IS ADJOURNED. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.