2009-01BILL NO. 2009-1
AMENDMENT TO RICHFIELD CITY CODE
SUBSECTIONS 544.09 AND 544.25
RELATED TO EXTERIOR LIGHTING AND
TELECOMMUNICATION TOWERS AND ANTENNAS
THE CITY OF RICHFIELD DOES ORDAIN:
Section 1 Subsection 544.09, subdivision 2 of the Richfield City Code is amended to
read as follows:
Subd. 2. Mitigative measures shall be employed to limit glare and spill
light to protect neighboring parcels and to maintain traffic and pedestrian
safety on public streets and sidewalks. Illumination cast from lighting of
e centerline of a public street or residential property line. These
itigative measures shall include lenses, shields, louvers, prismatic
~ntrol devices and limitations on the height and type of fixtures.
Sec. 2 Subsection 544.09, subdivision 8 of the Richfield City Code is amended to
read as follows:
Subd. 8. Lighting fixtures mounted directly on structures shall be
permitted when utilized to enhance specific architectural elements or to
help establish scale or provide visual interest, except as otherwise noted
in Subdivisions 9 and 10.
Sec. 3 Subsection 544.09, subdivision 9 of the Richfield City Code is amended to
read as follows:
Subd. 9. "Wall paks" shall be permitted only in loading and service areas
and shall be down-lit ~^~ °hiolrlor! frnm „io,n,
Sec. 4 Subsection 544.09, subdivision 12 of the Richfield City Code is amended
to read as follows:
Subd. 12. Trte-C'+~T°~ ry"'ro, ,+ +h~~ele~'~e~c;~~nco, ~„hmi~~in„
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If installed. exterior liahtina shall meet the functional needs of the
uses. as determined by the City. Specific reauirements are listed below:
on concerns regarding safety, security and/or impacts on surroundi
proaerties. Illumination measurements shall be taken by oositionin
Open-air parking lots (including the roof level of multi-level parking
structures):
Minimum - 0.2 fc
Maximum - 4.0 fc
Minimum uniformity ratio - 20:1
ulti-family residentia
IVIII IIIIIUIII - J.V I~
Commercial /Industrial
nce /exit
Minimum - 10.0 fc within 5 feet of the entrance /exit
Sec. 5 Subsection 544.25 of the Richfield City Code is amended to read as
follows:
544.25. Telecommunication Towers and antennas. Subdivision 1. In order to
accommodate the communication needs of residents and businesses while protecting
the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community, the Council finds that
these regulations are necessary in order to:
a) Facilitate the provision of wireless telecommunication services to the
residents and businesses of the City;
b) Minimize adverse visual effects of towers through careful design and sitting
standards;
c) Avoid potential damage to adjacent properties from tower failure through
structural standards and setback requirements; and
d) Maximize the use of existing and approved towers and buildings to
accommodate new wireless telecommunication antennas in order to reduce
the number of towers needed to serve the community.
Subd. 2. Permits. alt shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to
erect, construct in place, place or re-erect, replace, or repair any tower without first
making application to the Department of Community Development and securing tithe
required zoning and building permits +horof.,ro ~~ horcin~#or v~rn„v-lorl -
tE~wEir ~A/III r, r.+ nroMto w cufo+~i h~~~rr! ~r iJ~m~rvo +n +ho .~rnr~or~~i .,f n+hor
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~Subd. 3. Exemptions. Permits are not required for:
a) Adjustment or replacement of the elements of an antenna array affixed
to a tower or antenna, provided that replacement does not reduce the
safety factor.
b) Antennae and/or towers erected temporarily for test purposes, for
emergency communication, or for broadcast remote pick-up
operations. Temporary antennae shall be removed within 72 hours
following installation.
Subd. 4. Submittal Requirements. The applicant shall provide at the time of
application sufficient information to indicate that construction, installation, and
maintenance of the antenna and tower will not create a safety hazard or damage to
the property of other persons. In addition to the information required elsewhere in
this Code, development applications for towers shall include the following
supplemental information:
a) A report from a qualified and licensed professional engineer which:
i. Describes the tower height and design including a cross section and
elevation;
ii. Documents the height above grade for all potential mounting positions for
co-located antennas and the minimum separation distances between
antennas;
iii. Describes the tower's capacity, including the number and type of antennas
that it can accommodate;
iv. Documents what steps the applicant will take to avoid interference with
established public safety telecommunications;
v. Includes an engineer's stamp and registration number; and,
vi. Includes other information necessary to evaluate the reauest.
b) For all commercial wireless telecommunication service towers, a letter of
intent committing the tower owner and his or her successors to allow the
shared use of the tower if an additional user agrees in writing to meet
reasonable terms and conditions for shared use.
c) Before the issuance of a building permit, the following supplemental
information shall be submitted:
i. Proof that the proposed tower complies with regulations administered by
Federal Aviation Administration; and,
ii._ A report from a qualified and licensed professional engineer which
demonstrates the tower's compliance with the aforementioned structural
and electrical standards.
d) All abandoned or unused towers and associated facilities shall be removed
within 12 months of the cessation of operations at the site unless the Director
approves a time extension. In the event that a tower is not removed within 12
months of the cessation of operations at a site, the tower and associated
facilities may be removed by the City and the costs of removal assessed
against the propert rL.
Subd. 35. Towers in Residential Zoning Districts. Towers shall be allowed only in
the following residentially zoned areas:
a) Towers supporting amateur radio antennas and conforming to all applicable
provisions of this Code shall be allowed only in the rear yard of residentially
zoned parcels.
b) Towers supporting commercial antennas and conforming to all applicable
provisions of this Code shall be allowed only in the following residentially
zoned locations:
i. Church sites, when camouflaged as steeples or bell towers;
ii. Park sites, when compatible with the nature of the park; and,
iii. Government, school, utility, and institutional sites, not including the public
right-of-way.
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Subd. a6. Co-Location Requirements. All commercial wireless telecommunication
towers erected, constructed, or located within the City shall comply with the following
requirements:
a) A proposal for a new commercial wireless telecommunication service tower
shall not be approved unless the City Council finds that the
telecommunications equipment planned for the proposed tower cannot be
accommodated on an existing or approved tower or building within a one mile
search radius (one half mile search radius for towers under 120 feet in height,
one quarter mile search radius for towers under 80 feet in height) of the
proposed tower due to one or more of the following reasons:
i. The planned equipment would exceed the structural capacity of the
existing or approved tower or building, as documented by a qualified and
licensed professional engineer, and the existing or approved tower cannot
be reinforced, modified, or replaced to accommodate planned or
equivalent equipment at a reasonable cost.
ii. The planned equipment would cause interference materially impacting the
usability of other existing or planned equipment at the tower or building as
documented by a qualified and licensed professional engineer and the
interference cannot be prevented at a reasonable cost.
iii. Existing or approved towers and buildings within the search radius cannot
accommodate the planned equipment at a height necessary to function
reasonably as documented by a qualified and licensed professional
engineer.
iv. Other unforeseen reasons that make it infeasible to locate the planned
telecommunications equipment upon an existing or approved tower or
building.
b) Any proposed commercial wireless telecommunication service tower shall be
designed, structurally, electrically, and in all respects, to accommodate both
the applicant's antennas and comparable antennas for at least 2 additional
users if the tower is over 100 feet in height or for at least 1 additional user if
the tower is over 60 feet in height. Towers must be designed to allow for
future rearrangement of antennas upon the tower and to accept antennas
mounted at varying heights.
Subd. 67. Tower ~+nrl on+°nn•+ Design Requirements. Proposed or modified towers
and attached antennas shall meet the following design requirements.
a) Towers and antennas shall be designed to blend into the surrounding
environment through the use of color and camouflaging architectural
treatment, except in instances where the color is dictated by federal or state
authorities such as the Federal Aviation Administration.
b) Commercial wireless telecommunication service towers shall be of a
monopole design unless the City Council determines that an alternative
design would better blend into the surrounding environment.
Subd. ~8. Tower Setbacks. Towers shall conform to each of the following minimum
setback requirements:
a) Towers shall meet the setbacks of the underlying zoning district with the
exception of industrial zoning districts, where towers may encroach into the
rear setback area, provided that the rear property line abuts another
industrially zoned property and the tower does not encroach upon any
easements.
b) Towers shall maintain a minimum distance from the nearest residential
structure equal to twice the height of the tower.
bcZTowers shall not be located between a principal structure and a public street,
with the following exceptions:
In industrial zoning districts, towers may be placed within a side yard
abutting an internal industrial street.
On sites abutted by public streets on all sides, towers may be placed
within a side yard abutting a local street.
e~A tower's setback may be reduced or its location in relation to a public street
varied, at the sole discretion of the City Council, to allow the integration of a
tower into an existing or proposed structure such as a church steeple, light
standard, power line support device, or similar structure.
Subd. ~9. Tower Height. The height of a telecommunication tower and antenna
shall be measured as the distance from ground level to the highest point on the
tower, includina the antenna.
a) In all residential property, the maximum height of any tower, in,.',,,~inn ~~~
a~.~iit°iiiiuca unu vti~n°.T ~+++r+nhm°n+c shall be 30 feet.
b) In all residential zoning districts other than designated residential property,
the maximum height of any tower, innli iiJinn ~~~ nn~°nn~+c ~+nrl n+h°r
~~+onhm°n+c shall not exceed one foot for each four feet the tower is setback
from designated residential property up to a maximum height of 75 feet.
c) In all non-residential zoning districts, the maximum height of any tower;
innl~ ~rliniv oll on+onnoc oniJ. n+hor o++~nhmon+c shall not exceed one foot for
each two feet the tower is setback from designated residential property up to
a maximum height of 75 feet in non-industrial zoning districts and 100 feet in
industrial. zoning districts.
d) In accordance with the Federal Communications Commission's preemptive
ruling PRB1, towers and antennas erected for the primary purpose of
supporting amateur radio communications may exceed the height restrictions
of (3), above, but shall not exceed 65 feet in height.
e) In addition to the height limitations noted above, no tower shall be constructed
or changed so as to project above any Airspace Surface as shown on MSP
Zoning Map Airspace Zones of the MSP Zoning Ordinance.
Subd. X10. Tower Lighting. Towers shall not be illuminated by artificial means and
shall not display strobe lights unless such lighting is specifically required by the
Federal Aviation Administration or other federal or state authority for a particular
tower. When incorporated into the approved design of the tower; light fixtures used
to illuminate ball fields, parking lots, or similar areas may be attached to the tower.
Subd. 181. Signs and Advertising. The use of any portion of a tower for signs other
than warning or equipment information signs is prohibited.
Subd. 1~-2. Associated Equipment. Ground equipment associated with a tower or
wireless telecommunications facility shall be screened by vegetative or other
screening compatible with the surrounding environment if deemed necessary by the
Director or designee. When associated ground equipment is housed in a building or
structure, that building or structure shall be architecturally designed to blend in with
the surrounding environment and shall meet the minimum setback requirements of
the underlying zoning district. Ground equipment associated with a wireless
telecommunications facility may be located on residentially used property only within
a utility easement adjacent to the public right-of-way, except in the multi-family
zoning districts where ground equipment associated with a wireless
telecommunications facility may also-be located within a code complying building or
structure after receiving the approvals required by this Code.
Subd. 1~3. Antennas Mounted on Roofs, Walls, and Existing Towers. The
placement of wireless telecommunication antennas on roofs, walls, and existing
towers -may be approved by the Director, provided the antennas meet the
requirements of this Code, after submittal of 1) a site and building plan and 2) a
report prepared by a qualified and licensed professional engineer indicating the
existing structure or tower's suitability to accept the antenna, and the proposed
method of affixing the antenna to the structure. Complete details of all fixtures and
couplings, and the precise point of attachment shall be indicated. Antennas shall be
mounted on the facade~of the building or penthouse structure unless the Director or
designee determines that another antenna mounting location decreases the visual
impact of the antennas. All roof-mounted equipment shall be screened from view.
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Subd. 14. Antenna Design and Mounts. Applicants shall use antenna designs and
mounts that minimize visual impact.
Subd. 15. Co-location in the Public Right-of-Way. Wireless telecommunication
facilities and antennas may co-locate with existing poles or towers in the City
County, or State right-of-way within any zoning district.
Subd. 146. Maintenance and Inspections
be maintained in good condition, free from
blemish.
Tower and antenna finish and paint shall
rust, graffiti, peeling paint, or other
a) All towers may be inspected at least once each year by an official of the
.Building and Inspection Division to determine compliance with original
construction standards. Deviation from original construction for which a
permit is obtained constitutes a violation of this Section.
b) Notice of violations will be sent by registered mail to the owner and he will
have 30 days from the date the notification is issued to make repairs. The
owner will notify the Building and Inspection Division that the repairs have
been made, and as soon as possible thereafter, another inspection will be
made and the owner notified of the results.
Subd. 167. Variances. The following standards apply to variance requests for
towers, antennas, or wireless telecommunication facilities.
a) The City Council shall consider the following issues in addition to the variance
findings required in Section 547.11 of this Code.
i. The viability of Code complying alternative locations for the proposed
tower, antenna, or wireless telecommunication facility.
ii. The impacts of the tower, antenna, or wireless telecommunication facility
at the proposed site relative to the impacts of the tower, antenna, or
wireless telecommunication facility at a Code complying alternative
location.
iii. The extent to which there is a significant gap in coverage surrounding the
proposed tower, antenna, or wireless telecommunication facility or other
evidence of inadequate service due to antenna location.
iv. The extent to which the proposed tower, antenna, or wireless
telecommunication facility is the least intrusive, lowest impact design
available.
v. The extent to which the height of the proposed tower, antenna, or wireless
telecommunication facility could be reduced and still provides adequate
coverage.
vi. The extent to which the size of the proposed accessory equipment could
be reduced.
vii. The feasibility of placing the proposed accessory equipment underground.
b) The applicant shall pay the reasonable cost of the City retaining a qualified,
independent radio frequency engineer to provide a professional opinion to the
City Council if the Director or designee determines that an independent radio
frequency engineer is needed to assist in consideration of these regulations.
Sec. 6 This Ordinance is effective in accordance with Section 3.09 of the
Richfield City Charter.
Passed by the City Council of the City of Richfield, Minnesota this 27th day of
January 2009. ~ f
.:R ~
Debbie Goettel, Mayor
ATTEST:
~,. __
Nancy ibbs, t Clerk
City of Richfield
(Official Publication)
SUMMARY PUBLICATION
BILL N0.2009-1
STATE OF MINNESOTA )
) SS:
COUNTY OF HENNEPIN )
Richard Hendrickson, being duly sworn on
an oath, states or affirms that he is the Chief
Financial Officer of the newspaper(s) known
as
Richfield Sun-Current
and has full knowledge of the facts stated
below:
(A) The newspaper has complied with all of
the requirements constituting qualifica-
tion as a qualified newspaper as provid-
ed by Minn. Stat. §331A.02, §331A.07,
and other applicable laws as amended.
(B) The printed public notice that is attached
was published in said newspaper(s)
once each week, for one successive
week(s); it was first published on Thurs-
day, the 5 day of February
2009, and was thereafter printed and
published on every Thursday to and in-
cluding Thursday, the _____ day of
2009; and printed
below is a copy of the lower case alpha-
bet from A to Z, both inclusive, which is
hereby acknowledged as being the size
and kind of type used in the composition
and publication of the notice:
abcdefghijklmnopgrstuvwxyz
r
BY: r~
CFO
Subscribed and sworn to or affirmed
before me on this 5 day of
February , 2009.
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SUBSECTIONS 544.09
AND 544.25 OFTHE RICHFIELD CITY CODE
RELATEDTO EXTERIOR LIGHTING AND
TELECOMMUNICATIONTOWERS AND ANTENNAS
This summary of the ordinance is published pursuant
to Section 3.12 of the Richfield City Charter.
The purpose of this ordinance is to clarify lighting
standards for new or substantially redeveloping commer-
cial and/or multi-family residential sites; and to reorganize
the subsection related to telecommunication towers and
antennas within the City of Richfield. The only substan-
tive change is the addition of a requirement for new
telecommunication towers to be located a minimum dis-
tance equal to twice the height of the tower from the near-
est residential structure.
Copies of the ordinance are available for public in-
spection in the City Clerk's office during normal business
hours or upon request by calling the Department of Com-
munity Development at (612) 861-9760.
Adopted by the City Council of the City of Richfield,
Minnesota this 27th day of January, 2009.
/s/
Nancy Gibbs, City Clerk
(Feb. 5, 2009) d2-bill 2009-1
Notary Public
MARY ANN CARLSON
NOTARY PUBLIC -MINNESOTA
MY COMMISSION EXPIRES 1~1-14
~i