§ 18.66.070 — Facility Design and Developmental Standards

All wireless telecommunication facilities shall be located, developed, and operated in compliance with all of the following standards: A. Height and Separation Requirements. 1. The height of a wireless telecommunication tower shall be measured from the natural undisturbed ground surface below the center of the base of the tower to the top of the tower or to the point of the highest piece of equipment attached to the tower. 2. Wireless telecommunications facilities and related equipment shall be safely erected and maintained at a height which does not exceed the surrounding conditions, improvements, and circumstances. 3. Wireless telecommunications facilities shall maintain at least one foot of separation to residential uses (located on or off-site) for each one foot of tower height. B. Colors and Materials. All antennas, poles, towers, or related equipment, including ancillary support equipment, shall have a nonreflective finish and shall be painted or otherwise treated to match or blend with the primary background and minimize visual impacts. Antennas attached to a structure shall be painted or otherwise treated to match the exterior of the structure or the antenna's background color. C. Concealment Elements and Stealth Features. Wireless telecommunications facilities shall incorporate concealment elements and stealth features to blend the tower and other elements of the wireless telecommunications facility into its natural surroundings to the maximum extent possible. This is typically achieved through camouflaging the tower to look like trees or other similar natural-looking features in the vicinity, but for building façades or rooftops, could include design elements appropriate in size, proportion and design to the building itself. After installation, concealment elements may be modified and/or enlarged if they do not result in a different degree of concealment. After installation, stealth features may not be modified if the modifications would defeat the stealth effect. D. Equipment Cabinets. A wireless telecommunication facility shall not exceed four equipment cabinets. E. Screening, Landscaping. All ground mounted equipment, antennas, poles, or towers shall be sited to be screened by existing development, topography, or vegetation. Ground mounted facilities shall be screened with structures or located underground or in areas where substantial screening by existing structures or vegetation can be achieved. Additional new vegetation or other screening may be required by the Review Authority. The applicant shall use the smallest and least visible antennas possible to accomplish the owner/operator's coverage objectives. F. Additional Screening and Landscaping. As part of project review and the imposition of conditions of approval, the Review Authority may require additional screening and/or landscaping, under-grounding, an alternative color scheme, or relocation of a tower or ancillary equipment to a less obtrusive area of the site where it would have a less prominent visual presence due to slope, topography, size, or relationship to the public rights-of-way. G. Lighting. If required by the City or State or Federal regulations, wireless telecommunication towers shall be lighted, with lighting hooded/shielded and directed downward and away from adjoining properties and the public rights-of-way. No blinking or flashing lights shall be allowed unless required by State or Federal regulations. Lighting may be permitted where part of an appropriate stealth design. H. Power. The provision of power to and within a communication facility site shall be installed underground, unless, in the determination of the Review Authority, conditions on the site render undergrounding infeasible. I. Backup Power Supply. Any backup power supply (i.e., generator) and associated fuel storage tanks to support the backup power supply shall be enclosed within a structure and screened to the satisfaction of the Director. J. Signs. No advertising signs or logos other than a maximum three-square foot nameplate shall be allowed on a tower and related facilities, and no other signage shall be permitted except as part of an approved stealth or concealment design, or as required by federal or state law. K. HRI Properties. If a proposed facility would be located on, or within 200 feet of, a property listed on the City’s Historic Resource Inventory, then a Significant Property Alteration Permit shall be required.