RADIO BROADCAST SERVICE FACILITY REGULATIONS.
Madison General Ordinances § 28.148
in effect28.148 - RADIO BROADCAST SERVICE FACILITY REGULATIONS.
(1) Statement of Purpose.
The purpose and intent of this section is to strike a balance between the state interest concerning the construction, modification and siting of Radio Broadcast Service Facilities, and the interest of the City in public health and safety. The regulations in this section, and elsewhere in these ordinances as they relate to Radio Broadcast Service Facilities, are determined to be the minimum necessary to protect public health and safety. The goals of this section are to
(a) Avoid potential damage to adjacent properties from tower failure through engineering and careful siting of tower structures.
(b) Avoid potential harm or injury caused by the ability to trespass or climb on a tower.
(c) Avoid potential harm or injury caused by ice or other debris falling from towers.
(2) Application.
An application for the placement, construction or modification of a radio broadcast service facility shall be made to the Building Inspection Division.
(a) A Placement Plan shall be submitted at the time of application for a zoning certificate. The Plan shall show the proposed location of the Radio Broadcast Service Facility on the lot, the design of facility, the location of improvements on adjoining lots, as well as landscaping on the lot and adjoining lots that impacts the location of the Radio Broadcast Service Facility. Additional materials may be required.
(b) The Placement Plan shall be approved by the Director of the Department of Planning and Community and Economic Development prior to installation of the facility
(c) Any denial shall be in writing, and shall provide the applicant with substantial evidence which supports the reasons for the denial.
(3) Structural Requirements.
Every Radio Broadcast Service Facility shall be designed and constructed so as to comply with the requirements of Chapter 17, MGO, and International Building Code (IBC) 3108, as amended from time to time. If, upon inspection, the Building Inspection Division Director concludes that a tower fails to comply with such codes in effect at the time of construction, and constitutes a danger to persons or property, then upon notice being provided to the owner of the tower, the owner shall have thirty (30) days or such time as determined by the Building Inspection Division Director to bring such tower into compliance with said codes.
Failure to bring such tower into compliance within said thirty (30) days or such time as determined by the Building Inspection Division Director shall constitute grounds for the removal of the tower or antenna at owner's expense.
(4) Basic Tower and Building Design.
All new Radio Broadcast Service Facilities, except exempt facilities as defined in subsection (7), below, shall be designed as follows:
(a) Radio Broadcast Service Facilities shall be constructed out of metal or other nonflammable material.
(b) Radio Broadcast Service facilities shall insure that sufficient anti-climbing measures have been incorporated into the facility, as needed, to reduce potential for trespass and injury.
(5) Location.
Radio Broadcast Service Facilities, towers, guy wires, appurtenant equipment and buildings shall comply with the yard and set back requirements of the zoning district in which they are located and, in addition thereto, all towers shall be set back at least one hundred (100) feet from any property devoted to residential use or two hundred (200) feet from any residential building, whichever is less.
(6) Abandonment.
If a Radio Broadcast Service Facility shall cease to be used for a period exceeding one year and a day, the owner or operator of said facility shall remove the facility upon the written request of the City Building Inspection Division Director at no cost to the City within ninety (90) days of said request. Prior to the issuance of any building or zoning permits, a performance bond shall be provided to guarantee that a facility that has ceased being used for telecommunication purposes is removed. The bond amount shall be the lesser of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) or an amount based on a written estimate of a person qualified to remove such structures.
(7) Exempt Facilities.
(a) Amateur radio towers installed, erected, maintained and/or operated in any residential zoning district, by a federally-licensed amateur radio operator, complying with the provisions contained in Chapter 17, MGO, so long as all the following conditions are met:
1. The antenna use involved is accessory to the primary use of the property which is not a telecommunication facility.
2. In a residential zone, no more than one support structure for licensed amateur radio operator is allowed on the parcel.
3. Sufficient anti-climbing measures have been incorporated into the facility, as needed, to reduce potential for trespass and injury.
(b) Publicly owned and operated telecommunications facilities required in the public interest to provide for and maintain a radio frequency telecommunication system, including digital, analog, wireless or electromagnetic waves, for police, fire and other municipal services.
(Sec. 28.148 Cr. by ORD-13-00189, 11-26-13)
Source: City of Madison, Wisconsin, Madison General Ordinances (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/wi/madison/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COORMAWIVOIICH20--31_CH28ZOCOOR_SUBCHAPTER_28IGERE_28.148RABRSEFAREFetched: 11/1/2026