Councilmember Elrich Statement on ZTA 18-11 Small Cells Bill That Was Sunk After Major Citizen Opposition

Statement in Councilmember Elrich's Newsletter and yes he included this image!

"Over the last few months, the Council has been considering a Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA), ZTA 18-11, that would regulate the placement of certain telecommunication towers, known as small cell towers, in public right-of-way in residential areas. In the spring, the Council passed ZTA 18-02, which regulates siting of small cell towers in commercial and mixed-use areas. ZTA 18-11 had been reviewed by the Planning Housing and Economic Development and discussed by the Council several weeks ago; it was scheduled to be voted on but was pulled from the agenda. The current Council cannot act on any ZTAs less than 30 days before a new Council is sworn in; therefore, any ZTAs regarding small cells will be considered by the next Council, which will be sworn in December 3. 

I share the concerns of the many residents who have contacted our office over the last few months and weeks that these towers would unnecessarily be allowed in too close proximity to residential homes and schools; that citizen voices would largely be removed from the process; and that the process of approving these towers is treated differently in different residential parts of the county. I was also concerned that we were not taking the needed time to consider the many complicated issues involved with this ZTA. The future Council will need to address the siting of these towers, and this “pause” in the process will allow time to work with residents, experts, and others to understand the best path forward. I would note that the Federal Communications Commission has already ruled to prohibit local jurisdictions from considering any potential health implications of small cell towers in residential areas, so the Council cannot use possible health concerns as a rationale for restrictions on locations.

I do not believe that this pause poses a problem, since the Council took major action in the spring with ZTA 18-02, which allows these towers into commercial areas where the demand is the greatest and the need to act was more time-sensitive. This is also an opportunity to address the concerns I raised regarding existing permitting and approval processes will be addressed during this interim and before another ZTA is considered."