Montgomery Council PHED ZTA 18-11Changes are NON protective

ZTA will allow Monster poles in your neighborhood! 

The Current ZTA With PHED updates is as follows

Proposed ZTA 18-11 After October 1 PHED Meeting:

There will be a pole at about every other house and each pole can have up to 3 providers on it, each with their own antenna, power supply etc. Utility poles can go up ten feet higher and street lights can go up 6 feet higher.

In addition there will be electronic cabinets on each pole that can be up to 20 cubic feet if on they are on the ground or 12 cubic feet if mounted on the pole.   

pretty huh..
Are we being sold out Are council folks looking to get a new job at the FCC? What is going on?

For neighborhoods with below ground utilities: 

• For new or replacement streetlight poles less than 22 feet in neighborhoods with below ground utilities: Retain conditional use with a sham  60 foot setback because the hearing examiner may reduce setback to 30 feet based on a determination by the TTFC. 
• Thus  the stated 60 foot setback is a total sham and it really is just a 30 foot setback- as the hearing process is a total sham sending authority back to the TTFC (Telecommunications Transmission Facilities Facility Coordinating Group) which has been rubber stamping applications for years! 
• In neighborhoods with underground wires the wireless companies are considering “cobra poles” like you would see in a parking lot or on a major highway.  These poles could have a base of up to 3 foot square.
• Yes, the street light will be replaced with a wider, stronger pole and go up higher by 6 feet. 

For neighborhoods with above ground utilities:  

• 30 foot setback. 
• no hearing no notice. 
• The utity poles can go up 10 feet higher. 

Sorry for all the folks with a utility pole or streetlight  at 31 feet from your house. 

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The history of the ZTA 18

Prior to May 2018:

• In all detached.residential zones: 60 foot setback for small cells. 300 foot setback for macro towers.  
• All new  towers required public notice and conditional use hearing with hearing examiner.
• In townhouse residential zones: no towers permitted at all
• In all commercial mixed use zones: no  towers permitted.  

After May 2018:  

• Council approved ZTA 18-02 in May,  changing commercial mixed use and industrial mixed use zones.  Where before the towers were not permitted at all, they changed to allow small cells as a limited use (no public notice or hearing) and made the setback 10 feet.  
• Other residential zones unchanged.  
• It was suggested by Councilmember Leventhal that they wait to see how loosening the standards in the mixed use zones works out before changing anything in the other residential zones. (This was voted on before the primary election in June)  There haven't been any applications in the mixed use zones yet so there is no way they've had time to evaluate that.

So the Current Law is:

• All commercial and industrial mixed use zones:  10 foot setback, limited use, no public notice or hearing
• All detached residential zones: 60  foot setback, public notice and conditional use hearing

Hans Riemer is claiming we need to adopt an ordinance so that we can join the fight in court against FCC preemption.  But this is an incorrect argument because we already have an ordinance that has been changed twice in the last 4 years, most recently in May with the addition of antennas in the mixed use zones as a limited use with a 10 foot setback. It is already more permissive than many jurisdictions. 

Proposed ZTA 18-11 Prior to October 1 PHED Meeting:

• Proposed change all detached residential zones to limited use with 30 foot setback.  No public notice or conditional use hearing unless it's a new pole in residential neighborhoods with below ground utilities.  If it has a public hearing because new pole, hearing examiner could reduce setback to 10 feet.
• In neighborhoods with above ground utilities, antennas attached to utility poles are considered replacement poles and no public notice or hearing will be required (making it limited use ).  Setback is proposed reduced to 30 feet.

Proposed ZTA 18-11 After October 1 PHED Meeting:

• For new or replacement streetlight poles less than 22 feet in neighborhoods with below ground utilities: Retain conditional use and 60 foot setback.  Hearing examiner may reduce setback to 30 feet (instead of 10 feet).
• For communities with above ground utilities: 30 foot setback, no hearing no notice.

The ZTA does not distinguish between neighborhoods with above ground v. below ground utilities. In a residential zone, the PHED recommendation would allow a wireless company to replace an existing utility pole with a slightly taller pole (6 additional feet for streetlights and 10 additional feet for utility poles) as a limited use as long as the original pole was 22’ or taller and 30’ or more from a residential structure. If the proposed pole is new or replacing a pole that is less than 22’ tall, it would be a conditional use subject to a 60’ setback which the Hearing Examiner can reduce to 30’ if appropriate.