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Home My WebLink About20191119.tiffHEARING CERTIFICATION DOCKET NO. 2019-43.B RE: A SITE SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW PERMIT, USR18-0123, FOR A 256 -FOOT IN HEIGHT TELECOMMUNICATION ANTENNA TOWER IN THE A (AGRICULTURAL) ZONE DISTRICT - DUANGCHAI WASHBURN, C/O NEXIUS SOLUTIONS, INC. A public hearing was conducted on May 1, 2019, at 10:00 a.m., with the following present: Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer, Chair — EXCUSED Commissioner Mike Freeman, Pro -Tern Commissioner Sean P. Conway Commissioner Scott K. James Commissioner Steve Moreno Also present: Acting Clerk to the Board, Jessica Reid Assistant County Attorney, Bob Choate Planning Services Department representative, Chris Gathman Public Works Department representative, Evan Pinkham Health Department representative, Lauren Light The following business was transacted: I hereby certify that pursuant to a notice dated February 8, 2019, and duly published February 13, 2019, in the Greeley Tribune, a public hearing was conducted March 20, 2019, to consider the request of Duangchai Washburn, c/o Nexius Solutions, Inc., for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by Special Review Permit, USR18-0123, for a 256 -foot in height Telecommunication Antenna Tower in the A (Agricultural) Zone District, at which time the Board deemed it necessary to continue the matter to May 1, 2019. Bob Choate, County Attorney, made this a matter of record. Chair Pro -Tern Freeman reviewed for the applicant and the public, the procedures to follow should this case result in a tie vote due to four (4) Commissioners being present and Chair Kirkmeyer excused. IR Chris Gathman, Department of Planning Services, presented a brief summary of the proposal and stated the proposed tower will support AT&T and three (3) additional wireless carriers, as well as provide FirstNet (broadband communication for public safety) service to the area. He noted the Weld County Public Safety, Wireless Communications Division, provided an updated referral after the Planning Commission (PC) hearing, mentioned there was an objection from the representative of the tower owner to the north at the PC hearing, and stated the PC recommended approval of the tower, with conditions. He stated, since the PC hearing, the applicant has provided additional information, and one (1) letter of opposition had been received. Mr. Gathman explained the proposed tower is located in a rural area, the nearest residence is one (1) mile away and is not within the three (3) mile referral area of any municipality. In response to Chair Pro-Tem Freeman, Mr. Gathman confirmed the fall zone does not include any adjacent Pt- (CC,/TP), P(.2( £R), `.-H( LL) os/83tt9 2019-1119 PL2656 HEARING CERTIFICATION - DUANGCHAI WASHBURN C/O NEXIUS SOLUTIONS, INC. (USR18-0123) PAGE 2 properties, and in response to Commissioner Conway, he provided clarification about the co -location Development Standard. To conclude, he displayed images of the site. Evan Pinkham, Department of Public Works, stated the site access is on County Road (CR) 92, and noted there are no recent traffic counts. He explained construction will take 30-45 days, and the Department of Public Works (PW) is not requiring tracking control or an Improvements and Road Maintenance Agreement. He stated the site meets a drainage exception and explained the grading requirements. • Lauren Light, Department of Public Health and Environment, stated portable toilets are acceptable, and DS #5-10 address Environmental Health (EH) items. • Liz Walker, Wireless Policy Group, LLC, represented the applicant and presented a PowerPoint presentation. She discussed the existing tower north of the proposed site, owned by American Tower Corporation (ATC), and stated she received a letter, last night, from ATC indicating the tower had structural issues and would not be able to accommodate AT&T's equipment without significant modifications. She cited Weld County Code, Sections 23-4-810 and 23-4-830, regarding telecommunication antenna towers and outlining Weld County's preference for co -location based on economic and technical feasibility. She noted the cost of renting ATC's tower is 700 percent higher than renting from a private landlord, therefore, it is not economically feasible for AT&T to rent space from ATC. She stated a new tower would allow for Weld County's Public Safety Communications to co -locate their equipment on the tower at no cost. In response to Commissioner Conway, Ms. Walker outlined the findings in the structural integrity report, and in response to Commissioner James, she stated the life span of a communications tower is approximately 25 years. Jordan Bunch, attorney with Holland and Hart, LLP, represented ATC. She defended the timing of the submittal of the structural integrity report, stating AT&T did not submit additional information needed by ATC until last week. She requested the application be denied, continued, or remanded to the Planning Commission based on the ownership of the tower changing since the application was initially submitted. She cited Weld County Code and its strong preference for co -location, unless an applicant can show economic or technical infeasibility, and stated AT&T had not researched site specific, economic feasibility, and they did not reach out to ATC for a site specific rental rate. She stated the ATC tower is structurally sound, but would need to be modified to accommodate AT&T's equipment, and noted the cost of the modifications would be factored into the Master Lease Agreement between ATC and AT&T. • In response to Commissioner Conway regarding structural integrity of the tower, Ms. Bunch confirmed the tower is structurally sound, but modifications would need to be made to fit AT&T's antennas on it. She reiterated there was no specific figure to show modifications are economically infeasible for the applicant. In response to Commissioner James, Ms. Bunch indicated she cannot speak to how long the ATC tower is expected to be operational, and in response to Commissioner Conway, she stated she did not believe the 700 percent calculation, mentioned above, is accurate. 2019-1119 PL2656 HEARING CERTIFICATION - DUANGCHAI WASHBURN 0/O NEXIUS SOLUTIONS, INC. (USR18-0123) PAGE 3 • Mike Wallace, Weld County Director of Public Safety Communications, expressed his support of the tower, indicated his department had been looking for a facility to locate their equipment in the area, and the radio communications would benefit First Responders in that area. In response to Commissioner James, he explained Weld County currently does not have a tower in that area and the radio communications they have are not within Weld County's primary network. He explained his department looked at co -location on the ATC tower, but due to the geographic location, the AT&T tower location works better from a coverage perspective. In response to Commissioner Conway, he stated Weld County has invested over $40,000,000 in towers and tower upgrades in his six (6) year tenure, and with regard to the ATC towers structural integrity, he stated he believes it could be in operation many more years depending on the annual maintenance performed. Lastly, in response to Commissioner Conway, he stated he would be very concerned about a tower that had structural integrity issues. ▪ Ms. Bunch clarified the details of the structural integrity report, explaining it does not say there is an issue with the tower's structural integrity, but rather, modifications will need to be made for specific antennas to attach to the tower. In response to Commissioner Conway, she stated the cost to modify the tower would be very specific to the types of antennas, so she does not have an estimate of what modifications would cost. • Ms. Walker clarified information about the tower ownership, described the evidence of economic infeasibility, and mentioned a letter AT&T sent to ATC with a chart of comparative rents. In response to Commissioner Conway, Ms. Walker explained the chart of comparative rents is a compilation of all of ATC's Colorado rentals, and ATC's rent is about 700 percent higher than a private landlord. She noted structural modifications impact the economic feasibility, and in response to Commissioner James, with regard to the technical feasibility of co -locating on the ATC tower, she stated it is not technically feasible, as the tower stands today. • Joseph Oliver, Nexius Solutions, Inc., stated with regard to COA #1.D.8 (access and utility easement), the site will have a 15 -foot easement, and Mr. Pinkham noted a 30 -foot easement is typical for this type of facility. In response to Commissioner Conway, Mr. Oliver indicated the easement will be 30 feet during construction and 15 feet post construction, as outlined in the lease agreement with the landlord, and also mentioned there will be a truck turn around at the facility. The Board agreed to change the language from "30 -foot minimum" to "15 -foot minimum". At Ms. Walker's request, the Board agreed to add a new DS #4 to address the Public Safety Communications Department's use of the facility and the specific configuration of equipment. After discussion among the Board regarding COA #1.B (easement agreement), Chair Pro-Tem Freeman reiterated the applicant needs to obtain an easement agreement with the property owner. In response to Commissioner Moreno regarding DS #16 (tower lighting), Mr. Gathman clarified there are lights on a tower, and per Mr. Choate's suggestion, the Board agreed to add "except as required by the Federal Aviation Administration." Commissioner Conway suggested deleting the screening language on DS #9 (portable toilets), and the Board agreed. • There was no public comment with regard to the changes made to the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards. 2019-1119 PL2656 HEARING CERTIFICATION - DUANGCHAI WASHBURN C/O NEXIUS SOLUTIONS, INC. (USR18-0123) PAGE 4 In response to Chair Pro -Tern Freeman, Mr. Oliver indicated he had reviewed, and agreed to abide by, the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards, as amended. el Commissioner Conway moved to approve the request of Duangchai Washburn, c/o Nexius Solutions, Inc., for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by Special Review Permit, USR18-0123, for a 256 -foot in height Telecommunication Antenna Tower in the A (Agricultural) Zone District, based on the recommendations of Planning staff and the Planning Commission, with the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards, as amended, including the addition of Section 23-4-810 citing the economic and technical feasibility of co -location on existing telecommunication antenna towers. The motion was seconded by Commissioner James, and it carried unanimously. There being no further discussion, the hearing was completed at 1:04 p.m. This Certification was approved on the 6th day of May, 2019. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WELD COUNTY, COLORADO ATTEST: d_dtiti,„ Weld County Clerk to the Board BY: 'ei-J; 1� Deputy Clerk to Board ounty Attorney Date of signature: b-11-- IG EXCUSED Barbara Kirkmeyer, Chair Mike Freeman, Pro_Tem 2019-1119 PL2656 ATTENDANCE LIST NAME - PLEASE PRINT LEGIBLY ADDRESS (CITY, STATE ZIP) EMAIL COUNTY OF RESIDENCE SPEAKING (Y/N)? JoS6Pli OLWvE( OM SIP6=Ee gLvD DaJvca.,Car©2eY Joe ,01ivery'tJex;us .cco, `DEn-vk `('1 -,[2- a,LICelL. 2'432 5.: .vfoiC v* -Co 80[c°2, & fez� ca.., ( � v-fc-cr ��' A,7b..,�0C4�,, ° , L boA� .lab -3 1 � - tLilaKJ 35a0 L6� q- -( it(J J. ue..- kJ C„/InThii,,J, Alli. of( c7,q/cz) Po-v\s(1-49(40-tok\k. 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