CC 11/16/2020 Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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CASSELBERRY CITY COMMISSION Minutes of November 16, 2020 — Regular Meeting Page 11 of 22 made relating to small cell towers and related equipment, and gave an overview of those changes, which included: allowing the telecommunications industry to enter City rights of way and utilize the City's poles to co -locate telecommunications equipment; allowing the industry to add poles and equipment without the City having much input; restricting the City's charges per pole to $150; allowing up to 30 poles in one application for placement; imposing a timeline to which the City must adhere; restricting the City from charging any consultant fees to the industry, making it necessary to use in-house staff, and imposing very strict requirements that the City must meet in order to require telecommunications equipment to placed underground. She added that on the positive side, there was now a built-in 14 -day negotiation period after application is made in order to try and work out a different location for placement of equipment, and also the ability to deny permit requests due to safety issues, ADA requirements, or development plans such as widening roadways. There are also a few design standards which the City can impose, and she noted that those were maximized in the proposed changes to the City's Code, including requiring all poles to be black, retaining of some setbacks and requiring the equipment be placed in a cabinet. She noted that another positive thing is that the industry is being required to honor any covenants and restrictions put in place by any HOA (Homeowners' Association), and she hoped to get the word out to the City's HOA's that they have the ability to restrict these telecommunications poles within their developments. The Florida League of Cities filed suit on behalf of some cities to challenge this Statute, but unfortunately the case was dismissed. She advised that none of the restrictions placed on cities applies to Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) rights-of-way, so FDOT can negotiate whatever they want in their rights-of-way without complying with the Statute or City Code and she hoped the City could work with FDOT to prevent a proliferation of poles and equipment in the City. She advised that her presentation applied to both Ordinance 20-1545 and Ordinance 20-1546 which is the next item on the agenda, noting that Ordinance 20-1545 related primarily to rights -of --way and Ordinance 20-1546 related to location regulation and design standards. In response to questions from the City Commission, Ms. Reischmann advised that the City would have to have an agreement with FDOT in order to receive notification of potential construction or addition of new telecommunications towers, and she would need to research whether any cities were receiving that kind of notification. Also, a permit was not required under the City's Right -of -Way Code, but she would need to do further research as to whether permits would be required under the Building Code. She did advise that towers had been installed in the past without notification to the City and stated she would do additional research as to the possibility of entering into an agreement with FDOT for notification of installations. Budget Impact: There is no impact to the City Budget. Recommendation: The City Manager and the Community Development Director recommended approval of Ordinance 20-1545 on first reading. Audience Participation: The following individual came forward to address Ordinance 20-1545: