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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSCOTCH PINES WTF, CRICKET COMMUNICATIONS - PDP - 34-99D - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - PROJECT SUBMITTAL AND RESUBMITTAL• cricVet communications Cricket at a Glance • Cricket Communications, Inc. is a new kind of wireless company. • Cricket is rethinking wireless for the two thirds of Americans who don't currently have a wireless phone. • Marketed as Comfortable Wireless, Cricket's service is designed to make wireless communications simple, affordable and wont' -free. • At a flat rate of just $29.95 a month, Cricket is as simple and affordable as a residential landline phone, with the added benefit of mobility. • With a Cricket phone, people can make and receive virtually all their local calls without worrying about an expensive bill at the end of the month. • Cricket makes having a wireless phone accessible to everyone —college students, busy moms, local businesspeople and retirees. • The Cricket service has been very well received in its first two markets — Nashville and Chattanooga, Tenn. The company plans to roll out its unique wireless service in select cities across the country. • In each market where it launches service, Cricket plans to take an active role in the community. Cricket will create retail, technical and administrative jobs and invest millions of dollars in the local economy. • Cricket is a subsidiary of Leap Wireless International (Nasdaq: LWIN), a company dedicated to playing a leading role in transforming wireless communications for the mass consumer market Leap intends to spark the wireless revolution by developing innovative wireless voice, mobile Internet and next -generation multimedia services that deliver value to customers. • For more information, please visit www.cricketcomrhunications.com. A subsidiary of Leap Wireless International, Inc. 10307 Pacific Center Court • San Diego, California 92121 Phone 858.882.6000 • Fax 858.882.6080 FMHC Corporation Real Estate Consultants to the Communications Industty Drew Dewhirst Zoning Lead_ Cricket Build out in Larimer County, Loveland and Fort Collins Re: Site FNL-008B Scotch Pines Shopping Center Dewhirst, Per your request, the following is an explanation of the other candidates .that were considered in this ring and why we were forced to design a site that included building a new structure (rather than our original intent of collocating on an existing building or other structure). Ring FNL-008 is designed to cover the Scotch pines shopping center and the surrounding neighborhoods. Scotch pines was ultimately selected as the primary candidate because of our failure to reach an agreement with the Platte River Power Authority (PRRA). The PRRA owns and operates several transmission towers along East Drake Road. These towers offered the necessary elevation for Cricket to meet their coverage objectives. However, our proposal was rejected by the PRRA because they will not allow additional collocation due to safety/ weight bearing reasons along that line. The Owners of the Whispering Pine Apartments to the West were not interested and the Methodist church (301 East Drake Road) opened up a coverage hole to the East. Moving the Site North or South or East also open up coverage holes. The Monopine design was selected to minimize the visual impact to the surrounding neighbors. Verizon, Sprint, and Nextel have expressed interest in collocating on this monopine I hope this clarifies the situation. Let me know if there is any other info I can provide. Peter Nemanic FMHC 140 West Oak Street, Suite 230 Ft Collins, CO 80524 (970) 482-4405 Lucent Technologies EWI LWs by auw 0 6855 S. Havana Street, Suite 450 Englewood, CO 80112 (720) 346-1799 Main Number (720) 346-1792 Main Fax Number August 15, 2001 To Whom It May Concern: As the Radio Frequency (RF) Manager for Lucent Technologies, representing Cricket Communications for the Fort Collins/Greeley market, I attest to the following in regards to the proposed wireless communications site located at 2601 South LeMay, in the City of Fort Collins: 1). The proposed Lucent/Cricket wireless telecommunication facility will comply with all current Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) standards for cumulative field measurements of radio frequency power densities and electromagnetic fields. 2). The proposed Lucent/Cricket wireless telecommunication facility will comply at all times with current FCC regulations prohibiting localized interference with reception of television and radio broadcasts. 3). The proposed Lucent/Cricket wireless telecommunication facility will not interfere with any public safety frequencies servicing the city and its residents. All Lucent base station radios meet or exceed FCC regulations. Sincerely, Tim Heine RF Manager SITE FNL-008B telecommunication equipment, as the best method by which to mitigate and/or camouflage visual impacts. Stealth technology consists of, but is not limited to, the use of grain bins, silos, or elevators, church steeples, water towers, clock towers, bell towers, false penthouses or other similar "mimic' structures. Such "mimic" structures shall have a contextual relationship to the adjacent area. Cricket Response: Cricket is certainly employing stealth technology with this design. A properly designed and located monopine will blend in with the surrounding environment and is an excellent method by which to mitigate the visual impact of a wireless telecommunication facility. We have proposed a monopine at this site because the existing trees at the Scotch Pines Shopping Center are the only "structures", either man made or natural, that have an elevation that approximates the height that Cricket needs to meet their coverage objectives. By proposing a monopine, we have designed a wireless telecommunication facility that makes contextual sense with visual landscape of the subject neighborhood. The monopine has been designed to have a contextual relationship with the adjacent area '1 (9) Lighting. The light source for security lighting shall be high pressure sodium and feature down -directional, sharp cut-off luminaries so that there is no spillage of illumination off -site. Light fixtures, whether freestanding or tower -mounted, shall not exceed twenty-two (22) feet in height. • Cricket Response: There is no lighting proposed for this site. (10) Interference. Wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment shall operate in such a manner so as not to cause interference with other electronics such as radios, televisions or computers. • Cricket Response: Please refer to Appendix "I", which is a letter from an RF engineer, that certifies that Cricket will comply with all applicable FCC requirements. (11) Access Roadways. Access roads must be capable of supporting all of the emergency response equipment of the Poudre Fire Authority. • Cricket Response: The proposed Cricket design will not precipitate any changes to access roads to the Scotch Pines Shopping Center. (12) Foothills and Hogbacks. Wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment located in or near the foothills bear a special responsibility for mitigating visual disruption. If such a location is selected, the applicant shall provide computerized, three- dimensional, visual simulation of the facility or equipment and other appropriate graphics g; to demonstrate the visual impact on the view of the city's foothills and hogbacks. • Cricket Response: Foothills or Hogbacks are not an issue for this site. (13) Airports and Flight Paths._ Wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment located near airports and flight paths shall obtain the necessary approvals from the Federal Aviation Administration. • Cricket Response: The proposed wireless telecommunication equipment is not located near an airport or flight path. (14) Historic Sites and Structures. Wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment shall not be located on any historic site or structure unless permission is first obtained from the city's Landmark Preservation Commission as required by Chapter 14 of the City Code. • Cricket Response: The buildings located at 2601 South Lemay are not ,I designated historic sites or structures. (15). Stealth Technology: To the extent reasonably feasible, the applicant shall employ "stealth technology" so as to convert the wireless telecommunication into wireless base of such facilities or equipment to screen the mechanical characteristics. A heavy emphasis on coniferous plants for year-round screening may be required. If a wireless telecommunication facility or ground -mounted wireless telecommunication equipment has frontage on a public street, street trees shall be planted along the roadway in accordance with the policies of the City Forester. • Cricket Response: Since there is so much existing landscaping in the proposed location for both the monopine and the BTS equipment, no additional landscaping is being proposed. (5) Fencing. Chain link fencing shall be unacceptable to screen facilities. Fencing material shall consist of wood, masonry, stucco or other acceptable materials and be opaque. Fencing shall not exceed six (6) feet in height. • Cricket Response: The ground mounted BTS equipment will be surrounded by a 6' wooden fence. (6) Berming. Berms shall be considered as an acceptable screening device. Berms shall feature slopes that allow mowing, irrigation and maintenance. • Cricket Response: Because the equipment will not be visible from a public right of way, no berming is proposed. (7) Irrigation. Landscaping -and berming shall be equipped with automatic irrigation systems meeting the water conservation standards of the city. • Cricket Response: Since no landscaping is proposed, no irrigation is proposed. (8) Color. All wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment shall be painted to match as closely as possible the color and texture of the wall, building or surrounding built environment. Muted colors, earth tones and subdued colors shall be used. • Cricket Response: The color of the proposed facility is designed to match a "real' pine tree. The synthetic branches and synthetic pine needles will be a "pine" green in color. The branches will be start at approximately 20 above the ground. The base of the monopine will be screened by the existing trees located to the east and northeast, and by the building to the south, west, and northwest. There will be simulated bark on the base of the tower, from where the branches start down to the ground. Cricket has provided a sample of the bark, along with pictures of other existing monopines and the photo simulations (Appendix "K"). Cricket is flexible in the exact design and appearance of the monopine, including: "thickness" of the branches and pine needles, color of the facility, and the height at which the branches begin. . The specific location for the proposed facility is ideal to allow the monopine to be consistent with the surrounding environment. There are several large Cottonwood trees, that are approximately 75' tall, near or adjacent to the proposed monopine. The proposed monopine will extend approximately 10' above the Cottonwoods. In addition, because of the other trees that are in front of the monopine, and because the building will screen the base of the pole on nearly 3 sides, the base of the monopine will be screened from view. The ground mounted BTS equipment is also in an excellent location. The proposed location for the BTS equipment is inside an existing fenced area. The existing fenced area provides screening for a garbage bin pick up area. We are ' proposing to extend this existing fenced area, matching the existing fence, to enclose and screen our BTS equipment. The wooden fencing will be constructed out of materials that are equal to or better than the original fence, and will be designed to exactly match the fence type. (3) Wireless Telecommunication Equipment. Wireless telecommunication equipment shall be of the same color as the building or structure to which or on which such equipment is mounted. Whenever a wireless telecommunication antenna is attached to a building root the height of the antenna shall not be more than fifteen (15) feet over the height of the building. All wireless telecommunication equipment shall be located as far from the edge of the roof as possible. Even if the building is constructed at or above the building height limitations contained in Section 3.8.17, the additional fifteen (15) feet is permissible. Whenever wireless telecommunication equipment is mounted to the wall of a building or structure, the equipment shall be mounted in a configuration as flush to the wall as technically possible and shall not project above the wall on which it is mounted. Roof- and ground -mounted wireless telecommunication equipment shall be screened by parapet walls or screen walls in a manner compatible with the building's design, color and material. • Cricket Response: 'Cricket is proposing a wireless telecommunication facility. Consequently the first three paragraphs of this portion of the code don't apply to the subject proposal. The ground mounted BTS equipment will be completely screened by a 6' wooden fence. For information with regards to aesthetic issues, please refer to Appendix "K" for photo simulations of the proposed facility and Appendix "L" for antenna specifications. (4) Landscaping. Wireless telecommunication facilities and ground -mounted wireless telecommunications equipment may need to be landscaped with landscaping materials that exceed the levels established in Section 3.2.1, due to the unique nature of such facilities. Landscaping may therefore be required to achieve a total screening effect at the I The only property line where the proposed tower location is unable to the meet the setback requirements is the north. The tower will be located 38' from the �I north property line. There are not any buildings located to then north of the proposed location for the monopine. We are basing our request for a relief from the setback requirement on the south �j property line on the structural integrity of a monopine. Cricket will be providing a letter from the monopine manufacturer that states that the structural failure to a monopole is extremely rare and occur only during a catastrophic event such as a tornado or hurricane. It also states that the design of the monopole prevents the pole from "falling over" (which is the intent of the one for one setback requirement). In addition, Cricket would like to point out that we are employing •j the use of stealth technology. City staff has previously informed us that when stealth technology is employed, the structure is no longer considered a "facility", 1111 as defined by the Fort Collins zoning code. (2) Wireless Telecommunication Facilities. Whether manned or unmanned, wireless telecommunication facilities shall be consistent with the architectural style of the surrounding architectural environment (planned or existing) considering exterior materials, roof form, scale, mass, color, texture and character. Such facilities shall also �1 be compatible with the surrounding natural environment considering landforms, topography, and other natural features. If such facility is an accessory use to an existing use, the facility shall be constructed out of materials that are equal to or better than the materials of the principal use. �i • Cricket Response: The proposed 85' monopine will be located inside the busy Scotch Pines Shopping Center. This is the only candidate inside our search ring, or designated search area, that was not zoned residential. We thoroughly canvassed the neighborhood to find existing structures that we could mount our antenna to. Because of costs and zoning restrictions, our intent is always to collocate on existing structures. Unfortunately, this is not always possible. Please refer to Appendix "K", which is a memorandum from our site acquisition it agent, that explains the other candidates considered in this ring, and why they were ultimately rejected. Cricket can provide more information, including �I technical information, on the other potential- candidates considered in this ring and why they didn't work. In addition, please refer to Appendix "J", Coverage Prediction Maps, to see a visual representation of how important this site is to Cricket's network. The proposed monopine design is consistent with the surrounding environment. The Scotch Pines Shopping Center is a well developed, heavily landscaped part of the City of Fort Collins. The reason we have proposed a monopine, is that we felt is would be difficult to be in compliance with this provision of the code with a j standard design, such as a monopole. Conversely, because of the proposed design, we feel we are clearly in compliance with this provision of the code. 0 i �j RESPONSE TO THE REQUIREMENTS FOR WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATION 3.8.13 Wireless Telecommunication (A) Location. Subject to, the requirements of paragraph (B) of this Section, wireless telecommunication equipment may be attached'to or mounted on any existing building or structure (or substantially similar replacement structure) located in any zone district of the city. Wireless telecommunication equipment shall not, however, be permitted to be attached to or mounted on any residential building containing four (4) or fewer dwelling units. • Cricket Response: The proposed design calls for the erection of a new facility, an 85' monopine. The subject property is located at 2601 South Lemay and is ' zoned commercial. Because of the Commercial zoning classification, the application is eligible for a Type 1 review. (B) Co -location. No wireless telecommunication facility or equipment owner or lessee or employee thereof shall act to exclude or attempt to exclude any other wireless telecommunication provider from using the same building, structure or location. Wireless telecommunication facility owners or lessees or employees thereof shall cooperate in good faith to achieve co -location of wireless telecommunication facilities and equipment with other wireless telecommunication providers. • Cricket Response: Cricket will not act to exclude or attempt to exclude any other competitor from using the subject monopine located at 2601 South Lemay. In fact, this tower will be able to structurally accommodate two other wireless carriers, preventing the need for future carriers to build wireless telecommunication facilities. (C) Standards (1) Setbacks. With respect to a wireless telecommunication facility that is a tower or a monopole, -the setback of the facility from the property lines shall be one (1) foot for every foot of height. However, to the extent that it can be demonstrated that the structure will collapse rather than topple, this requirement can be waived by the Director. In addition, the setbacks for ground -mounted wireless telecommunication equipment shall be governed by the setback criteria established in Articles 3 and/or 4. • Cricket Response: The proposed location for the monopole will be able to comply (and substantially exceed) with the one for one setback requirement on the south, east and west property lines. This location was chosen for aesthetic reasons. Because there are several large Cottonwood trees adjacent to the proposed monopine. The intent of the proposed design and location is for the facility will be appear to blend in with the existing tress located on the site. 1. The property owner must be interested in leasing space to the wireless telephone carrier (Cricket). 2. The proposed structure must be able to positively address a variety of construction related questions, including but not limited to: Is on -site power available? Is telephone service available? Can the building structurally accommodate the proposed antenna and associate equipment? 3. The proposed design for the site must be in compliance with the jurisdictional zoning requirements. 4. The site must meet the needs of the radio frequency team. The ground elevation, the _. height of the existing or proposed structure, surrounding buildings, and topography must all be considered. In addition, the site must "fit in" with the surrounding proposed or existing sites. Based upon the above criteria, Lucent Technologies has determined that the there are no 'buildings and/or structures that meet the established criteria for Cricket's proposed -- network. Consequently, the only alternative is the proposed monopine at 2601 South Lemay in the Scotch Pines shopping center. STRUCUTRE AND ANTENNA Cricket is proposing to construct an 85' monopine that will accommodate two other wireless phone carriers. This area of the City of Fort Collins does have any structures that provide the necessary elevation to meet the Cricket coverage objectives. This will be the case for other carriers as well. The proposal is to mount 12 (twelve) panel antennas onto the monopine. The top of the antenna will be located at an elevation of 85' above the ground. The antennas will be concealed by the branches from the monopine. The dimensions of the antenna are 56" long, 8" wide, and 2.75" deep. This antenna array will provide 360 degree network coverage. BTS Base Transmitting Station) UNIT The proposed location for the BTS equipment is inside an existing fenced area. The existing fenced area provides screening for a garbage bin pick up area. We are proposing ' to extend this existing fenced area, matching the existing fence, to enclose and screen our BTS equipment. 1 The approximate dimensions of the BTS units are approximately 5.5' long, 5.5' wide, _ and 6' tall. Telephone and electrical connections will be made from the BTS unit to existing on -site telephone and power facilities. t i PROJECT SUMMARY THE CRICKET PROJECT IN COLORADO Cricket Communications is a subsidiary of Leap Wireless International, Inc. Cricket is introducing a new category of wireless phone service. It does not intend to compete with traditional cellular and PCS carriers. Cricket will give customers the freedom to make all their calls from around their metropolitan area and receive calls from anywhere for $29.95 a month. Because Cricket customers use the service in their local area, roaming is not available. The current Cricket build out for Colorado is focusing on the Denver metropolitan area, but will grow to include all of the Front Range communities, from Pueblo in the south to Fort Collins and Greeley in the north. Cricket is currently offering service several cities, including the metropolitan Denver area, Tucson, Arizona, and Nashville and Chattanooga, Tennessee. Presently, Cricket is building out wireless network in several other markets, including but not limited to Albuquerque, Phoenix, Salt Lake, and Omaha. The subject site will function as a wireless telephone communication site within a local, regional, and growing national communication system. Cricket operates under license from the Federal Government at frequency band of 1890-1895 MHz and 1970-1975 MHz. The proposed facility will consist of an 85' stealth "monopine." A monopine is a monopole communications tower that is designed to look like a pine tree. The monopine will provide the necessary height and structural capacity to accommodate twelve (12) antennas (in addition to two other wireless carriers). The BTS equipment will be located adjacent to the south side of the building, where we have proposed to enlarge an existing fenced area. This area is also surrounded by extensive landscaping. By locating the BTS at this location, the equipment will be completely screened and will not be visible from a public right of way. Please refer to Appendix "M" for more information on Cricket. SITE SELECTION PROCESS Selecting a location for a wireless telecommunications site is not an easy task. The process begins with a radio frequency (RF) engineer laying out a network of sites which all interconnect. The goal is to provide seamless coverage to the customer so that the customer does not experience "dropped" calls. Once the network of cells is established, the RF team provides a search ring map to a land acquisition agent. The job of the land acquisition agent is to locate a site within the defined search area. There are four main factors to consider during the site selection process: I Table of Contents SECTION 1 CURRENT PLANNING DEPARTMENT APPLICATION FORM SECTION 2 PROJECT SUMMARY SECTION 3 RESPONSE TO THE WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATION REQUIREMENTS APPENDICES I. FCC COMPLIANCE LETTER J. COVERAGE PREDICTION MAPS K. PHOTO SIMULATIONS L. SITE ACQUISITION MEMO M. ANTENNA SPECIFICATIONS N. CRICKET INFORMATION O. LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION cric etTM communications Lucent Technologies Bell Labs Innovations PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PLAN APPLICATION (TYPE 1) 2601 SOUTH LEMAY CITY OF FORT COLLINS TYPES OF REVIEW: WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATION FACILITY SUBMITTED BY LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES REPRESENTING CRICKET COMMUNICATIONS