Crafting South Lake Tahoe's wireless communications facility ordinance

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Most will say their cell phone coverage isn't great in Lake Tahoe or is severely impaired on big tourist weekends such as the 4th of July. With the growth of remote workers coming to live in Lake Tahoe, better internet coverage is also needed for them to work, along with the needs of many others.

But better coverage comes with concerns from some members of the public about the safety and aesthetics of the devices needed to bring it to the community. The public has been invited to contribute to the crafting of a City of South Lake Tahoe telecommunication facility ordinance.

Monopoles, monopines, lattice towers, rooftop panels, cantennae, and small cell sites are all terms that will be defined and outlined in the new ordinance, as will how, when and where they are installed.

"At the Staff level we have been working hard on this," said SLT City Manager Frank Rush. "The ordinance will be thorough and thoughtful."

Rush said the ordinance will be simple and straightforward and find the right balance.

As the City of South Lake Tahoe develops the ordinance they have hired an expert in the field and last week held the first public workshop on the sometimes controversial matter.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) determines what the cellular service providers (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, Charter) can and cannot do as they install the telecommunication facilities.

Cities have just 90 days to approve or reject small-cell-site applications, and can only charge providers for the costs of processing applications and managing deployments in the public rights of way. These small sites aren’t subject to the same environmental and historic-preservation processes as standard-sized sites.

Many cities have found the only way to limit or control the onslaught of the facilities is through their ordinances.

There are currently 37 sites approved in South Lake Tahoe for one of the four types of facilities with two more under review. Of those 27, 22 are cantennae, two are rooftop panels, two are stealth rooftop panels, eight monopines, one stealth monopine, and two lattice towers.

All of the sites already approved or in the process of being approved cannot be part of the new ordinance, but all future applications to build will.

Almost 70 residents attended the workshop, most of whom are against the cell facilities. The broke out into small groups during the evening to concentrate and report back on aspects of the future ordinance.

"This was the first step in the journey," said the City of South Lake Tahoe Development Services Director Kevin Fabino.

The small groups came back with guidelines concerning the concentration of the small and large panels and towers and the distance between them. The standard in Europe is 300 meters (1,000 feet) and many at the meeting suggested 1,500 feet. The groups also wanted to see noise and safety guidelines and notification of nearby residents when towers are proposed and to be voted on. They were also concerned with who is responsible for the maintenance and condition of the electric boxes located next to the towers and panels.

They also suggested a permitting process that financially puts the towers a burden on the cell providers installing them.

One popular idea presented was for the City to create a map of preapproved sites for the small and large sites, and the interested company can pick from those locations.

Some in attendance said they were concerned with cell towers installed at schools, but there is nothing the City can do about those. The State of California approves what is done on school grounds which came as a surprise to them.

Concern about the effect of cell tower radio waves on migratory birds was voiced. It was suggested the City consult how other jurisdictions are handling the Bald and Gold Eagle Protection Act in relation to cell towers.

The new ordinance will have to work within the guidelines of the FCC and TRPA.

There is one pending appeal of a previously approved cell tower at Needle Peak and Ski Run Blvd. Verizon was approved but neighbors are objecting and want another site located, and have been leading efforts to ban the towers.

It isn't as simple as finding an empty lot though. Rush said they have the right topography, elevation, vegetation, and location near neighboring buildings to work with the other telecommunication facilities in South Lake Tahoe. He said even lake reflectivity comes into play. He is encouraging the cell companies to look at public property to locate their needed equipment.

"I know there are health concerns," said Rush. "The City cannot consider those impacts. We are bound go use FCC standards."

Robert "Tripp" May III, the Managing Partner of Telecom Law Firm, spoke to the group during the workshop and will return to South Lake Tahoe as the City creates the telecommunications ordinance. He specializes in telecommunications infrastructure, policy and contracting, and represents both public agencies and private landlords in regulatory and transactional matters, according to the firm's website. May has been recognized by both the States of Nevada and California for his pro bono federal advocacy on behalf of California local governments in Federal Communications Commission rulemaking proceedings.

May said the locals have many of the same concerns as do the other local governments and public agencies he advises, but there are also differences. He said Tahoe is different because of the lake and neighborhood concerns.

As the City crafts the ordinance the public will still have chances to speak.

"The goal is to have input from the community," said Fabino. He said a balanced ordinance will be created to meet the needs of everyone. The City expects to have the document presented to the Planning Commission at their January meeting, then come before the City Council soon after that.

Rush said it could be March when the final ordinance goes into effect.