SITE PLAN REVIEW
SP-02-08-07: Lawrence Freenet Equipment Addition to Harper Water Tower, a site plan for the addition of communication equipment to an existing water tower located at 2100 Harper Street. Submitted by Adam Mansfield, President Lawrence Freenet, Inc. City of Lawrence, property owner of record.
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Current Zoning and Land Use: |
GPI (General Public and Institutional Use) District and RS7 (Single-Dwelling Residential; existing fire station facility and water tower.
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Surrounding Zoning and Land Use: |
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Site Summary: |
2128 Harper – fire station 2100 Harper- Water Tower |
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Gross Area: |
1.66 acres (Fire Station) 0.79 acres (Water tower)
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Tower Enclosure Area: |
37’ by 15’ area per SP-02-15-06 intended to accommodate Sprint and future Freenet ground equipment within same enclosure area. No new enclosure proposed.
Freenet use of enclosure is 12’ x 15’ at east end of existing structure
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Original Approval: SP-03-16-00 Fire Station No. 2 SP-02-15-06 Sprint co-location on water tower tank
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Staff Recommendation: Planning staff recommends approval of the site plan subject to the following conditions:
1. Execution of a site plan performance agreement. 2. Approval of any lease agreements with the City of Lawrence as applicable. 3. Provision of a revised site plan to include the following notes and changes: a. “This site plan does not include a generator facility or placement. Any future addition of such equipment shall be subject to site plan review and approval including review and re-approval or amendment of the city lease as appropriate.” b. Change Scale to state “Drawing not to scale” c. Change title of drawing to state: “Lawrence Freenet addition to Harper Water Tower” d. Include address below title as: “2100 Harper Street” e. Include Legal description as follows: “Lot 1, Starr Addition.” f. Label existing 12’ access drive. g. Provide the following note: “Freenet, its successors and assigns, as a subsequent tenant shall ensure that their frequencies and antenna locations are compatible with any existing tenants.” h. Provision of a revised site plan that shows and notes the routing of the data line cable through existing buried conduit to avoid additional damage to the landscape sprinkler system.
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C. STAFF REVIEW
The subject property is adjacent to the Fire Station on the south side. This area contains the water tower and enclosure building. The Fire Station No. 2 building is located on a separate parcel. Both properties share a single access.
Section 20-529(11) allows for communication antennas to be reviewed as permitted uses through the site plan review provisions and when attached to an existing structure are reviewed as an amendment to an approved site plan.
20-1305: Approval Criteria. In order to be approved, a Site Plan shall comply with all of the following criteria:
1. The site plan shall contain only platted land;
The subject property is an existing property developed with public utility infrastructure. The property is platted as Lot 1 Starr Addition.
2. The site plan shall comply with all standards of the City Code, this Development Code and other adopted City policies and adopted neighborhood or area plans;
The proposed site plan is an amendment or alteration to an approved site plan. The proposed ground equipment will be located within an identified enclosure area that is screened. No additional screening is required. Landscape material around the enclosure is not proposed and is not needed for this site.
3. The proposed use shall be allowed in the District in which it is located or be an allowed nonconforming use;
The subject property is zoned RS7 (Single-dwelling Residential) District. The use of this site as a water utility site has been occupied since the early 1970’s. There is no record of a special use permit or site plan for the original construction of the water tower. The proposed request is considered to be a “co-location” for the placement of communication equipment on an existing structure. The property to the north is zoned GPI and is developed with Fire Station No. 2. Per Section 20-402 of the Land Development Code, telecommunication antennas are allowed as an accessory use in the RS7 district.
4. Vehicular ingress and egress to and from the site and circulation within the site shall provide for safe, efficient and convenient movement of traffic not only within the site but on adjacent roadways as well and shall also conform with adopted corridor or Access Management policies; and,
The addition of equipment does not require any changes to the existing access to the site. The water tower and fire station are both currently served with an asphalt driveway. As part of the previous Sprint application, a short 12’ drive was extended to the south to the recently constructed enclosure. No changes are proposed to the vehicle circulation of the site or access to the enclosure.
5. The site plan shall provide for the safe movement of pedestrians on the subject site.
The proposed site plan is for the addition of communication equipment both on the top of the tower and within an existing enclosure area. The site is not a pedestrian destination. There are no conflicts that will result by the addition of the proposed equipment and any pedestrian access of the site.
Permission – The property owner of record, in this case, is the City of Lawrence. City staff is aware that the application has been submitted. A site plan was previously approved to allow for another communication provider (Sprint) to co-locate antenna on the water tower structure. The Lawrence Police Department also has existing communication equipment located on this water tower prior to the Sprint application. The applicant must execute a lease agreement with the City prior to release of the site plan for issuance of a building permit. The proposed equipment will not be allowed to interfere with any existing or planned municipal operations. The approval of the proposed site plan is subject to approval and execution of a lease agreement with the City. Staff further recommends the site plan be revised to include a note that states: “Freenet, its successors and assigns, as a subsequent tenant shall ensure that their frequencies and antenna locations are compatible with any existing tenants.”
Future Improvements – The applicant indicated during the review process interest in placement of a generator for emergency backup power to equipment. The site plan at this time does not show or note this element. Staff discussed options for the type of generated power and impact on the site. Use of generators for emergency backup is typical for communication providers. The two key types of power used for back up include permanent placement of a generator within the equipment enclosure with the generator being powered by either diesel fuel or a connection to a natural gas line. Since the site plan does not indicate a generator location at this time, any future addition of such equipment shall be subject to site plan review and approval including review and re-approval or amendment of the city lease as appropriate. Staff recommends the site plan be revised to include a note to state that any changes to the site or addition of generator equipment shall require a revised site plan and update to the lease agreement as applicable.
As noted the water tower includes communication equipment for Sprint as well as existing city facilities for the Police Department. The applicant’s documentation states that the proposed equipment shall not be allowed to interfere with existing equipment. Staff has advised the applicant that should interference occur the applicant is then obligated to address the issue as necessary.
Installation of equipment – Review comments noted that the applicant shall coordinate with the City Utility Department regarding installation. Staff recommends that the site plan be revised to add this as a condition of approval on the face of the document. The applicant will need to coordinate both building permit and installation with the City Neighborhood Resources and Utility Departments.
Site Plan – The site plan submitted is a drawing of the site that shows only the basic elements of the proposal. This site plan must be read with the previously approved site plan to assimilate all the improvements to the exiting site. Changes to the site plan should include basic notation as set out in Article 13 of the Land Development Code and are reflected as conditions of approval.
The previous site plan documented the property boundaries and dimensions as well as physical elements including the enclosure and driveway access. This site plan will be made an addendum to the previous document so that site plan elements are addressed fully. The site plan, as noted, is in conformance with the requirements of the Development Code.