PH ORD-2002-033 Orange County Zoning Ordinance Text Amendments

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amount of total sites that could be used for future towers. During the moratorium, there were meetings with other departments to find out if there were any County properties that could be involved in the plan. These plans are normal in North Carolina and in other states. He spoke about why a Master Telecommunications Plan (MTP) is reasonable. The County can develop a significant amount of non-tax revenue from towers being located on local government property. This plan is a decision of the Board of County Commissioners and if the Board does not want to participate, then that element can become inactive, but it will not affect the other parts of the ordinance. The plan must be approved through the public hearing process, but this will not be done tonight. Commissioner Brown asked if all of the adjacent property owners of a proposed tower would be notified. Craig Benedict said that in order to be on the MTP, everyone within the 500 foot radius around the proposed site would be notified and would have the ability to make public comment. Craig Benedict then described the process the staff went through to develop the Master Telecommunications Plan. Each pole should provide for at least four carrier locations. Other areas included in the plan are voluntary agricultural districts. Most of these areas have poor coverage, so they would be ideal for tower locations. All of the potential locations for the public/quasi-public sites have been narrowed'down to 10-15 sites. Some of the sites include the Lee Miller Voluntary Ag District, the Tate Voluntary Ag District, Cedar Grove Fire Station, Cedar Grove Ruritan Club, some property owned by Robert Nutter, White Cross Volunteer Fire Station, and some Duke University property. Craig Benedict said that there have been six or seven meetings with department heads and stakeholders and all have received this plan positively. Renee Price aske~d about notification of neighbors and making the area 1,000 feet. Craig Benedict said that 500 feet is the present number. He said that if they proceed with the MTP, then they will advertise in the paper about the potential sites and give citizens a chance to speak about the sites. Renee Price asked about the review process every year. Craig Benedict said that there would be a review process if someone wants to add something to the MTP. Chair Gooding-Ray asked about identified school parcels with these sites. Craig Benedict said that most of the schools were in the urban area coverage, and the coverage there was reasonable. Chair Gooding-Ray said that the staff needs to look at the health issues concerning the towers, especially regarding children. Commissioner Brown asked about the original plan to have one meeting and then the change to four meetings a year. Craig Benedict said that they will still have one annual meeting. But applicants can still come in twice a year. For a Class A, there will be a meeting in December to find out what the applicants are going to do within the next year and then it will be plugged in to two quarterly public hearings. The Board of Adjustment wants the Class B applicants to come in on a regular basis. This board did not want a lot of applications ~coming in all at once. Public Comment Carl Walters said that he is not asking for a cell tower on his property line, but he would like to offer some options. He would like for a conservation farm to be considered first, if it is next to a fire station. The income generated for the farm by having a tower could extend the life of the farm. There was no one else signed up to speak. Craig Benedict said that the staff is asking the Board whether they should proceed with another public hearing in the first quarter of 2003 to bring letters of intent to