9426-03 Amend Chapter 21, The Inclusion of new Article 13 Entitled Regulations for Wireless Telecommunications Facilities

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Article 13. Regulations for Wireless Telecommunications Facilities. Sec. 21-192 Intent and Policy. Intent -This Section creates the framework for the siting of wireless telecommunications facilities in a manner which: protects the public health, safety and general welfare of the community; provides comprehensive service to the community; protects the community from visual clutter; is compatible with existing and future land use; and, preserves significant view corridors. Policy -The following policy statements are set forth to provide guidance to wireless communication facility providers in the placement of wireless telecommunication facilities within the City of South Bend. It is hereby declared that the City of South Bend Telecommunications Policies for the corporate limits of the City of South Bend shall be to: (1) Facilitate the comprehensive provision of wireless telecommunication services to the residents and businesses of the City of South Bend. (2) Maximize the use of existing and approved telecommunication towers, buildings, and structures to accommodate new wireless telecommunication antennas in order to minimize the number of telecommunication towers needed to comprehensively serve the community. (3) Minimize the number, height, obtrusiveness, and the visual impacts of telecommunications towers, associated equipment, and buildings. (4) Encourage wireless telecommunication facilities to be located in areas which are least disruptive to residential, park, open space, and greenway uses and to be as unobtrusive and invisible as reasonably possible. (5) Ensure that the height of telecommunications towers has the least visual impact and is no greater than required to achieve service area requirements and potential co-location. (6) Site telecommunications towers to minimize locations which are visually solitary or prominent when viewed from residential areas or any public way. (7) Site telecommunications towers at locations which are obscured by vegetation, tree cover, topographic features, buildings or other structures to the maximum extent feasible. (8) Protect views of and vistas from architecturally or historically significant structures and historically significant landscapes so that these architectural or historical resources are not impaired or diminished by the placement of telecommunications towers.