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CC SR 20190917 I - WTF 2nd Quarterly UpdateRANCHO PALOS VERDES CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 09/17/2019 AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Consent Calendar AGENDA DESCRIPTION: Consideration and possible action to receive and file a second quarter report on the implementation of the City’s Wireless Telecommunications Facilities in the Public Right- of-Way Ordinance (Case No. PLCA2019-0002) RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION: (1) Receive and file a second quarter report on the implementation of the City’s Wireless Telecommunications Facilities in the Public Right-of-Way Ordinance FISCAL IMPACT: N/A Amount Budgeted: N/A Additional Appropriation: N/A Account Number(s): N/A ORIGINATED BY: Amy Seeraty, Senior Planner REVIEWED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, Director of Community Development APPROVED BY: Doug Wilmore, City Manager ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS: A. Planning Commission Chairman Bradley’s 5G Master Deployment Plan memorandum to the City Council (A-1) B. League of California Cities letter to Senator Dianne Feinstein (Page B-1) BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION: On April 2, 2019, the City Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. 620U, repealing and replacing Chapter 12.18 of the Rancho Palos Verdes Municipal Code. This urgency ordinance aligned the City’s Wireless Telecommunication Facilities Ordinance (Chapter 12.18), with the September 2018 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) order, and included numerous standards changed by the FCC order, including those related to small wireless facilities (SWF), reduced shot clocks, fee caps and aesthetic requirements. Also, since the aesthetics-related portion of the FCC order was going into effect on April 14, 2019, the urgency ordinance needed to be adopted before that date. That same evening, Ordinance No. 621 was introduced and then was adopted on April 16, 2019, by the City Council, under the regular ordinance adoption process, establishing the regulatory framework and standards for permitting wireless facilities within the City’s public right-of-way in accordance with the recent FCC ruling. 1 Ordinance No. 621 went into effect on May 17, 2019. Similar to the urgency ordinance, this new ordinance provides permit and review procedures, as well as operation and maintenance standards. It includes the new administrative review process for wireless telecommunications facilities (WTF), which specify that most WTFs in the public right-of- way will be reviewed by the Public Works Department, with the Planning Commission only hearing those applications that are referred by the Public Works Director or on appeal. On April 16, 2019, the City Council requested that Staff provide quarterly updates on the implementation of Ordinance No. 621 to monitor the effectiveness and potential impacts the new regulations would have on the community and to determine whether modifications should be considered. Staff reported in the first quarterly report on June 18, 2019, that there had been little activity in response to the new ordinance, but that Staff had discussions with Crown Castle and Verizon Wireless, and had also met with Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) regarding the new ordinance. Second Quarterly Report On July 28, 2019, Crown Castle submitted one new application under the new ordinance which was subsequently deemed incomplete on August 8, 2019 (within the required 10-day review period). No other new applications for wireless facilities within the public right-of-way have been submitted to the City. However, Staff has had continued discussions with representatives from AT&T, Verizon and SoCalGas, who have each indicated that they have several applications forthcoming. SoCalGas intends to submit applications for wireless facilities to support its smart meter program. Sma rt meters are communications devices that automatically transmit gas meter data to the SoCalGas service and billing center, eliminating the need for manual meter reading and enabling them to provide more frequent and detailed gas usage information. At its June 25, 2019 meeting, the Planning Commission, under future agenda items, expressed an interest in discussing developing a 5G Master Deployment Plan that evaluates an entire network of SWF rather than individual wireless facilities on a case- by-case basis. In response, on July 5, 2019, Chairman Bradley submitted a memorandum to the City Council for its consideration (Attachment A). At its August 13 and 27, 2019 meetings, the Planning Commission reviewed Chairman Bradley’s memorandum to the City Council regarding the development of a Citywide 5G Master Deployment Plan on SWF and unanimously agreed that such a master plan was in the City’s best interest and should be forwarded to the City Coun cil for its consideration. The Commission also felt that coordination between the other Peninsula cities should be encouraged. Since this matter has not been initiated by the City Council, the Commission is asking that Councilman Dyda, the City Council Liaison to the Planning Commission, bring forth the Commission’s request to place this matter on a future City Council agenda for discussion. On July 16, 2019, the City Council renewed a professional services agreement with Telecom Law, a consulting firm specializing in wireless facilities that will continue to assist the City in reviewing applications for submittal completeness. The City has been 2 utilizing services by Telecom Law since the adoption of the origi nal wireless ordinance in 2016. On August 6, 2019, the City Council entered into a three-year professional services agreement with Art Bashmakian, an independent planning consultant, to provide on- call planning services for the processing of wireless telecommunication facility permit applications. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Palos Verdes Estates Wireless Telecommunications Facilities Summit On September 11, 2019, the City of Palos Verdes Estates will be holding a summit on wireless telecommunications facilities within its city. The summit will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Palos Verdes Golf Club. Since the issues discussed at this summit are expected to be similar to those faced within Rancho Palos Verdes, Staff plans to attend and provide a follow-up report to the City Council in the Weekly Administrative Report. League of California Cities Letter to Senator Dianne Feinstein Mayor Duhovic signed a joint letter from various cities supporting Senator Dianne Feinstein’s companion measure (S. 2012) to H.R. 530 (Eshoo) which seeks to overturn the FCC’s recent regulations that preempt local government control over SWFs (Attachment B). It is important to note that it is highly likely that wireless telecommunications regulations may continue to change in the coming months for various reasons, including technological changes and the outcome of any legal challenges to the validity of the FCC order. At this time, Staff is not aware of any updates on the status of this litigation. Moreover, the U.S. House of Representatives recently introduced H.R. 530, which would repeal recent FCC regulations that limited the ability of local governments to regulate the deployment of 5G wireless infrastructure. Therefore, the City’s current ordinance may be subject to further amendments in the future. 3 Memo To: The Honorable Jerry Duhovic, Mayor Rancho Palos Verdes From: David Bradley, Chairman of the Rancho Palos Verdes Planning Commission CC: 1) Rancho Palos Verdes City Council 2) Rancho Palos Verdes Planning Commission 3) Doug Willmore, City Manager 4) Ara Mihranian, Rancho Palos Verdes Director Community Development Subject: Deployment of new Fifth Generation (SG) Cellular Phone and Data Networks within the City of Rancho Palos Verdes The technology to implement and deploy SG cellular networks is quickly reaching main stream, and we have been seeing initial applications for limited deployment, within the City of RPV and the Peninsula in general. The RPV Planning Commission has been diligently reviewing and trying to guide the deployment of individuals SG (micro) sites throughout our city, but this has been done on a single site by site basis and primary for only one carrier (AT&T). Recent Federal decisions have reduced much of the City and Planning Commission's discretion on how individual sites can be deployed . I believe it is in the City's vested interest to begin the development of an integrated SG deployment master plan. This plan should layout an implementation strategy that will ensure each of our residences gets the maximum benefit from this new technology regardless of their carrier. The employment of new technology, while beneficial to our residences, must be executed in conjunction with maintaining the rural and esthetic beauty of our City. The promise of 5G cellular and network technology is significant. Upon deployment, SG will allow better cell coverage throughout the Peninsula, while also promising to support high bandwidth streaming video into the home. This increase in data rates, bandwidth and service does come with some challenges. To support these higher data rates, the 5G systems operate in a higher frequency that usually reduces the distance each antenna can cover. To overcome this frequency challenge, a larger number of smaller (micro) sites are required to be deployed throughout the City. While each of the new micro 5G sites is much less intrusive than that of the large cell sites most of us are familiar 30940 Hawthorne Boulevard, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275 T: 310-544-5200 W: http://www.rpvca.gov/ A-1 with, their sheer numbers could overwhelm our City, particularly in residential neighborhoods if not planned appropriately. Today each of the various carriers (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, Xfinity, US Mobile, California Gas Co. and others) require individual antenna due to unique frequency requirements and modulations. With each carrier deploying individual vertical infrastructure for their systems, we could quickly become overwhelmed with cell sites (>400 sites based upon city topography and individual vertical infrastructure deployment). The analogy would be if several cable companies or utility companies wanted to deploy above ground infrastructure poles into a neighborhood, we could have several poles right next to each other in the public right-of-way. In order to prevent the deployment and proliferation of duplicative infrastructure, inefficient utility implementation and to ensure our residents are afforded the best technology available, I'm recommending to the City Council that we immediately direct staff (and its consultants in the event such expertise is not available with in- house staff) to develop an integrated cellular deployment master plan, and to begin policy discussions within both the RPV Planning Commission and the RPV City Council to explore the pros and cons of various courses of action. In the interest of the overall Peninsula, such planning efforts should, if possible, involve the participation of our three neighboring cities. The Integrates Cellular Deployment Master Plan should contain, at a minimum, the following elements: • Extensive survey of current SG wireless technology, frequencies, power spectral densities, data rates, frequency spectrum, frequency modulation and other key technical parameters that would pertain to a measured and optimal deployment throughout the City • Topographical survey of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes, with population density assessments, over-laid on short line of site assessments of nominal SG coverage radius, facilitating the development of a City sponsored and endorsed cell site deployment map that could be given to all prospective carriers seeking to deploy facilities within the City. • Assessment of the ability to multiplex multiple frequencies and transmit I receive various carriers' signals using single multiplexed antennas or vertical infrastructure • Coordination with other Peninsula cities, the deployment of vertical infrastructure throughout the Peninsula (cell signals don't stop at city boundary lines ... ) to help create an integrated map 2 A-2 June 27, 2019 The Honorable Dianne Feinstein United States Senate 331 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Feinstein: As elected officials, we are committed to serving the residents of our cities by ensuring the digital infrastructure of tomorrow is safe, reliable, and is accessible for everyone. Cities and counties are not only leaders in innovation, but also have an obligation to the public to ensure safe, equitable deployment, and fiscally prudent broadband investment to their communities. It is essential that communities maintain control of the small cell application and review process to ensure safe deployment of this technology and that everyone benefits. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) attempts to preempt this process in a rushed and overreaching manner. For these reasons, we applaud your effort in restoring authority to the rightful position of local jurisdictions and support S. 2012, Restoring Local Control over Public Infrastructure Act of 2019. This bill would return local governments' ability to balance competing interests for the use of the public rights-of-way by overturning actions of the FCC in August and September of 2018. While we support the Commission's goal of ensuring affordable broadband access for every American, the Commission's actions do nothing to achieve that goal. It puts the interests of national corporations over the needs of our communities by making it impossible for local governments to manage the public rights-of-way effectively and equitably. It cedes control of local property to national corporations without fair compensation in return, and without taking into account considerations for closing the digital divide, public safety, public utility services such as water, sewer, and electricity, the travelling public, environmental concerns, economic development, and maintenance costs. Your leadership in passing this legislation is critical to ensuring local governments have the necessary tools to manage local public assets in a manner that balances competing interests while encouraging responsible deployment of wireless broadband facilities. Without this action, communities will face financial strain and potentially delayed progress in adopting to the FCC's overreaching actions. It is necessary for both industry and our residents to reverse the FCC's rules on small cells and restore local control. Sincerely, Mayor Jenny Durkan City of Seattle, WA Mayor Sam Liccardo City of San Jose, CA B-1 Mayor Ted Wheeler Portland, OR Mayor Cassie Franklin Everett, WA Mayor Eric Garcetti Los Angeles, CA Mayor Lyda Krewson St. Louis, MO Mayor Donald M. Hahn State College, PA Mayor Lioneld Jordan Fayetteville, AR Mayor Paul S. Leon Ontario, CA Mayor Miguel Pulido Santa Ana, CA Mayor Jane Castor Tampa, FL Mayor London Breed San Francisco, CA Mayor Bill de Blasio New York City, NY Mayor Dan Horrigan Akron, OH Mayor Ethan Berkowitz Anchorage, AK Mayor Jim Kenney Philadelphia, PA Mayor Jennifer Gregerson City of Mukilteo, WA Mayor Lucy Vinis Eugene, OR Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms Atlanta, GA Mayor Pauline Cutter San Leandro, CA Mayor Lori Lightfoot Chicago, IL B-2 ~ l ~ ~F~~~~r~ ~CITIES 2018-2019 LEAGUE OFFICERS President Jan et Arbuc kl e Council Member, Grass Valley First Vice President Randon Lane Mayor Pro Tem , Murrieta Second Vice President John F. Dunbar Mayor, Yountville Immediate Past President Rich Garba rin o Vice Mayor, South San Francisco Executive Director Caro lyn M. Co lema n July 15 , 2019 The Honorable Dianne Feinstein United States Senate 331 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 2 0510 Dear Senator Feinstein : The League of California Cities is pleased to support S. 2012, the Restoring Local Control Over Public Infrastructure Act, which would restore the ability of local governments to regulate the deployment of wireless infrastructure in a fair and equitable manner. Last year, the League, along with a broad coalition of California cities, local governments and utility companies from across the country, joined in challenging in court the regulations the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted that limit the authority of cities and states to regulate small cell sites needed for th e deployment of 5G technology . The FCC's regulations were written without sufficient input from local leaders , leading to regulations that restrict cities from being able to require carriers to meet the needs of the communities in which they seek to operate. In addition, the FCC's order unnecessarily complicates existing agreements and negotiation between cities and wireless providers by imposing a one size-fits-all preemption of existing state and local policies. The FCC's limit on fees for u se of publicly owned property by private companies is an unwarranted intrusion into a local affair that forc es cities to subsidize development at the cost of other essential local services. It is clear that th e FCC's regulations are misguided in their placement of interests of industry above our local communities. Your leadership on this issue is critical, and we look forward to continuing our work together to ensure safe, reliabl e, and equitable deployment of broadband technology in our cities. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact me or the League 's Washington advocate, Leslie Pollner (lesli e .polln e r@ hklaw.com ) at 202.469.5149. Sincerely, 01~-~ Carolyn M . Coleman Executive Director 1400 K Street, Suite 400, Sacramento, CA 95814-3916 I www.cacit ies.org I (916) 658-8200 B-3 Cc: Leslie Pollner, Holland & Knight 1400 K Street, Suite 400, Sacramento, CA 95814-3916 I www .cacities.org I (916) 658-8200 B-4