Article IV. Small Wireless Facilities
18A.95.170 Application requirements.
A. Applicability. Any application for a small wireless facility both inside and outside of the right-of-way shall comply with the application requirements for a small wireless facility permit described in this article. For small wireless facilities within the right-of-way, the applicant shall also obtain a franchise from the City and comply with the requirements pursuant to Chapters 12.07 and 12.08 LMC. Small wireless facility permits are issued by the Director.
B. Consolidated Permits. All permits, leases, and franchises necessary for the deployment of small wireless facilities shall be consolidated for review and a decision rendered to the full extent feasible within the presumptively reasonable time periods established by federal law. Applicants are allowed to apply for franchises or leases independently of an application for a small wireless permit.
C. Preapplication Meeting. A preapplication meeting is encouraged prior to submitting an application for a small wireless services facility permit.
D. Application Process. The Director is authorized to establish franchise and other application forms to gather the information required by this article from applicants and to determine the completeness of the application as provided herein.
1. Franchise. The process typically begins with and depends upon approval of a franchise for the use of the public right-of-way to deploy small wireless facilities if any portion of the applicant’s facilities are to be located in the right-of-way, consistent with the requirements in Chapters 12.07 and 12.08 LMC. An applicant with a franchise for the deployment of small wireless facilities in the City may proceed to directly apply for a small wireless facility permit and related approvals. An applicant may utilize phased deployment.
2. Small Wireless Facility Permits. The application requires specification of the small wireless facility components and locations as further required in the small wireless facility permit application described in subsection (E) of this section. Prior to the issuance of a small wireless facility permit, the applicant shall pay an application fee as set forth in the Lakewood Master Fee Schedule.
3. Associated Permit(s). The applicant shall attach all associated permits requirements such as applications or checklists required under the critical areas, shoreline or SEPA ordinances. Applications for deployment of small wireless facilities in design zones or on pedestrian poles or for new poles shall comply with the requirements in LMC 18A.95.250.
4. Leases. An applicant who desires to attach a small wireless facility on any utility pole or light pole owned by the City shall include an application for a lease as a component of its application. Leases for the use of utility poles or light poles shall be received and reviewed by the Director. Leases for the use of all other public property, structures or facilities shall be submitted to the City Council for approval.
E. Small Wireless Facility Permit Application. The following information shall be provided by all applicants for a small wireless facility permit:
1. The application shall provide specific locational information including GIS coordinates of all proposed small wireless facilities and specify where the small wireless facilities will utilize existing, replacement or new poles, towers, existing buildings and/or other structures. Ground-mounted equipment, conduit, junction boxes and fiber and electrical connections necessary for and intended for use in the deployment shall also be specified regardless of whether the additional facilities are to be constructed by the applicant or leased from a third party. Detailed schematics and visual renderings of the small wireless facilities, including engineering and design standards, shall be provided by the applicant. The application shall have sufficient detail to identify:
a. The location of overhead and underground public utilities, telecommunication, cable, water, adjacent lighting, sewer drainage and other lines and equipment within fifty (50) feet of the proposed project area (which shall include the location of the fiber source and power source). Further, the applicant shall include all existing and proposed improvements related to the proposed location, including but not limited to poles, driveways, ADA ramps, equipment cabinets, street trees and structures within fifty (50) feet of the proposed project area.
b. The specific trees, structures, improvements, facilities, lines and equipment, and obstructions, if any, that applicant proposes to temporarily or permanently remove or relocate and a landscape plan for protecting, trimming, removing, replacing, and restoring any trees or areas to be disturbed during construction.
c. The construction drawings shall also include the applicant’s plan for electric and fiber utilities, all conduits, cables, wires, handholes, junctions, meters, disconnect switches and any other ancillary equipment or construction necessary to construct the small cell facility, to the extent to which the applicant is responsible for installing such electric and fiber utilities, conduits, cables, and related improvements. Where another party is responsible for installing such electric and fiber utilities, conduits, cables, and related improvements, applicant’s construction drawings will include such utilities to the extent known at the time of application, but at a minimum applicant must indicate how it expects to obtain fiber and electric service to the small cell facility.
d. If the site location includes a new replacement light pole, then the applicant must submit a photometric analysis of the roadway and sidewalk within one hundred fifty (150) feet of the existing light.
e. Compliance with the aesthetic requirements of LMC 18A.95.230, or 18A.95.250 as applicable.
2. The applicant must show written approval from the owner of any pole or structure for the installation of its small wireless facilities on such pole or structure. For locations outside the City right-of-way, to extent that the pole or structure is not owned by the property owner, the applicant shall demonstrate in writing that it has authority from the property owner to install the small wireless facility on the pole or structure. Submission of the lease agreement between the owner and the applicant is not required. For City-owned poles or structures, the applicant must obtain a lease from the City prior to or concurrent with the small wireless facility permit application and must submit as part of the application the information required in the lease for the City to evaluate the usage of a specific pole.
3. The applicant is encouraged to batch the small wireless facility sites within an application in a contiguous service area.
4. Any application for a small wireless facility located in the right-of-way adjacent to a parcel zoned for residential use shall demonstrate that the applicant has evaluated the following:
a. Whether a small wireless facility is currently installed on an existing pole in front of the same residential parcel. If a small wireless facility exists, then the applicant must demonstrate that no technically feasible alternative location exists which is not in front of the same residential parcel.
b. Whether the proposed small wireless facility can be screened from residential view by choosing a pole location that is not directly in front of a window or views. The applicant must demonstrate that no technically feasible alternative location exists which is not directly in front of a window or views.
5. Any application for a small wireless permit which contains an element which is not exempt from SEPA review shall simultaneously apply under Chapter 43.21C RCW and Chapter 18A.20 LMC. Further, any application proposing small wireless facilities in critical areas (pursuant to LMC Title 14) must indicate that the application is exempt or comply with the review processes in such codes.
6. The applicant shall submit a sworn affidavit signed by an RF engineer with knowledge of the proposed project affirming that the small wireless facilities will be compliant with all FCC and other governmental regulations in connection with human exposure to radio frequency emissions for every frequency at which the small wireless facility will operate. If facilities which generate RF radiation necessary to the small wireless facility are to be provided by a third party, then the small wireless permit shall be conditioned on an RF certification showing the cumulative impact of the RF emissions on the entire installation. The applicant may provide one emissions report for the entire small wireless deployment if the applicant is using the same small wireless facility configuration for all installations within that batch or may submit one emissions report for each subgroup installation identified in the batch.
7. The applicant shall provide proof of FCC or other regulatory approvals required to provide the service(s) or utilize the technologies sought to be installed.
8. A professional engineer licensed by the State of Washington or the pole owner shall certify in writing, over his or her seal, that construction plans of the small wireless facilities and structure or pole and foundation are designed to reasonably withstand wind and seismic loads.
9. A right-of-way use permit as required by Chapters 12.07 and 12.08 LMC.
10. Proof of a valid Lakewood business license.
11. Recognizing that small wireless facility technology is rapidly evolving, the Director is authorized to adopt and publish standards for the technical and structural safety of City-owned structures and to formulate and publish application questions for use when an applicant seeks to attach to City-owned structures.
12. Such other information as the Director, in his/her discretion, shall deem appropriate to effectively evaluate the application based on technical, engineering and aesthetic considerations. [Ord. 726 § 2 (Exh. B), 2019.]