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92_HB4171 LRB9214137BDdv 1 AN ACT to amend the Counties Code by changing Section 2 5-12001.1. 3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 4 represented in the General Assembly: 5 Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing 6 Section 5-12001.1 as follows: 7 (55 ILCS 5/5-12001.1) 8 Sec. 5-12001.1. Authority to regulate certain specified 9 facilities of a telecommunications carrier. 10 (a)Notwithstanding any other Section in this Division,11 The county board or board of county commissioners of any 12 county shall have the power to regulate the location of the 13 facilities, as defined in subsection (c), of a 14 telecommunications carrier established outside the corporate 15 limits of cities, villages, and incorporated towns that have 16 municipal zoning ordinances in effect. The power shallonly17 be exercised asto the extent and in the mannerset forth in 18 Divisions 5-12 and 5-13 of Article 5 of this Codethis19Section. 20 (b) The provisions of this Section shall not abridge any 21 rights created by or authority confirmed in the federal 22 Telecommunications Act of 1996, P.L. 104-104. 23 (c) As used in this Section, unless the context 24 otherwise requires: 25 (1) "county jurisdiction area" means those portions 26 of a county that lie outside the corporate limits of 27 cities, villages, and incorporated towns that have 28 municipal zoning ordinances in effect; 29 (2) "county board" means the county board or board 30 of county commissioners of any county; 31 (3) "residential zoning district" means a zoning -2- LRB9214137BDdv 1 district that is designated under a county zoning 2 ordinance and is zoned predominantly for residential 3 uses; 4 (4) "non-residential zoning district" means the 5 county jurisdiction area of a county, except for those 6 portions within a residential zoning district; 7 (5) "residentially zoned lot" means a zoning lot in 8 a residential zoning district; 9 (6) "non-residentially zoned lot" means a zoning 10 lot in a non-residential zoning district; 11 (7) "telecommunications carrier" means a 12 telecommunications carrier as defined in the Public 13 Utilities Act as of January 1, 1997; 14 (8) "facility" means that part of the signal 15 distribution system used or operated by a 16 telecommunications carrier under a license from the FCC 17 consisting of a combination of improvements and equipment 18 including (i) one or more antennas, (ii) a supporting 19 structure and the hardware by which antennas are 20 attached; (iii) equipment housing; and (iv) ancillary 21 equipment such as signal transmission cables and 22 miscellaneous hardware; 23 (9) "FAA" means the Federal Aviation Administration 24 of the United States Department of Transportation; 25 (10) "FCC" means the Federal Communications 26 Commission; 27 (11) "antenna" means an antenna device by which 28 radio signals are transmitted, received, or both; 29 (12) "supporting structure" means a structure, 30 whether an antenna tower or another type of structure, 31 that supports one or more antennas as part of a facility; 32 (13) "qualifying structure" means a supporting 33 structure that is (i) an existing structure, if the 34 height of the facility, including the structure, is not -3- LRB9214137BDdv 1 more than 15 feet higher than the structure just before 2 the facility is installed, or (ii) a substantially 3 similar, substantially same-location replacement of an 4 existing structure, if the height of the facility, 5 including the replacement structure, is not more than 15 6 feet higher than the height of the existing structure 7 just before the facility is installed; 8 (14) "equipment housing" means a combination of one 9 or more equipment buildings or enclosures housing 10 equipment that operates in conjunction with the antennas 11 of a facility, and the equipment itself; 12 (15) "height" of a facility means the total height 13 of the facility's supporting structure and any antennas 14 that will extend above the top of the supporting 15 structure; however, if the supporting structure's 16 foundation extends more than 3 feet above the uppermost 17 ground level along the perimeter of the foundation, then 18 each full foot in excess of 3 feet shall be counted as an 19 additional foot of facility height. The height of a 20 facility's supporting structure is to be measured from 21 the highest point of the supporting structure's 22 foundation; 23 (16) "facility lot" means the zoning lot on which a 24 facility is or will be located; 25 (17) "principal residential building" has its 26 common meaning but shall not include any building under 27 the same ownership as the land of the facility lot. 28 "Principal residential building" shall not include any 29 structure that is not designed for human habitation; 30 (18) "horizontal separation distance" means the 31 distance measured from the center of the base of the 32 facility's supporting structure to the point where the 33 ground meets a vertical wall of a principal residential 34 building; and -4- LRB9214137BDdv 1 (19) "lot line set back distance" means the 2 distance measured from the center of the base of the 3 facility's supporting structure to the nearest point on 4 the common lot line between the facility lot and the 5 nearest residentially zoned lot. If there is no common 6 lot line, the measurement shall be made to the nearest 7 point on the lot line of the nearest residentially zoned 8 lot without deducting the width of any intervening right 9 of way. 10 (d) In choosing a location for a facility, a 11 telecommunications carrier shall consider the following: 12 (1) A non-residentially zoned lot is the most 13 desirable location. 14 (2) A residentially zoned lot that is not used for 15 residential purposes is the second most desirable 16 location. 17 (3) A residentially zoned lot that is 2 acres or 18 more in size and is used for residential purposes is the 19 third most desirable location. 20 (4) A residentially zoned lot that is less than 2 21 acres in size and is used for residential purposes is the 22 least desirable location. 23 The size of a lot shall be the lot's gross area in square 24 feet without deduction of any unbuildable or unusable land, 25 any roadway, or any other easement. 26 (e) In designing a facility, a telecommunications 27 carrier shall at a minimum abide byconsiderthe following 28guidelines: 29 (1) No building or tower that is part of a facility 30 shallshouldencroach onto any recorded easement 31 prohibiting the encroachment unless the grantees of the 32 easement have given their approval. 33 (2) Lighting shallshouldbe installed for security 34 and safety purposes only. Except with respect to -5- LRB9214137BDdv 1 lighting required by the FCC or FAA, all lighting shall 2shouldbe shielded so that no glare extends substantially 3 beyond the boundaries of a facility. 4 (3) No facility shallshouldencroach onto an 5 existing septic field. 6 (4) Any facility located in a special flood hazard 7 area or wetland shallshouldmeet the legal requirements 8 for those lands. 9 (5) Existing trees more than 3 inches in diameter 10 shallshouldbe preserved if reasonably feasible during 11 construction. If any tree more than 3 inches in diameter 12 is removed during construction a tree 3 inches or more in 13 diameter of the same or a similar species shall be 14 planted as a replacement if reasonably feasible. Tree 15 diameter shall be measured at a point 3 feet above ground 16 level. 17 (6) If any elevation of a facility faces an 18 existing, adjoiningresidential use orwithina 19 residential zoning district, low maintenance landscaping 20 shallshouldbe provided on or near the facility lot to 21 provide at least partial screening of the facility. The 22 quantity and type of that landscaping shallshouldbe in 23 accordance with any county landscaping regulations of 24 general applicability, except that paragraph (5) of this 25 subsection (e) shall control over any tree-related 26 regulations imposing a greater burden. 27 (7) Fencing shallshouldbe installed around a 28 facility. The height and materials of the fencing shall 29shouldbe in accordance with any county fence regulations 30 of general applicability. 31 (8) Any building that is part of a facility located 32 adjacent to a residentially zoned lot shallshouldbe 33 designed with exterior materials and colors that are 34 reasonably compatible with the residential character of -6- LRB9214137BDdv 1 the area. 2(f) The following provisions shall apply to all3facilities established in any county jurisdiction area after4the effective date of the amendatory Act of 1997:5(1) Except as provided in this Section, no yard or6set back regulations shall apply to or be required for a7facility.8(2) A facility may be located on the same zoning9lot as one or more other structures or uses without10violating any ordinance or regulation that prohibits or11limits multiple structures, buildings, or uses on a12zoning lot.13(3) No minimum lot area, width, or depth shall be14required for a facility, and unless the facility is to be15manned on a regular, daily basis, no off-street parking16spaces shall be required for a facility. If the facility17is to be manned on a regular, daily basis, one off-street18parking space shall be provided for each employee19regularly at the facility. No loading facilities are20required.21(4) No portion of a facility's supporting structure22or equipment housing shall be less than 15 feet from the23front lot line of the facility lot or less than 10 feet24from any other lot line.25(5) No bulk regulations or lot coverage, building26coverage, or floor area ratio limitations shall be27applied to a facility or to any existing use or structure28coincident with the establishment of a facility. Except29as provided in this Section, no height limits or30restrictions shall apply to a facility.31(6) A county's review of a building permit32application for a facility shall be completed within 3033days. If a decision of the county board is required to34permit the establishment of a facility, the county's-7- LRB9214137BDdv 1review of the application shall be simultaneous with the2process leading to the county board's decision.3(7) The improvements and equipment comprising the4facility may be wholly or partly freestanding or wholly5or partly attached to, enclosed in, or installed in or on6a structure or structures.7(8) Any public hearing authorized under this8Section shall be conducted in a manner determined by the9county board. Notice of any such public hearing shall be10published at least 15 days before the hearing in a11newspaper of general circulation published in the county.12(9) Any decision regarding a facility by the county13board or a county agency or official shall be supported14by written findings of fact. The circuit court shall15have jurisdiction to review the reasonableness of any16adverse decision and the plaintiff shall bear the burden17of proof, but there shall be no presumption of the18validity of the decision.19(g) The following provisions shall apply to all20facilities established after the effective date of this21amendatory Act of 1997 in the county jurisdiction area of any22county with a population of less than 180,000:23(1) A facility is permitted if its supporting24structure is a qualifying structure or if both of the25following conditions are met:26(A) the height of the facility shall not27exceed 200 feet, except that if a facility is28located more than one and one-half miles from the29corporate limits of any municipality with a30population of 25,000 or more the height of the31facility shall not exceed 350 feet; and32(B) the horizontal separation distance to the33nearest principal residential building shall not be34less than the height of the supporting structure;-8- LRB9214137BDdv 1except that if the supporting structure exceeds 992feet in height, the horizontal separation distance3to the nearest principal residential building shall4be at least 100 feet or 80% of the height of the5supporting structure, whichever is greater.6Compliance with this paragraph shall only be7evaluated as of the time that a building permit8application for the facility is submitted. If the9supporting structure is not an antenna tower this10paragraph is satisfied.11(2) Unless a facility is permitted under paragraph12(1) of this subsection (g), a facility can be established13only after the county board gives its approval following14consideration of the provisions of paragraph (3) of this15subsection (g). The county board may give its approval16after one public hearing on the proposal, but only by the17favorable vote of a majority of the members present at a18meeting held no later than 75 days after submission of a19complete application by the telecommunications carrier.20If the county board fails to act on the application21within 75 days after its submission, the application22shall be deemed to have been approved. No more than one23public hearing shall be required.24(3) For purposes of paragraph (2) of this25subsection (g), the following siting considerations, but26no other matter, shall be considered by the county board27or any other body conducting the public hearing:28(A) the criteria in subsection (d) of this29Section;30(B) whether a substantial adverse effect on31public safety will result from some aspect of the32facility's design or proposed construction, but only33if that aspect of design or construction is34modifiable by the applicant;-9- LRB9214137BDdv 1(C) the benefits to be derived by the users of2the services to be provided or enhanced by the3facility and whether public safety and emergency4response capabilities would benefit by the5establishment of the facility;6(D) the existing uses on adjacent and nearby7properties; and8(E) the extent to which the design of the9proposed facility reflects compliance with10subsection (e) of this Section.11(4) On judicial review of an adverse decision, the12issue shall be the reasonableness of the county board's13decision in light of the evidence presented on the siting14considerations and the well-reasoned recommendations of15any other body that conducts the public hearing.16(h) The following provisions shall apply to all17facilities established after the effective date of this18amendatory Act of 1997 in the county jurisdiction area of any19county with a population of 180,000 or more. A facility is20permitted in any zoning district subject to the following:21(1) A facility shall not be located on a lot under22paragraph (4) of subsection (d) unless a variation is23granted by the county board under paragraph (4) of this24subsection (h).25(2) Unless a height variation is granted by the26county board, the height of a facility shall not exceed2775 feet if the facility will be located in a residential28zoning district or 200 feet if the facility will be29located in a non-residential zoning district. However,30the height of a facility may exceed the height limit in31this paragraph, and no height variation shall be32required, if the supporting structure is a qualifying33structure.34(3) The improvements and equipment of the facility-10- LRB9214137BDdv 1shall be placed to comply with the requirements of this2paragraph at the time a building permit application for3the facility is submitted. If the supporting structure4is an antenna tower other than a qualifying structure5then (i) if the facility will be located in a residential6zoning district the lot line set back distance to the7nearest residentially zoned lot shall be at least 50% of8the height of the facility's supporting structure or (ii)9if the facility will be located in a non-residential10zoning district the horizontal separation distance to the11nearest principal residential building shall be at least12equal to the height of the facility's supporting13structure.14(4) The county board may grant variations for any15of the regulations, conditions, and restrictions of this16subsection (h), after one public hearing on the proposed17variations, by a favorable vote of a majority of the18members present at a meeting held no later than 75 days19after submission of an application by the20telecommunications carrier. If the county board fails to21act on the application within 75 days after submission,22the application shall be deemed to have been approved.23In its consideration of an application for variations,24the county board, and any other body conducting the25public hearing, shall consider the following, and no26other matters:27(A) whether, but for the granting of a28variation, the service that the telecommunications29carrier seeks to enhance or provide with the30proposed facility will be less available, impaired,31or diminished in quality, quantity, or scope of32coverage;33(B) whether the conditions upon which the34application for variations is based are unique in-11- LRB9214137BDdv 1some respect or, if not, whether the strict2application of the regulations would result in a3hardship on the telecommunications carrier;4(C) whether a substantial adverse effect on5public safety will result from some aspect of the6facility's design or proposed construction, but only7if that aspect of design or construction is8modifiable by the applicant;9(D) whether there are benefits to be derived10by the users of the services to be provided or11enhanced by the facility and whether public safety12and emergency response capabilities would benefit by13the establishment of the facility; and14(E) the extent to which the design of the15proposed facility reflects compliance with16subsection (e) of this Section.17No more than one public hearing shall be required.18(5) On judicial review of an adverse decision, the19issue shall be the reasonableness of the county board's20decision in light of the evidence presented and the21well-reasoned recommendations of any other body that22conducted the public hearing.23 (Source: P.A. 90-522, eff. 1-1-98.) 24 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 25 becoming law.