31B - CUP - 1241 S GRAND AVE - Laserfiche WebLink

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CUP No. 2014 -09 December 8, 2014 Page 2 will be installed within a chain -link enclosure that, when combined with the existing lease area, measures approximately 20 -feet by 25 -feet for a total of 500 square feet. The monopole and enclosure are proposed to remain in their current location, in the center of the northerly portion of the overall site, near existing high - voltage transmission lines (Exhibits 4, 5 and 6). In addition to the service antenna panel and equipment upgrades, the applicant also proposes to replace any dead and missing landscaping along Grand and McFadden Avenues. These planters are currently developed with mature trees and shrubs but contain bare patches of soil that will be planted with ground cover or other shrubs where needed. Protect Backaround In September 1999, Sprint PCS submitted plans to install the current wireless facility at the Southern California Edison substation. At the time, the project required a conditional use permit and a variance. In May 2000, Conditional Use Permit No. 00 -07 and Variance No. 00 -05 were approved for the project. The CUP permitted the construction of the current monopole, whose unstealthed design was approved in order to help the facility blend in with the nearby high - voltage transmission lines. Moreover, the current design was deemed appropriate due to the monopole's location over 200 feet away from the nearest property line, behind an existing block wall and landscaping that provide screening. f=urther, the variance permitted the construction of the facility without the required landscaping around the base of the equipment enclosure due to the requirements of Southern California Edison that prohibit potentially flammable materials, such as landscaping, on substation sites. In exchange, Sprint PCS enhanced existing landscaped areas along the site's perimeter along the Grand and McFadden Avenue frontages of the project site. Although the variance remains active, Southern California Edison has reaffirmed that for the current application, on -site landscaping and stealthing of the facility with fake tree branches would pose hazards to the day -to -day operations on the substation site, The screening provided by the existing transmission lines, block walls, and landscaping along the site's street frontages are designed to comply with the City's standards. In October 2013, Sprint PCS, represented by Core Development Services, proposed modifying the existing monopole to remove several obsolete antennas and replace them with antennas that reflect the current technology, as well as adding backup battery storage within the existing equipment enclosure. Staff review of the proposal showed that the current CUP (No. 00 -07) had expired. SAME Section 41- 198.13 states that major wireless communication facilities shall be approved for a period not to exceed five years, although subsequent State legislative acts have required that such facilities be approved for a period not to exceed 10 years. As the current facility is 14 years old, the applicant was required to apply for a new CUP in order to proceed with the proposed modifications and upgrades as required by the SAMC. Core subsequently submitted application materials to request approval of a new conditional use permit, after which Sprint PCS voluntarily placed the application on hold. In October 2014, Sprint PCS, represented by Crown Castle, reapplied with the current application. 31 B -4