HomeMy WebLinkAboutS. LAND EMAIL RE CELL SITES PRESENTED TO COUNCILFrom: Shingleton, Christine
Sent: Thursday, August 26, 2010 8:50 AM
To: stevenrland@mail.com
Cc: Deborah Gavello; Huston, William
Subject: FW: Cellphone Tower for Tustin Ranch ?????
Dear Steven, thank you for your recent a-mail regarding cell towers for Tustin Ranch and concerns
about cell phone reception in Tustin Ranch. In response to your e-mail to Councilwoman Gavello, she
has asked me to respond.
First of all, City staff and Tustin Council members are all thoroughly engaged in this issue and the
timeliness of improving cell reception services to all Tustin residents remains a priority. Perhaps
paramount to your concerns, no one is stopping installation of a cell tower nor other cellular facilities.
The City concurs with your assessment of the poor cell phone reception in portions of the City, and in
particular northerly portions of Tustin Ranch Road. To resolve this issue, the City entered into a contract
with ATS Communications to develop and implement a Wireless Communications Master Plan (WMP)
for the City and to act as the City's agent in procuring qualified wireless carriers wanting to locate
facilities on City owned properties in Tustin. In August 2009, the completed WMP was presented to the
Tustin City Council and accepted. The WMP did the following:
Identified the adequacy of existing wireless infrastructure citywide including identification of
existing wireless carriers on both City-owned and private properties;
• Identified potential industry, regulatory and technological changes impacting future
development of the City's wireless infrastructure;
• Evaluated the City's existing wireless ordinance;
• Provided design standards for future wireless standards;
• Identified City-owned properties that had the greatest potential for licensing with the City for
wireless facilities;
• Provided an application and review process for wireless carriers interested in locating on City-
owned properties including the inclusion of a standard form license.
Since adoption of the Wireless Master Plan, private property wireless carrier applications have been
approved by the City (largely in the lower elevations of the City). ATS Communications has also solicited
and received interest from a number of telecommunication carriers for property owned by the City of
Tustin. However, beyond just indicating interest, each carrier must identify and technologically assess
the best locations for providing their facilities and respond to the requirements of City Codes. The
facilities must obtain the Cites Site Plan and Design Review approval which ensures that the facilities are
designed to minimize their visual and functional impact on existing park sites and to minimize impacts
on adjacent residential properties ,depending on the location of the proposed facilities. Residents
where towers and facilities are proposed will be noticed of any public hearings necessary to approve
such facilities. License fees proposed for public property must also be consistent with industry market
values as determined by ATS, the City's Consultant. In order to facilitate moving the carriers along in a
more timely manner on their licensing of wireless facilities, the City has also prepared a standard license
contract for the carriers to execute based on industry standards. However, each carrier has their own
legal review and most attempt to renegotiate the terms of the City's standard license agreement.
Both the timeliness of a Site Plan and Design Review application submittal by a wireless carrier to the
City and plan corrections/responses to the City by a carrier and the willingness of a carrier to enter into
the City's standard license agreement is controlled by each of the individual carrier's own internal
procedures and sign-offs necessary. This is not a turnaround time frame that the City can mandate or
for that matter we control.
However, I'm pleased to report that there has been significant progress on a number of sites. The
following is a more specific update:
• On Cedar Grove Park. A cedar mono-pole tower and supporting equipment area is proposed.
City is awaiting a Site Plan and Design Review re-submittal from TMobile (City's original
comments went to TMobile on June 1, 2010) and has concurrently drafted a license for
approval of the facilities pending a plan resubmittal by TMobile and Zoning Administrator
Approval of the plans. Residents within a 300 foot radius will be notified when the plans are
resubmitted and will have the opportunity to participate in any Zoning Administrator Hearing on
the matter. As soon as a resubmittal from TMobile, this project will be ready to move forward
for Zoning Administrator and City Council approvals.
AT&T has also indicated an interest in co-locating on the tower but City is awaiting a specific
proposal. A preliminary proposal on behalf of Verizon Wireless and two other unnamed carriers
was made to the City's consultant ATS, which was approx. 60% below the market value-it has
been requested that a revised offer be submitted.
• Pinetree Park. Park site walked with T-Mobile reps on April 26, 2010 and a preliminary plan
submittal was made by TMobile on August 16, 2010, comments in response to the preliminary
plan submittal were made back to TMobile on August 16, 2010. City is awaiting a resubmittal.
• Tustin Sports Park. Royal Street (Metro PCS) have indicated an interest but are requesting
changes to the City Council approved License form which are in discussions. The last contact
with Royal Street was August 19, 2010.There is also another carrier on the site, Crown Castle,
who has an existing contract with the City which has expired, and is running month to month.
ATS and City are working through issues with Crown Castle and also outreaching to Sprint and
Clearwire as additional carriers.
• Heritage Park. ATS have indicated interest in the site but ATS and City have not received a
specific proposal yet.
• Citrus Ranch- Moblility has made a preliminary proposal, but design is an issue on this site.
Further, the preliminary business offer was 60% below the market value-it has been requested
that a revised offer be submitted.
From: stevenrland@mail.com [mailto:stevenrland@mail.com]
Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 10:14 AM
To: Gavello, Deborah
Subject: Cellphone Tower for Tustin Ranch ?????
Dear Deborah,
I live behind the gates of Tustin Ranch III (Tustin Ranch Road 8~ Township/Rawlings) ... specifically, I live
in the San Miguel tract (we're right across the street from the Tustin Ranch Golf course).
And where I live, 1 have the worst cellphone reception imaginable. It seems to me, that if you live near ...
say Tustin Ranch Road and Irvine Blvd., everything is seems to be OK reception-wise. But if you
continue to drive up Tustin Ranch Road near where I live, the cellphone service gets worse and worse
and worse, until there is NONE (you consider yourself lucky to see just one 'bar' on your cellphone).
Well, it's been quite a while since I, and most of my neighbors here in Tustin Ranch III, were 'captivated'
by your list of 'things that you wanted to accomplish' for us citizens of Tustin Ranch while you were
running for election of your council seat. One of those things on your list ... and honestly, it's the only one
remember ... was that you were going to get a cell tower for those of us that live here ... it was great
marketing on your part ... it was like promising food to starving people ... like promising water to the
parched masses ... or like offer light to those of us living in the darkness of no cellphone service. Well,
we helped elect you with all of our votes ... where's our cell tower?
I've looked into the 'practical' side of all of this; and it doesn't seem to matter whether you're a Verizon,
Sprint, T-Mobile, or an AT&T phone user ... the reception is just as bad for all of us. I've spoken with a
number of the local cellphone shops around here, and they also want to put up towers to help improve
their service ... so, where's the problem? Whose stopping the installation of a cell tower?
Anyway ... I'm tired of waiting! I personally feel that you've had more than enough time to forefill that one
campaign promise ... so, when are we going to have regular and reliable cellphone service in Tustin
Ranch??????
I look forward to hearing from you has to what you've already done over the last two years ... where we
are at currently with respect to establishing a site and installing a tower ... and when we should expect our
cellphone bars to jump up to the same four or five bars that everyone South/West of Irvine Blvd. already
have?
Respectfully,
Steven Land
A Concerned (but frequency frustrated) Citizen