Foothills Sentry October 2021

Foothills Sentry Page 2 October 2021 ACO 4202 714 282 0828 | jadtec.com YOU NEVER KNOWWHO’S LURKING jadtec.com $ 15 95 /mo SECURITY JADTEC More than a doorbell & video! Let Jadtec Security protect your home from creepy, unwanted visitors! The proliferation of applica- tions for small cell facilities, measuring 3 to 6 cubic feet, on city-owned street light stan- dards and utility-owned poles, has prompted Orange to adopt a policy regulating them, as much as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will allow. The FCC has streamlined the approval process for wireless fa- cilities, giving cities 60 days to re- view them. It also mandated that local jurisdiction cannot prohibit small cells in specific neighbor - hoods, ban them from new areas or limit the number of providers. It limits spacing requirements and aesthetic regulations. A city can, however, require a master agreement, encroachment permit and design review. It can establish location preferences, such as commercial or industrial zones, and create modest design standards. The Orange small cell policy includes those provisions, and adds further review for his- toric districts. The policy will not allow small cell facilities on dec- orative poles in Old Towne. They should avoid street frontage when possible and require consultation with a historic planner. The city has not initiated any noticing requirements to neigh- bors, as federal law does not sup- port that. Orange determined that including noticing in the policy would mislead residents, giving them the expectation that the city could do something about the placement of a specific wireless box. When the policy was presented at the Sept. 14 city council meet- ing, Kim Nichols suggested that the city let residents know of any small cell stations coming to a street pole near them, with the proviso that the city cannot stop it. “I don’t want to be a city that doesn’t communicate,” she said. City Attorney Gary Sheatz sug- gested establishing a webpage that shows where installations are located. Nichols liked the idea, noting, “It would be an informa- tion tool for people to use.” Orange currently has mas- ter agreements with T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon. T-Mobile operates six facilities; AT&T, 60. Verizon’s agreement was ap- proved Sept. 14, and has not yet installed any equipment. The city requires individual permits for each box, and collects $270 per year per unit. Orange adopts policy for small cell facilities, but FCC has final say regulates the zoning or use of land within the boundaries” of the city or county will not be a state af- fair. These amendments, initiative framers explain, “will supersede centralized state land-use plan- ning that will eliminate single- family zoning, destroy the unique characteristics of neighborhoods, and place undue burdens on cities and counties to govern their com- munities. Cities and counties are best suited to analyze and protect the characteristics, constraints and needs of their communities.” The initiative has been filed with the state attorney general. He has until Oct. 28 to review it, determine its fiscal impact and give it a title. Proponents then have 180 days to collect enough signatures to qualify for the No- vember 2022 ballot. Local motion The number of signatures to qualify an initiative is normally 5% of the total voters who cast a ballot in the last gubernatorial election. Because this initiative is for a constitutional amendment, the quota is 8%, or 997,139 sig- natures, statewide. A number of individuals and community groups in Orange and North Tustin have already volun- teered to collect signatures when the time comes. The initiative was spearheaded by a coalition of Southern and Northern California locally elect- ed mayors, city councils and citi- zens. SB9 and 10 were signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, Sept. 15. Orange County State Senators BobArchuleta (SD-32), TomUm- berg (SD-34) and Dave Min (SD- 37) voted yes. Pat Bates (SD-36) voted no, and Josh Newman (SD- 29) did not record a vote. Local Assemblymembers Tom Daly (AD-69) and Steven Choi (AD-68), did not record a vote. See "State zoning" continued from page 1 Residents of Tustin Ranch and environs await the court ruling on an appeal heard Aug. 19. Protect Tustin Ranch had filed a lawsuit against the City of Tustin, challenging its decision not to require an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for a proposed 32-pump Costco gas station to be built on a site once occupied by Good- year Tire at Tustin Ranch Road and Bryan. Since the city prevailed on the original lawsuit, new information about the severity of pollutants on the site has been disclosed. Toxic levels of perchloroethylene, banned in 2007 with a phase out deadline of 2023, were found in the soil, and exceed human health safety standards by 867%. Project Tustin Ranch hopes the appeals court will consider the previously undisclosed levels of pollution and agree that an EIR is necessary. In the drone photo taken Sept. 1, the discolored areas, accord- ing to soil studies, indicate vapor intrusion of volatile organic compounds.