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resolution 5 pages

Also attached to this agenda item: Coastal Assessment Form - AT T Resolution 182-2025 AT T lease sp permit Short EAF Part 1 - AT T Wireless

318 West Avenue, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Office 518-306-1733 – Fax 518-306-1711 www.airosmithdevelopment.com July 21, 2025 Village of Croton-on-Hudson Building Department Attention: Dan O’Connor, P.E. – Village Engineer/Building Inspector 1 Van Wyck Street Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520 (914) 271-4783 Re: New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC (“AT&T”) building permit application (“Application”) for collocation at the existing wireless telecommunications facility (“Facility”) located at 1 Van Wyck Street, Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520. Dear Dan O’Connor: AT&T is seeking to collocate at the above-referenced Facility. We are submitting this application as an eligible facilities request under Section 6409, referenced below. Please find enclosed the following documents in support of our application to obtain the building permit: 1. Building Permit Application submitted 6/27/25 with fee received 7/2/25 2. Excerpt from the FCC Order regarding 6409 3. Signed and Stamped Construction Drawings submitted 6/27/25 4. Signed and Stamped Mount Analysis submitted 6/27/25 5. Signed and Stamped Structural Analysis Report submitted 6/27/25 Section 6409 of the Federal Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act (“Section 6409”) was adopted in 2012. Under Section 6409, your Village retains discretionary zoning review over the construction of new towers, but simple collocations and/or equipment upgrades at existing telecommunications facilities must be approved. The new law provides that: “a State or local government may not deny, and shall approve, any eligible facilities request for a modification of an existing wireless tower or base station that does not substantially change the physical dimensions of such tower or base station.” (Emphasis added.) The federal law defines an “eligible facilities request” as “(A) collocation of new transmission equipment; (B) removal of transmission equipment; or (C) replacement of transmission equipment.” (Emphasis added.) Also, the Federal Communications Commission issued a Wireless Infrastructure Report and Order on October 17, 2014 (“FCC Order”) which established regulations that clarify and streamline the municipal approval process for eligible facilities requests under Section 6409. 2 | P a g e The FCC Order clarifies that municipal review of an eligible facilities request is limited to determining whether the request falls within Section 6409: “a State or local government may require the applicant to provide documentation or information only to the extent reasonably related to determining whether the request meets the requirements of this section [Section 6409]. A State or local government may not require an applicant to submit any other documentation, including but not limited to documentation intended to illustrate the need for such wireless facilities or to justify the business decision to modify such wireless facilities.”47 C.F.R. 1.40001(c)(1) (Emphasis added). AT&T’s Application is an Eligible Facilities Request under Section 6409 The FCC has determined that a modification is not a substantial change, and therefore is an Eligible Facilities Request that shall be approved under Section 6409, as long as it does not fall within any of the following six criteria (47 C.F.R. § 1.6100(b)(7)): 1. For towers other than towers in the public rights-of-way, it increases the height of the tower by more than 10% or by the height of one additional antenna array with separation from the nearest existing antenna not to exceed twenty feet, whichever is greater; for other eligible support structures, it increases the height of the structure by more than 10% or more than ten feet, whichever is greater; 2. For towers other than towers in the public rights-of-way, it involves adding an appurtenance to the body of the tower that would protrude from the edge of the tower more than twenty feet, or more than the width of the tower structure at the level of the appurtenance, whichever is greater; for other eligible support structures, it involves adding an appurtenance to the body of the structure that would protrude from the edge of the structure by more than six feet; 3. For any eligible support structure, it involves installation of more than the standard number of new equipment cabinets for the technology involved, but not to exceed four cabinets; or, for towers in the public rights-of-way and base stations, it involves installation of any new equipment cabinets on the ground if there are no pre-existing ground cabinets associated with the structure, or else involves installation of ground cabinets that are more than 10% larger in height or overall volume than any other ground cabinets associated with the structure; 4. It entails any excavation or deployment outside the current site; 5. It would defeat the concealment elements of the eligible support structure; or 6. It does not comply with conditions associated with the siting approval of the construction or modification of the eligible support structure or base station equipment, provided however that 3 | P a g e this limitation does not apply to any modification that is non-compliant only in a manner that would not exceed the thresholds identified in criteria 1-4 above. Pursuant to Section 1.6100(c) of the FCC’s rules, which provides that jurisdictions may require documentation or information “only to the extent reasonably related to determining whether the request meets the requirements” of the FCC rule, AT&T provides the following information to demonstrate that the proposed Request does not constitute a substantial change under the criteria above because it: 1. Does not involve an increase in height in excess of the limits in 47 C.F.R. § 1.6100(b)(7)(I). Details: The height of the tower is not increase by the addition of the antennas. Please reference the enclosed signed and sealed Construction Drawings by GT Wireless Engineering dated June 26, 2025. 2. Does not involve an increase in width in excess of the limits in 47 C.F.R. § 1.6100(b)(7)(ii). Details: The width of the tower is not increased by the addition of the antennas. Please reference the enclosed Construction Drawings by GT Wireless Engineering dated June 26, 2025. 3. Does not involve installation of new equipment cabinets in excess of the limits in 47 C.F.R. § 1.6100(b)(7)(iii). Details: AT&T is not proposing more than four (4) equipment cabinets. Please reference the enclosed Construction Drawings by GT Wireless Engineering dated June 26, 2025. 4. Does not involve any excavation or deployment outside the current site. Details: There will be no excavation or deployment outside the current site related to this application. Please reference the enclosed Construction Drawings by GT Wireless Engineering dated June 26, 2025. 5. Would not defeat any concealment elements of the eligible support structure. Details: Not applicable. The existing site does not contain any concealment elements. 6. Complies with any prior conditions, except for any non-compliance due to exceeding the thresholds in criteria 1-4 above. Details: The proposed facility complies with all prior conditions. Please reference the enclosed Construction Drawings by GT Wireless Engineering dated June 26, 2025. As shown on the plans prepared by GT Wireless Engineering dated 6/26/25, AT&T’s proposed installation consists principally of the following elements: 4 | P a g e • On the existing rooftop tower structure: Addition of six (6) panel antennas mounted with a centerline height of 71’ AGL, with associated nine (9) remote radio heads (RRHs) and associated DC power lines and fiber lines. • Proposed AT&T equipment room inside attic. AT&T’s installation involves the “collocation of new transmission equipment” that will not increase the height of the structure, expand the compound area or otherwise fall within the six criteria listed above. This application is therefore an Eligible Facilities Request application that the Village of Croton-On-Hudson must approve. Timeline for Review and Approval We would like to highlight an important timing requirement for processing this application. The FCC Order determined that a municipality must act on an eligible facilities request within sixty (60) days of receiving the application. 47 C.F.R. 1.40001(c)(2) (Emphasis added). (Note, the sixty (60)-day period is also known as the “Shot Clock”). Thus, the Village must approve this application within sixty (60) days of its receipt. The FCC Order provides that upon a municipality’s failure to act prior to expiration of the Shot Clock, the “request shall be deemed granted” and AT&T will be legally entitled to proceed with construction. 47 C.F.R. 1.40001(c)(4) (Emphasis added). Note that the FCC Order does allow the Shot Clock to be tolled if an application is incomplete. However, to do so, a municipality must provide written notice that the application is incomplete within thirty (30) days of the submittal. 47 C.F.R. 1.40001(c)(3)(i). The notice must “clearly and specifically” describe the missing documents or information, 47 C.F.R. 1.40001(c)(3)(i), and, as previously mentioned, such documentation must be necessary to the determination of whether the application qualifies as an eligible facilities request. If the municipality requests additional information after the first thirty (30) days have passed, we will still provide any “reasonably related” information allowed under the FCC Order, but the Shot Clock will not be tolled. In light of the foregoing, AT&T respectfully requests that its proposed wireless site modification be approved pursuant to Section 6409. If the Village of Croton-on-Hudson believes that AT&T’s application does not qualify as an eligible facilities request under Section 6409, please let me know immediately. Otherwise, if you have any questions, please feel free to call or email me. Thank you for your cooperation.