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Project Title: |
Continuing Operation of an Existing T-Mobile Wireless Telecommunications Facility |
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County File(s): |
#CDLP25-02008 |
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Applicant: |
Isabel Chavez, Network Connex for T-Mobile |
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Owner: |
Tina M. Thomas, Trustee |
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Zoning: |
Agricultural Preserve (A-4) |
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General Plan: |
Agricultural Lands (AL) |
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Site Address/Location: |
4723 Suzanne Drive in unincorporated Pittsburg, CA (APN: 089-050-056) |
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California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Status: |
Categorically Exempt: CEQA Guidelines, Section 15301(b), regarding existing facilities/utilities. |
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Project Planner: |
Dominique Vogelpohl, Project Planner (925) 655-2880 Dominique.Vogelpohl@dcd.cccounty.us |
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Staff Recommendation: |
Approve (See Section II for Full Recommendation) |
I. PROJECT SUMMARY
A request for approval of a Land Use Permit to allow the continued operation of an existing T-Mobile wireless telecommunications facility and a Variance for an approximately 1-foot side yard (where 50-feet is the minimum required) to allow the existing lease area to remain in its current location.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Zoning Administrator:
A. FIND that the project is categorically exempt from CEQA under Section 15301(b) of the CEQA Guidelines;
B. APPROVE Land Use Permit CDLP25-02008, subject to the attached Findings and Conditions of Approval; and
C. DIRECT Staff to file a CEQA Notice of Exemption with the County Clerk.
III. GENERAL INFORMATION
A. General Plan: The subject property is located within an AL, Agricultural Lands (AL) land use designation.
B. Zoning: The subject property is located within an A-4, Agricultural Preserve (A-4) Zoning District.
C. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Compliance: The proposed project is categorically exempt under CEQA Guidelines, Section 15301(b), regarding “Existing Facilities,” which exempts the operation, repair, maintenance, and minor alteration of existing facilities of investor-owned utilities providing electrical, gas, sewage, and other utility services.
D. Agricultural Preserve Contract: Pursuant to the California Williamson Act, the subject property has entered into an Agricultural Preserve Contract #AP 7-71 with the County. Establishment and modification of wireless telecommunications facilities is consistent with the limitations of the contract.
E. Prior County Files of Relevance:
a. CDLP05-02078: A Land Use permit to allow T-Mobile to establish an existing unmanned wireless communications facility that was erroneously processed and approved by the City of Pittsburg (DR-98-18 City of Pittsburg), with three pairs of antennas mounted to an existing PG&E lattice tower and an equipment lease area underneath the tower, approved on May 15, 2006, and valid for 10 years.
b. CDLP12-02105: A Land Use Permit to allow modification of County File #CDLP05-02078 to replace six antennas and the addition of a hybrid cable and breakout enclosure for an existing wireless facility; approved on November 19, 2012, and valid for 10 years.
c. CDCV12-00128: Request for an initial compliance review to determine compliance with the Conditions of Approval for County File #CDLP12-02105 for issuance of a building permit; approved May 28, 2013.
d. CDWM17-00003: Request for a Minor Alteration permit to allow non-substantial modifications of the existing facility to replace three existing antennas and upgrade an existing breaker, and a 3-year compliance review to determine compliance with the Conditions of Approval for County File #CDLP12-02105; approved June 7, 2017.
e. CDWM20-00015: Request for a Minor Alteration permit to allow non-substantial modifications of the existing facility to replace six existing antennas and three RRUs, install nine new RRUs, cables, and equipment in an existing equipment cabinet, and a 3-year compliance review to determine compliance with the Conditions of Approval for County File #CDLP12-02105; approved July 29, 2020.
f. CDWM20-00024: Request for a Minor Alteration permit to allow non-substantial modifications of the existing facility to replace three existing antennas, three RRUs, and two cabinets, and to install six new hybrid cables; approved November 24, 2020.
g. CDLP23-02030: Request for a Land Use permit modification of file #CDLP25-02008 to allow an expansion of the lease area and a Variance to allow an approximately 1-foot side yard (where 50 feet is the minimum) for the installation of ground-level electrical equipment for an existing T-Mobile telecommunications facility.
IV. SITE/AREA DESCRIPTION
The approximately 471-acre subject property is located in the unincorporated Pittsburg area of Contra Costa County. Kirker Pass Road traverses the northwesternmost portion of the parcel. The project site is located in the western portion of the property approximately 1,200 feet east of Kirker Pass Road, approximately ¾-mile west of Suzanne Drive, and approximately ½-mile south of Buchanan Road. The eastern portion of the property is developed with a single-family residence, barns, and other structures typical for agricultural uses that are accessed from Suzanne Drive. Access to the wireless facility is via Hillview Drive through an access easement and gate. Wireless telecommunication facilities have been in operation on the subject property since the year 2005 when Cingular Wireless (now AT&T) established a facility on an existing PG&E lattice tower (County File #CDLP05-02042) and an equipment lease area located 10 feet south of the tower. The T-Mobile facility was established in 2006 (County File #CDLP05-02078) with antennas installed on the lattice tower and ground equipment installed in a lease area under and within the footprint of the tower. Otherwise, the property largely consists of rolling hills, unpaved dirt roads and trails, and grassland vegetation with few shrubs or trees.
The adjacent parcels to the west, south, and east are large, agricultural parcels similar to the subject property. Directly north of the subject property are established single- and multiple-family residential neighborhoods located within the City of Pittsburgh. A water tank is located approximately 720 feet south of the terminus of Hillside Drive on a parcel owned by the City of Pittsburgh.
V. PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Approval of Land Use Permit CDLP25-02008 would allow the continued operation of the existing T-Mobile wireless telecommunications facility, consisting of the following elements:
• The access road is also an all-inclusive easement, so it is also the utility easement.
• 190 square-foot ground level lease area that includes: 3 equipment cabinets, 1 transformer, 3 fiber boxes, 1 ciena box, 1 LMU box, 1 telco cabinet, 1 PPC cabinet, and 1 GPS antenna; and
• The antenna area is attached to the PG&E lattice tower that is comprised of three sectors:
§ Sector A antenna area that includes: 1 H frame, 2 antennas, 2 diplexers, and 2 radio units;
§ Sector B antenna area that includes: 1 H frame, 2 antennas, 2 diplexers, and 2 radio units; and
§ Sector C antenna area that includes: 1 H frame, 2 antennas, 2 diplexers, and 2 radio units.
No changes to the antennas or equipment installed on the tower are proposed.
This entitlement includes a Variance for an approximately 1-foot side yard (where 50-feet is the minimum required) to allow the existing lease area to remain in its current location.
VI. AGENCY COMMENTS
A. Department of Conservation and Development, Conservancy Staff: In correspondence received on April 15, 2025, Conservancy staff indicated that compliance with the East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Community Conservation Plan (HCP/NCCP) is not required.
B. Additional Agencies: Comments were solicited from Contra Costa County, Building Inspection Division, Contra Costa County Environmental Health Division, Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District, and the City of Pittsburg. No comments were received from these agencies prior to the preparation of this report.
VII. STAFF ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
A. General Plan: The subject property is located within an Agricultural Lands (AL) General Plan Land Use designation. Generally speaking, uses within the AL designation include grazing and dryland farming or other productive agricultural uses, but other types of uses are considered compatible with this designation when conducted in accordance with the County’s policies for those uses including those such as a wireless telecommunication facility with the approval of a land use permit. The continuing operation of an existing facility would not affect grazing or any other agricultural activity on undeveloped portions of the property. Therefore, the project is consistent with the intent and purpose of the AL designation.
Kirker Pass Road, an officially designated scenic route pursuant to Figure COS-12 (Scenic Resources) of the County General Plan, is located approximately 1,175 feet west of the project site. Due to the distance from Kirker Pass Road, there is no potential for the project to significantly impact public views along the scenic route (General Plan Policy COS-P12.8). In addition, as conditioned to require painting the ground-mounted equipment to match the surrounding landscape, the project would be consistent with Policy COS-P12.9 which enables flexibility in project design to protect views and visual qualify along scenic routes. The project site is an existing wireless telecommunications facility within and adjacent to the footprint of an existing PG&E lattice tower. The project as designed and conditioned is consistent with General Plan policies for Scenic Resources.
B. Zoning: The project site is located within an Agricultural Preserve (A-4) Zoning District. Generally speaking, the purpose of the A-4 district is to provide for commercial agricultural production and other compatible uses that are consistent with the intent and purpose of the Land Conservation Act of 1965. In addition, pursuant to County Code Section 84-42.404(14), the A-4 district allows commercial radio and television receiving and transmitting facilities, excluding broadcasting studios or business offices, upon the granting of a land use permit. This Land Use Permit is to allow for the continued operation of an existing, compliant facility. Therefore, the project is consistent with the allowed uses in the A-4 district.
The A-4 district requires a 50-foot-wide side yard. Pursuant to County Code section 88-24.406(d) wireless facilities including ground-mounted equipment must meet the setback distance requirements applicable to the zoning district where the facility is located. The existing lease area is located approximately 9 feet from the nearest side property boundary. Pursuant to County Code Section 84-42.1402, variances may be granted to modify the provisions in the A-4 district. Staff considers that findings exist to allow the variance for a reduced side yard due to the existing location of the wireless facility on a PG&E lattice tower.
C. Wireless Telecommunications Facilities Ordinance (Chapter 88-24): The subject wireless telecommunications facility was established under a Land Use Permit #CDLP05-02078), and its most recent entitlement is Land Use Permit #CDLP12-02105 that expired on November 19, 2022. Pursuant to County Ordinance §88-24.620(a), a land use permit or other discretionary approval issued prior to the enactment of Chapter 88-24 may be renewed in accordance with the requirements in effect at the time the discretionary approval was issued, provided that an application for renewal is received prior to its expiration date. The operating permit for the subject communications tower expired prior to the submittal of this application. Therefore, the proposed renewal will be processed under the County’s current Wireless Ordinance, Chapter 88-24 of the County Code.
The applicant is seeking a Land Use permit for the continuing operation of an existing wireless telecommunications facility. As designed and conditioned, the facility will remain in compliance with the Wireless Ordinance in terms of location, building standards and operational requirements.
Pursuant to the location requirements of Section 88-24.406, collocation is encouraged, and no new tower can be located within 1,000-feet of an existing tower unless certain findings are made. A new facility must also not visually impact a scenic ridgeline unless the facility is required to close a significant gap in coverage. This facility is located on a PG&E lattice tower, where there is also an existing AT&T facility. Even though there are two wireless carriers, they are both on the same lattice tower, so there are not two towers within 1,000 feet of one another. The facility is located within proximity of a County-designated scenic ridge (Figure COS-12), but the ground level equipment is located at its lowest elevation and the antennas are attached to the lattice tower making it a “low visibility facility” as defined by Section 88-24.204(p)(4), so it is not visually impactful to its surroundings. Section 88-24.406(d) requires telecommunications facilities to meet the setback requirements that apply in the zoning district where the facility is located. The A-4 Zoning District requires a 50-foot side yard, but as the facility is existing, and its location is dictated by the location of the PG&E lattice tower, the necessary findings can be made to allow the facility to continue to be located within the required side yard. Therefore, the existing facility meets the location requirements of Section 88-24.406 of the Wireless Ordinance.
Pursuant to the design guidelines of Section 88-24.408(a), the facility must meet or exceed design requirements to reduce the facility’s visual and aesthetic impacts. As conditioned, the existing facility meets this criterion as the facility’s equipment is to be painted to match the surrounding environment, whether that is the lattice tower or the ground level equipment, and will be maintained with enforcement of the conditions of approval when a modification is made to the facility.
Lastly, pursuant to the safety and security guidelines of Section 88-24.412, the facility is also consistent with the location, safety and security, and operational requirements of the Wireless Ordinance. The facility is on the rooftop not accessible to the general public, only accessible to authorized personnel.
Therefore, the entire wireless telecommunications facility as conditioned is consistent with the requirements of the County Wireless Ordinance.
D. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Compliance: As an agency, the FCC has adopted radio frequency protection standards, which establish safety levels with respect to human exposure to radio frequency (RF) emissions. These standards are jointly published by the American National Standards Institute and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The standards prescribe limits for continuous exposure to radio RF emissions. No changes to the communications equipment are proposed and all existing antennas will remain. A Minor Modification permit approved on November 24, 2020 (County File #CDWM20-00024) allowed replacement of antennas. A Radio Frequency-Electromagnetic Energy (RF-EME) Compliance Report prepared by EBI Consulting (August 18, 2020) for County File #CDWM20-00024 evaluated the cumulative impacts of the telecommunications facility and concluded that the facility is compliant with the allowable threshold standards pursuant to the federal government and will remain compliant with the FCC standards for RF emissions.
E. Appropriateness of Use: The subject wireless telecommunications facility has been established on the subject property since 2006. Wireless communications facilities are conditionally allowed within the AL General Plan land use designation and A-4 zoning district. The County is unaware of any nuisances arising from the operation of the existing facility to date. Wireless telecommunication facilities provide a vital service to both residents and visitors of the County and are relied upon for general communication needs and for emergency personnel such as Fire and Sheriff Department Staff.
VIII. CONCLUSION
The continuing operation of the existing T-Mobile wireless facility is consistent with the County General Plan land use designation Agricultural Lands (AL), compliant with the applicable standards and policies of the County Zoning Ordinance, and as conditioned is consistent with the provisions of the County’s Wireless Telecommunication Facilities Ordinance. Therefore, staff recommends that the Zoning Administrator approve County File #CDLP25-02008 based on the attached findings and subject to the attached conditions of approval.
Attachments:
1. Findings and Conditions of Approval
2. Maps - Parcel Map, General Plan, Zoning, and Aerial Photo
3. Project Plans