11-26-1997 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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4. is a gap between the apparent number of sites and the actual number that can be used. Zoning problems: There is often a long, hard road between acquiring a site and actually constructing the facili- ty on that site. Some existing sites were constructed over four years, due to a lengthy zoning process. The Telecommunications Act 1996 does not preempt the authority of zon- ing boards, but merely stipulates that zoning boards may not effectively ban or delay permission indefinitely for cell sites. That leaves a lot of leeway for these authorities to examine, re exam- , inc. hold public hearings, require mountains of documentation and other- wise obfuscate and frustrate efforts to secure an unencumbered permission. In the end, the operator must choose between litigation appeals. delay, the anger of local residents and endless bureaucracy on one hand or, on the other, a second or third site choice hand. Unacceptable business arrange- ments: Even if zoning and radio cover- age issues are satisfactory, the site owners 'make such excessive demands on operators that a mutually acceptable 32 business agreement cannot be struck. Such was the case in Denver, where a dispute between city authorities and cellular operators over revenues has compromised cellular service at the Denver International Airport. Therefore, despite a seeming plethora of sites nationwide. wireless companies are still faced with a lack of acceptable sites. That is why many operators are taming to site - sharing as the most viable way to fulfil their ser- vice obligations. Why share sites? There are three basic reasons why shar- ing base station sites among multiple operators makes more sense now than ever before: • Economic: Between 50% and 70% of the cost of network buildout is the "fixed costs" of building and maintaining all the cell sites. In this context, "fixed costs" include such components as • Identifying and acquiring the desired real estate. • Securing planning and zoning per- missions. • Constructing the facility or reinforcing the roof where it will be mounted. • Getting power to the facility • Installing the appropriate equipment and services. After construction costs there are, among other expenses, leasing costs, taxes and permit fees. inspections. maintenance and utilities to consider. In total, the operator may spend between USD 0,5 and USD 1.5 million over the 10 year life of a site. This does not include the cost of the radio trans- ceivers and associated systems needed to carry the telecommunications traffic. which could range from USS100.000 to US$I.000,000 over the "fixed costs". Site - sharing significantly reduces an operator's operating costs associated with zoning. program management. structural analyses. site acquisition fees and carrying costs. • Programmatic: Build out programs can encounter serious delays of months and even years before local zoning, permissions and inspections can be completed. Sometimes multiple public hearings must be held to assure the public that the aesthetics and safety of the installation are satisfactory. By comparison, sharing a site is sim- pler and usually incurs far less delay. Page 102 Z 'd 69I0I9ZI9I ,a, Ar,. id?d0ae'IIIySE 'Rd LZ Because of the trend toward smaller equipment. site - sharing is now more practical. The impending building boom will create a shortage of trained personnel to build sites. Shared sites require fewer personnel to design, build, equip and maintain. • Technical: Overload, desensitization and intermodulauon distortion in sub- scriber terminals often occur when the terminal is close to a base station that does not belong to the subscriber's serving system. This happens because the terminal is receiving a much stronger signal from the non serving base station than from its own, which may be far away. Shared sites reduce this probability by ensuring that all the serving and non serving bases are "close" and "far" simultaneously. Qualities to look for in a shared -site partner Any operator contemplating site - sharing should be satisfied that the site owner maintains constant knowl- edge of all activities occurring at each site and on any potential for problems that might arise when the operator's equipment is added to the site. To ensure this demands that the site owner must provide: • A complete inventory of every piece of equipment at every site with the exact technical parameters of every transmit- ter and receiver. • A 24 hour contact at the operator's facilities in case of problems, for every suite of equipment at every site. • Sound engineering standards and practices that are contractually enforced throughout the operation. • Sufficient contractual, procedural and physical precautions to ensure that the potential for accidental damage, deliberate tampering, and unauthorized access are minimized. • Health and safety policies and proce- dures established, with clearly marked hazard areas at each site. • Procedures and facilities to monitor the site for physical security and the proper operation of all equipment, in addition to normal NOC (Network Operating Center) monitoring performed at every site by each operator. • Technical staff. expertise, procedures. tools, and facilities for predicting and preventing possible interference problems. • Fast and effective procedures for 1 'Ad L6- 97,-daS