From Ingrid Gabriel, County Council Clerk
The San Juan County Council has postponed the public hearing on the purpose of receiving testimony on a proposed Ordinance amending San Juan County Code provisions for wireless communication facilities & updating & clarifying existing terms & requirements.
The public hearing was originally noticed for Tuesday, May 1, 2012 in the Council Hearing Room at 55 Second Street, Friday Harbor.
The new hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, May 22, 2012 beginning at 10:15 am in the Council Hearing Room at 55 Second Street, Friday Harbor. At the hearing, members of the public will be invited to speak and/or provide written statements regarding the proposed Ordinance.
The hearing may be continued from time to time and place to place as may be desired by the Council and/or the Planning Commission without additional written notice.
A summary of the proposed Ordinance follows although all persons are encouraged to read the ordinance. The proposed ordinance amends and adds definitions to SJCC 18.20 including a new definition for “joint use wireless facilities”, “tower” and “wireless tower”;” co-location” and other definitions, modifies the land use tables 3.1, 3.2 and to make joint use wireless facilities an allowable use in certain districts and establishes the types of review in other districts for joint use wireless facilities and other personal wireless service facilities; amends the use table for the Deer Harbor Hamlet amends Allowable Uses & Land Use Permit Requirements in Orcas Village Activity Center (SJCC 18.30.430 & Table 3.10); adds a new section to SJCC 18.40 entitled “Regulations for Personal Wireless Service Facilities” with exemptions for temporary wireless facility, some amateur radio facilities, and certain joint use wireless facilities; revises the submissions requirements for personal wireless service facilities, amends permit procedures for discretionary uses (SJCC 18.80.090); removes references to radio frequency matters and power that are preempted by federal law, clarifies existing procedures and requirements in the above sections and makes other changes for consistency and clarity and repeals Ordinance 15-2010.
All persons wishing to be heard on this matter are encouraged to attend. Written comments may be submitted in advance of the hearing by mail or at the hearing by delivery in person. Delivery of written comments in advance of the hearing is strongly encouraged by providing 8 copies to the Clerk of the San Juan County Council at 55 Second Street, Friday Harbor or mail to 355 Court Street#1, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. The Ordinance is filed at the Office of the County Council, 55 Second Street, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 and may be inspected and copies obtained at the Council offices during each business day between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Copies of the ordinance are available from the County web site at www.sanjuanco.com. A copy of the proposed Ordinance will be mailed without charge upon request. For more information please contact the Ingrid Gabriel, Clerk of the County Council at 360-370-7470; ingridg@sanjuanco.com and/or Shireene Hale, Planning Coordinator at shireeneh@sanjuanco.com.
I urge all considering the expansion of Internet Connectivity for our county to please move forward aggressively. Having visited the Hanford “Manhattan Project” site today and seeing how that generation moved forward aggressively to win WWII and the Cold War, let’s have the courage and strength to move forward with enabling the progress of the Internet throughout our country.
Being an Eastsound resident for years, I am hoping that all the towers and antenna are not centered in town with the bulk of the population here. Many people outside of town will fight this, not wanting these in “their” back yards. We in town take the brunt of the burden always. We ask you to take on your fair share of this burden and stop expecting Eastsound to take it all for you. Our dense population is most at-risk. We ask that the out-of-towners share the benefits, burdens, and the health risks of a technology we know nothing about, regarding how it affects long-term health of both human and non human inhabitants.