Ham Radio
Antennas
and Local
Zoning
Ordinances:
How High
Can You Go?
By Wayne Greaves
WØZW
Topics
●
Public vs. private zoning regulations
●
Federal Preemption PRB-1
●
What the law requires
●
Selected court decisions
●
Examination of the Ruidoso ordinance
●
What are your options
●
Resources
2
Zoning Regulations
●
Local government zoning ordinances


Regulates land use for public benefit
Applies to all citizens in municipality
Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions
(CC&Rs)
●

Private land-use regulation

Entered into “voluntarily”
3
Legal Environment Prior to 1985
Widely divergent rules from communityto-community
●
Little consistency across zoning decisions
relevant to amateur antennas
●
Building an effective amateur antenna
system was often not possible in the face
of hostile antenna ordinances
●
4
Federal Preemption PRB-1
A Federal Order issued in 1985 which
preempts the authority of state and local
zoning laws regulating amateur radio
antenna structures
●
●
Localities must heed its provisions
●
Does not apply to CC&Rs
Language subsequently issued as a
Federal regulation (Title 47 C.F.R. §97.15)
●
5
Title 47 C.F.R. §97.15
97.15 Station Antenna Structures.
“(b) Except as otherwise provided herein,
a station antenna structure may be
erected at heights and dimensions
sufficient to accommodate amateur
service communications.”
6
Title 47 C.F.R. §97.15 (cont'd)
“State and local regulation of a
station antenna structure must not
preclude amateur service
communications. Rather, it must
reasonably accommodate such
communications and must constitute
the minimum practicable regulation to
accomplish the state or local
authority's legitimate purpose.”
7
Key Provisions
●
Municipalities must:

Reasonably accommodate amateur
communications

Apply minimum practical regulation to accomplish
the authority's legitimate purpose

Permit heights and dimensions sufficient to
accommodate amateur communications
8
Justifying Antenna Height
9
Another Example
10
Selected Court Decisions
11
Fixed Height Limits
●
Bodony vs. Village of Sands Point [NY]

Applicant desired an 86-foot antenna structure

Zoning Board denied application citing 25-foot
limit on “accessory buildings”

Court ruled that the 25-foot limit was clearly
inadequate for Bodony's purposes and the Zoning
Board action did not make a reasonable
accommodation and therefore is preempted
12
Reasonable Accommodation
●
Pentel vs. City of Mendota Heights [MN]

Applicant provided technical documentation why
her proposed 68 ft. tower accommodated her
specific communications needs

City denied permit stating no factual findings or
giving no reasons for the denial

Court ruled against ordinance as it was applied
finding that it did not reasonable accommodate
amateur radio communications
13
Attempt a Satisfactory
Compromise
●
Palmer vs. City of Saratoga Springs [NY]

Palmer applied for a special use permit allowing a
47 ft. retractable tower (allowed limit was 20 ft.)

Palmer agreed to many concessions, but the
Planning Board finally rejected his permit request
more than 2 years after the initial application

Court found the Board never tried to work out a
satisfactory compromise and negotiations were
strictly one-sided; ordered grant of application
14
Would the Ruidoso Antenna
Ordinance Satisfy a Legal Test?
15
Ruidoso Ordinance: Permitted
Accessory Use, R-1 District
(7) Amateur radio (HAM) transmitting and receiving
facilities that do not exceed the following standards:
a. Maximum height of each antenna: sixty-five feet
from ground to top of antenna;
b. Maximum height of each support structure: twothirds of height of antenna;
c. Maximum width of support structure: two feet on
any side, and provided that no antenna shall protrude
laterally beyond said support structure;
d. Maximum number of antennas: one;
16
Ruidoso Ordinance Fails Test!
17
A Better Ordinance
60.70.20 Exempt from regulations in this section:
“Amateur radio facility antennas, or a combination of
antennas and support structures seventy (70) feet or
less in height [...] Radio facilities not meeting the
requirements of this exemption are considered nonexempt, and must comply with Section 60.70.45.”
60.70.45 “Non-exempt amateur radio facilities may not
be erected until a valid building permit has been
obtained from the City of Beaverton.”
City Of Beaverton, Oregon Municipal Code
18
What Can a Ham Do
Fight - Fight City Hall to put up your
antenna
●
Flight - Move somewhere with more
favorable
regulations
●
●
Fume - Complain at the local ham club
●
Hide - Set up a stealth antenna
●
Rule - Work to change the ordinance
19
Change the Rules!
Change an antenna-hostile ordinance into
an antenna-friendly ordinance
●
●
Requires commitment and perseverance
●
Must have a dedicated champion
20
A Road Map for Change
●
Prepare – gather information
●
Plan – design strategy
●
Execute – put plan in motion
●
Persevere - deal with set backs
21
Prepare
●
Obtain sample ordinances
●
Contact experts at ARRL
●
Obtain white papers & court decisions
●
Locate spokespeople who can testify
22
Plan
●
Learn structure of the Village government
●
Learn process for amending Ordinances
Understand timing constraints of
committee and city council meetings
●
Package proposal to present to allies on
City Staff and in the City Council
●
23
Execute
Work with city staff to gain buy-in for changing the
ordinance
●
Get your champion to introduce the ordinance as “new
business”
●
●
Make expert information available to council
Help your council champion to shepherd the bill
through committees, work sessions, commissions, and
council hearings
●
Keep troops engaged from the first committee hearing
to final passage
●
24
Things That Are Helpful
RACES or ARES participation ● Respectful letters, emails, and
in local Emergency
phone calls
Management
● Amateur Radio program in the
● Amateur Radio Volunteer
local schools
support for municipal events
● News clipping of Amateur
● Amateurs in elected or staff
Radio contributions to the
positions
community
●
Active local Amateur Radio
club
Inviting public official to Field
Day - showcase emergency
field communications
●
●
People who know how to
testify in public hearings
●
25
Things That Don't Help
Do not propose arbitrary
restrictions that hostile council
members and zoning
committee members will seize
Failing to show up on time to
meetings
●
●
Testimony from hams living
outside the city
●
Name calling, bullying, and
threats of litigation
●
Asking for too much or too
little
●
●
Careless or haphazard
presentations
●
Disruptive demonstrations in
public meetings
Inappropriate dress at public
hearings
●
26
Overcoming Objections
Property Value - Point out that no house next to a property
with an antenna has had its assessment reduced
●
Safety - Point out that having an antenna support structure
does not raise residential insurance rates
●
Aesthetics - Point out that higher is better and show photos to
prove that tall antenna structures have less real visual impact
than lower antennas
●
Needs of the Community - A local “balancing of interests”
argument is not legal under PRB-1
●
RFI – The FCC has sole regulatory jurisdiction on such matters.
Point out that “higher is better”, the higher amateurs can put
antennas, the less chance there is for RFI
●
27
Resources
Antenna Zoning for the
Radio Amateur by Fred
Hopengarten, K1VR
28
More Resources
●
http://www.qth.com/antennazoning
●
ARRL PRB-1 Web page
ARRL Volunteer Counsel and Volunteer
Consulting Engineer Programs
●
Antenna Height and Communications
Effectiveness – A Guide for City Planners
and Amateur Radio Operators, 2nd Edition,
ARRL
●
29
Don't Give Up, Never Give Up!
30