Planning commission approves 140-foot Xcel Energy monopole at substation

Rosemont — At its Aug. 26 meeting, the Rosemont Planning Commission approved a site plan review allowing Xcel Energy to construct a 140-foot private telecommunications monopole at the utility company’s existing substation east of Highway 52.

Julia, planning staff, told the commission the monopole would support Xcel Energy’s private LTE network to provide secure communications among company assets and would not be available for public cellular use. “The monopole will assist in establishing their private LTE network, for secure communications between Xcel Energy assets,” Julia said.

The monopole is proposed on the northern edge of the roughly 5.3-acre substation, about a half-mile east of Highway 52 and north of 140th Street East. Staff said the structure would carry three antennas near the top with a centerline height of about 135 feet. The city zoning code’s maximum height for monopoles and towers is 250 feet, and staff said the 140-foot proposal is within that limit.

Commissioners heard that the existing substation has been at the site since the late 1990s and is bordered to the south by a FedEx distribution center and to the east by a Metropolitan Council wastewater lift station. Julia said the site is enclosed by a seven-foot steel fence topped with a one-foot vertical arm wire, and that the city allows fences up to eight feet in nonresidential districts. No new site lighting is proposed.

Staff told the commission that construction would generate short-term semi-truck deliveries for materials and that three to five workers would be on site during the build; after construction, only occasional employee visits to check equipment are expected. Commissioners asked whether semis could access the site without disrupting nearby traffic; Julia replied that the site access is adequate and that traffic in that immediate area is light.

A public hearing was opened and, with no members of the public speaking, was closed. Commissioner Kanniger moved approval of the site plan review, Commissioner Bugaj seconded, and the commission approved the request by voice vote. The approval was made subject to conditions 1 and 2 listed in the staff report. The commission’s decision is final unless denied or appealed; staff noted a 10-day window to file an appeal with city staff.

Why it matters: The monopole supports Xcel Energy’s internal communications and is sited at an existing utility facility; the commission’s decision allows the company to proceed with construction subject to staff conditions and the local appeal process.

For the record, the applicant was Xcel Energy; staff presented the plan and the planning commission issued the approval with conditions and an appeal period.