BZA approves 150‑foot broadband tower with landscaping requirement and co‑location terms

The Boone County Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special exception and related variances to permit a 150‑foot telecommunications tower at 2371 South State Road 75, subject to conditions that include landscaping requirements and agreements to allow co‑location and remove the facility after discontinued use.

Planning staff recommended approval of the special exception and the variance for the tower type but recommended denial of a requested reduction in the landscaping buffer because the tower itself would remain visually prominent. Staff’s recommended conditions included a written agreement to allow other providers to attach antennas, a removal agreement after 180 days of discontinued use, and a statement that no signs other than those required by the FCC or FAA would be permitted.

Tim Trotter, representing AMG (doing business as NextLink), said the company delivers high‑speed fixed wireless Internet to underserved rural areas and that its installation footprint is small — a 20‑by‑20‑foot slab and a single equipment cabinet. Trotter said the property is agriculturally zoned and that existing tree lines on three sides provide screening; he asked the board for flexibility on the ordinance’s full tree/landscaping standards because the leased compound is only about 400 square feet.

Deborah Lazier, interim planning director, said the ordinance prefers taller evergreens in buffer yards and that shrubs alone are unlikely to fully conceal a 150‑foot structure. Board members discussed replacement and maintenance expectations for plantings and whether a lease could require the landowner not to disturb landscaping.

Board member Danielle Morrison moved approval of the special exception and the variance for tower type while conditioning the landscaping variance on the installation of a minimum of 6‑foot shrubs around the compound and a landowner commitment not to disturb plantings; VC Henson seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

Conditions attached to the approval require that the applicant provide agreements allowing co‑location (subject to non‑interference and space to accommodate two additional antennas), a removal agreement after 180 days of discontinued use, and the landscaping/maintenance and landowner commitment. Staff will require all technical comments, drainage and driveway permits, and any other county permitting before building permits are issued.

Trotter said NextLink has secured grants and is building sites to deliver rural broadband; he and staff noted the company typically uses battery backup and small ancillary equipment rather than large generators, and that the compound footprint and equipment are limited compared with a typical 250‑foot cellular site.