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Planning commission pauses WiFiber/Summit Storage rezone to allow alternate tower siting and setback work
Summary
Commissioners continued the WiFiber/Summit Storage rezone for up to 90 days after hearing that UDOT will reimburse costs to relocate a removed tower; commissioners urged the applicant to explore alternate placement on the parcel to avoid large height and setback variances.
The Cache County Planning Commission on May 8 voted to continue a rezone application tied to a proposed wireless tower relocation, giving the applicant up to 90 days to explore alternate tower siting and address height and setback concerns.
Hayden Nelson of WiFiber told commissioners the company must move a preexisting tower that UDOT required be removed for a road project and that UDOT is funding the relocation. Nelson said the original tower was 60 feet and that, depending on siting, the company anticipates seeking exemptions or a conditional-use permit for a taller structure to reconnect fixed-wireless links in the valley. "UDOT is funding us to move the tower further back onto the property," he said.
Commissioners raised a series of concerns: county maximum heights for towers (several commissioners cited 60 feet or lower as the norm), proximity to a principal arterial (Highway 30), tie-wire and tip-over risk near the highway, and whether the selected quarter-acre parcel is the safest location on the lot. Commissioners suggested the applicant discuss relocation to a back corner of the parcel or to a nearby industrial site that already carries visual impacts.
WiFiber representatives said taller height would improve link reliability and expand service to underserved valley neighborhoods, while acknowledging they will seek conditional-use review for height and setback variances if needed.
The commission’s motion to continue the rezone up to 90 days carried on a voice vote. Staff said the continuance is intended to allow the applicant and the landowner to discuss alternative locations on the same parcel and to return with a clearer site plan; if the applicant cannot secure variances later, the rezoned parcel could remain unused for the proposed tower.
