COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

DATE:

October 11, 2002

BOARD MEETING DATE:

October 22, 2002

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Steve Boles, Radio/Microwave Replacement Project Manager

SUBJECT:

Emergency Services Council Joint Powers Authority and County Radio/Microwave System Site at 700 Crestview (Site 60) - San Carlos Area

Recommendation

Reaffirm that the use of the 700 Crestview Radio/Microwave Site is a necessary and essential site to ensure the effectiveness of the overall system and concur in the addition of the final four radio antenna to the tower.

Reason for Board Consideration

Dr. Neil Robinson, 24 Quail Lane in San Carlos, has sent several letters and made several telephone calls to Supervisor Gordon concerning a communications site that the County has installed at 700 Crestview. His property is adjacent to the site. In his communications he has objected to the antenna proposed to be installed on the tower, the stability of the tower itself, the visual impact of the site, the noise from the emergency generator and the process for deciding that the project would move ahead.

Background of the Project

In the late-1960's the Emergency Services Council Joint Powers Authority (ESC JPA) coordinated the acquisition and installation of a county-wide radio communications system to be used for radio communications for public safety agencies. The system has two major components: the analog microwave system that is used to pass radio signals up and down the county, and the radio equipment that supports the county wide Mutual Aid and Tactical channels and a variety of public safety radio users around the County. Over the years the system has expanded to meet increased demands for reliable communications among radio system users. The ESC JPA and County radio equipment form the backbone of the law enforcement communications system in San Mateo County, providing rapid communications between agencies in the county in order to provide coordinated operations. Additionally, a variety of agencies outside of the County rely on the microwave system to carry their radio traffic including the California Highway Patrol, CalTrans, State Fish and Game and State Parole.

In 1996 the JPA and the County began developing and reviewing options to provide a more reliable and sustainable radio communications system as the current system was found to have numerous performance problems including poor reliability, inadequate coverage, channel congestion and channel interference. Engineering designs were developed to address these problems, and additional frequencies were acquired to support the design.

In 2000 the ESC JPA and the County issued a Request for Proposals to identify prospective bidders to design, build and install the new systems. In March 2001 both the ESC JPA and the County in separate public sessions approved a system that would address all of the issues that had been identified. The new system is expected to meet ESC JPA and County communications needs for the next 10 to 15 years. Construction is scheduled to be completed in April 2003.

Selection of and Work at the 700 Crestview Site (Site 60)

The County contracted with Frank Thatcher Associates (now Macro Corporation) to prepare detailed design documents for the upgrade of the system, including the identification and evaluation of sites that would be necessary to support effective radio communications. Previous Thatcher studies had found that the JPA, as well as the County Sheriff and Emergency Medical Services were experiencing severe dispatch radio coverage problems in Edgewood County Park, Edgewood and Devonshire canyons, along I-280 and in West San Carlos. Thatcher was tasked with identifying potential new radio transmission sites to improve coverage in these areas (as well as a number of others throughout the County).

In order to locate the best and most practical radio transmission site, Thatcher employed radio coverage modeling tools to simulate radio coverage from various potential sites near these problem areas. Transmitters were simulated at Belmont Water Tank, Pise Peak, Cal Water/Atherton, at the west Redwood City Fire Station and another water tank not currently equipped with radio. The California Water tank site located at Crestview Avenue at Los Vientos Way (also known as San Carlos/Site 60, Site 60 and 700 Crestview) was found to be the optimal site. The minimum tower height of 60 feet was determined using computer modeling to ensure signals would not be blocked. This engineering design work was completed in 1998.

Site 60 serves two critical functions in the network. First, it is one of 11 microwave loop sites in the system. The loop design assures that if any one site fails the system will continue to function as the signals will simply reverse direction around the loop. Second, it provides radio communications coverage in areas that currently are not adequately supported (Edgewood County Park, Edgewood and Devonshire canyons, along I-280 and in West San Carlos). The antenna at Site 60 will provide the users with reliable and effective emergency communications and will be used whenever we are responding to emergency events for San Carlos residents as well as residents throughout the County.

Site 60 Development Work

Site 60 has been used in the network for a number of years. Originally, radio communications equipment was placed at the site as a result of a use agreement with CalWater (owner of the site) entered into in January 1979. The equipment was located on a 40-foot tower in the same location as the new tower and provided limited radio coverage. As noted above, as a result of the engineering study by Thatcher it was recommended that the use of the site be expanded to serve as both a loop site for the microwave system and as an expanded radio communication site to address reliability and coverage issues in the area.

In late 2000, the County submitted a request to the San Carlos Planning Department to expand the use of Site 60. The expansion included addition of an equipment shed, addition of a propane tank for backup power, and replacement of the existing 40 foot tower with a 60 foot tower. In February 2001 the San Carlos Planning Commission approved the use permit. There were no objections raised at the hearing. The County then began work on the site and replaced the tower, installed the shelter and set up the propane tank. Additionally, the microwave dishes were installed on the tower.

In April 2002 the County installed the antenna on the tower. At that point Dr. Robinson issued a complaint to the San Carlos Planning Department and the department determined that the antenna were not part of the original approval and directed the County to remove them. We did so and resubmitted plans to the Planning Department to have the antenna approved for installation at the site. To date the Planning Department has not acted on the request and we will soon be impacting the project schedule.

Specific Need for the Antenna

The antennas in question are necessary to enable public safety 9-1-1 dispatchers to communicate with personnel using vehicle and handheld radios in the west San Carlos area. If these antennas were not installed, it would be difficult for dispatchers to reach County and City public safety personnel, which could increase response times to citizens and reduce officer safety.

In order to meet the coverage requirements defined in the RFP's the contractor (Motorola) has determined that four Bogner antenna are required at the site. Motorola has indicated that they will not be able to meet the terms of the contract for coverage and reliability with any other type of antenna.

Stability of the Tower

The original engineering work at the site was completed by Tower Structures, a company that specializes in construction of antenna structures. Their plans were reviewed and approved by the City of San Carlos Planning department for the original construction efforts. With the addition of the new antenna they again evaluated the strength and integrity of the tower and found that it was appropriately engineered to support the four proposed antenna.

At Dr. Robinson's request Billy M. Lin a Registered Professional Engineer of Cyme Inc. concluded that "any leak from this vertical waterline, or any nearby underground pipelines, can undermine the mat foundation and cause the Antenna Tower to fall".

Neil Cullen, County Public Works Director, has reviewed the original plans, the letter from Mr. Lin and the site plans provided by CalWater and has concluded that "there is little of no potential for the Radio Tower at Crestview Drive to collapse due to failure of the foundation as a result of hydraulic soil erosion".

Mr. Cullen's full report is attached as additional information. Based on these documents, we believe that the safety issue raised does not warrant removal of the tower.

Visual Impact of the Tower and Antenna

The 60 foot Tower at the site was approved by the San Carlos Planning Commission in February 2001 after a noticed public hearing. This replaced an existing 40 foot tower.

The four proposed antenna were selected to provide necessary emergency communications coverage. The antenna array consists of four units approximately 20 feet long. These units will be mounted approximately 20 feet off the ground and will end approximately 20 feet below the top of the tower. The antenna will also be painted the same color as the tower to lessen the visual impact. The color of the tower was approved by the San Carlos Planning Commission in February 2001. Before and after pictures are attached.

Also, vegetation will be added to further lessen the visual impact at the site.

Noise Caused by the Emergency Generator

At the request of one of the other area neighbors, we have evaluated the noise caused by operation of the emergency generators. The County Industrial Hygienist has determined that the operation of the generator does not exceed the San Carlos Municipal Code regulations regarding noise. However, we have reduced "cycling the generator" from once a week to once a month to lessen the impact. Additionally, we are looking at alternate mufflers capable of greater noise reduction and at other methods to further reduce the noise impact.

County's Immunity from Local Regulations

An issue raised by Dr. Robinson was the County's failure to obtain approval of the City of San Carlos for the installation of the antennas. We consulted County Counsel for clarification of the requirement to obtain local agency permit approval for County structures located in neighboring jurisdictions. County Counsel has advised that, under well established statutory and case law, the County is not required to comply with the building and zoning ordinances of the City of San Carlos for the erection of the antenna. This exemption recognizes the authority of local jurisdictions, which are responsible for ensuring the health and welfare of the public, to make decisions on the location of facilities necessary to carry out their governmental functions. While not legally required, we have used the local governmental permit process in the past as a vehicle to obtain that jurisdiction's input. In this case, the need to move forward with the upgrade of the facility coupled with the City's failure to act to date argues for the need to move ahead with the installation.

Fiscal Impact

The combined budget for this project is $25,613,528 ($13,813,528 for the ESC JPA system and $11,800,000 for the County system). All funds have been budgeted for the project and provided by the various participants.

The project is currently on schedule and on budget. Failure to install and begin testing of the new antenna by the end of October will lead to delays in the project and additional non-budgeted costs.

Vision Alignment

The radio/microwave replacement project is essential to effective emergency communications among police, fire, ambulance and other critical services and thus meets the intent of goal number 7: Maintain and enhance the public safety of all residents and visitors. Additionally the system, used in cooperation by all of the public safety agencies in the County meets the intent of goal number 22: County and local governments effective communicate, collaborate and develop strategic approaches to issues affecting the entire County.