Bureau of Development Services (BDS) approved already completed height and design adjustments for a pole holding wireless communications antennas at 4579 NE Cully Blvd.

This land use decision covers changes to an existing monopole, a freestanding structure used to hold communications equipment. The pole owner, Crown Castle, maintains a 79-foot monopole that holds wireless communications antennas.

The city approved the pole at a height of 70 feet in 2001. In the original approval, the city and Crown Castle agreed on a non-standard aesthetic treatment for the pole: concealing the antennas in a fiber reinforced plastic canister. City of Portland’s zoning code did not and does not require the canister, but BDS considered the canister an acceptable aesthetic solution under the zoning code at the time. The canister is a poor long-term solution since it’s not possible to open or modify the canister after installation without cutting and destroying it.

Under Federal Communications Commission rules, wireless equipment owners may make limited changes to poles without receiving a new permit or land use approval. Crown Castle increased the pole height to 79 feet in 2018 while performing equipment replacements permitted by the city. Crown Castle also installed antennas that are not concealed by a canister. Because the original pole approval specified the canister, BDS needed to update the approval to match the current design and ensure that the current pole meets city code.

The city approved the updated pole at a height of 79 feet. Under the conditions of the approval, Crown Castle will paint the pole and antennas a uniform matte light grey as an aesthetic treatment. Crown Castle will also screen the ground-level equipment and fenced compound around the pole with landscaping.

View full details of Land Use Decision (PDF)

If you have questions on this approval, please email Zach Powers, Transportation and Land Use Chair. You may also write to BDS directly using the contact info in the land use notice.