Valdez Planning and Zoning Commission Approves Wireless Tower CUP – July 22, 2026
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Valdez Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting – July 22, 2026
The Valdez Planning and Zoning Commission met on July 22, 2026, to consider a conditional use permit for a wireless communication tower proposed by the City of Valdez. All commissioners were present except Feggerberg; Commissioners Wade and Moulton participated by phone, and Sierra Larson and Michael Gobble from New Horizons joined online. After a public hearing and extensive discussion, the commission approved the permit by a 4-2 vote, with one absent.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting minutes from May 13, 2026, on a motion by Commissioner Goodrow, seconded by Commissioner Montroka.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jessica Elder, a resident on West Clutina adjacent to the proposed site, expressed opposition to the tower's location while voicing full support for expanding emergency services communications. She cited concerns about views, property values, and potential health fears, and urged the commission to seek a more suitable location and to ensure any future tower additions receive full public review.
- Linda Elder asked whether dead spot surveys had been conducted and by whom. The commission noted the question for discussion but did not answer it during the public hearing.
Public Hearing – CUP 26-03
- City Manager Nate Devon presented the application for a conditional use permit for a wireless communication tower on Block 5, Block 20 Add. No. 2, Plat 79-7. He explained that the tower is part of a larger public safety radio system replacement, with components at City Hall dispatch, Fire Station One, the grain silos, and Ski Hill. The site was selected because it is outside the tsunami inundation zone, on city property, adjacent to the Emergency Operations Center, and able to maintain line-of-sight links to the grain silos and Ski Hill. He noted that co-location with Copper Valley Telecom had been informally discussed, but the company recommended building a new tower. The project has received a $5.5 million federal earmark.
- IT Director Matthew Osborne provided technical context, stating that the system will use newly FCC-licensed frequencies in the 800 MHz range and that the fire station location is critical for post-earthquake operations because a cable could be run from the station to the tower in an emergency. He also noted that the grain silos have a history of service disruptions.
Discussion Items
- Commissioners questioned why the tower could not be placed at the grain silos, the public works site, Kelsey Dock, or the harbor. Staff responded that the grain silos are within the tsunami inundation zone, the public works site lacks sufficient room and coverage, Kelsey Dock is blocked by Mills Hill, and harbor locations raise land-use conflicts. The fire station site reduces the number of towers needed and provides secure access to EOC infrastructure.
- Commissioner Moulton asked about camouflage options; staff said fake-tree towers cost roughly three times as much, can require greater height, and are less practical for radio antennas and Valdez weather conditions.
- Commissioner Raditic raised a code concern: Title 17 requires an eight-foot fence around towers, while the proposal relies on video surveillance, 24-hour staffing, and anti-climbing devices. The Community Development Director stated that the city attorney determined the alternative satisfies the code's intent and that no variance is required. The applicant said he preferred not to install a fence due to snow removal but would accept it if required.
- The Community Development Director clarified that telecommunications towers are allowed in any zoning district under the current code, so no rezone is needed for this conditional use permit.
Key Outcomes
- The commission approved Conditional Use Permit 26-03 by a vote of 4 yeas to 2 nays, with one commissioner absent. The motion carried.
- No additional conditions were added regarding the fence; the city attorney's interpretation was accepted.
- The commission noted that the city may bring forward a future rezone of the property to public lands, but this does not affect the decision made at this meeting.
Reports & Commission Business
- The Community Development Director gave no report.
- Commissioner Wade asked about a bicycle event on Airport Road; staff stated no permit had been issued for that location. A temporary land use permit had been issued for the Fireweed 400 bike race, which used the ball fields.
- Commissioner Raditic praised the city's Citizen Academy program; staff noted a future land use planning session in August and plans for another cohort.
- Commissioner Goodrow asked for an update on the bathroom/tote road lake project; staff said a proposal will be brought to the commission and Parks and Rec Commission before going to city council.
Meeting Transcript
Very much. Okay, great. Thank you. I'd like to call this meeting of the Valdece Planning and Zoning Commission for Wednesday, July 22nd to order. Let the record show that all commissioners are present with the exception of Commissioner Feggerberg, and we have Commissioners Wade and Moulton on the phone. We also have Sierra Larson and Michael Gobble from New Horizons on online. First item of order of business is the planning and zoning commission meeting minutes for May 13th, 2026. Can we get a motion on that? Motion to approve. Second. Okay, it's been moved by Commissioner Goodrow, seconded by Commissioner Montroka. Any comments or changes to that? All right, then those are approved. Next item is public business from the floor. This is for anyone who came to address us on a non-agenda item. We'll have our public hearing after this. So did anyone come to address us on other issues? All right. And we'll move right into public hearings. The first public hearing or the only public hearing is conditional use permit 26-03, an application from the City of Valdez for a conditional use permit for a wireless communication tower. And I'd like if the applicant could come up to the mic, state your name for the record. And we'll do five minutes each since we have a rather large crowd, try and get everybody out of here in a timely manner. Okay. All right. Uh thank you, Commission. I'm Nate Devon, the city manager. Uh in a former life, I was actually the project manager for this project, and so that's how I get to inherit some of this. Um I'd like to talk about are just a couple of highlights briefly, um, and then would you all go into discussion if you have any questions? Like I said, we have New Horizons Online or myself that can answer any questions that we're able to. Uh so this tower is a component of a major project related to upgrading and replacing the uh public safety radio system. Uh, right now we're on the state ALMR, Alaska Land Mobile Radio System. Uh, it has issues where it's run by the state but housed by the federal government, it's in Anchorage, we don't have access to it. Um, it ties in with our 911 system. There's a lot of problems with it, it's aging. We have some existing infrastructure in town that the installation date is unknown. Uh 80s, 90s vintage uh original type equipment. We've gone through all the process of replacing certain things, um, but we've come to a point where you can no longer put band-aids on it, it's due for replacement, and we have to we have to make those changes. Uh, you may have seen the assessment, those in the packet talks about some of those uh issues that we have. Uh as it pertains to this tower, it's one of a series. So there's upgrades that are gonna have to happen at dispatch at City Hall, uh, the inclusion of this tower at Fire Station One, upgrades andor potential tower at the grain silos, and then something out of town uh anticipated to be at the top of Ski Hill. So that would it eliminates our challenging infrastructure now and it sets us up to have a more robust system into the future that will also provide us coverage where we don't have coverage right now, especially at 10 mile and out into the canyon. Uh this specific tower does not provide coverage out of town, but without this tower, that piece of communication doesn't serve much value because they all have to link back together to make it work. Uh, it is redundant to what's at City Hall presently, uh but the intent is that it would replace City Hall once the entire system is built out. Um I guess just to kind of go into hit on some of the highlights of questions that we have received, all very good questions, very thoughtful, conscientious questions. Um if you'll indulge me, I'll plug in our GIS map to kind of walk through the thought process. Um but as you look at town, uh, some of the criteria we're looking for uh for this emergency services communications and just emergency service and critical infrastructure in general uh outside of tsunami inundation zone is a is a key factor when it comes to this. So essentially that cuts off about a third of town. I'll describe it for you. Basically, from the hospital to the tank farm in a diagonal motion, essentially cuts off all of that area. You can see here on the on the map, the little red line is the maximum inundation for any any of one of specific events.
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