Member’s Corner
This section of the website will be for members to address any issues or concerns which they feel should be brought to the attention of our members. While it may make a little more work for me, direct posting by members will not be allowed. The reasons for this are: 1) to control spam, 2) to maintain control so it doesn’t turn into a “bitch” area, and, 3) since I didn’t implement a “chat room” on the website, groups.io is used as our chat room, any posts will have to be properly formatted to be used on the website.
If you have an issue/concern that you feel should be brought to the attention of our members, contact me at our monthly meeting or send me an email. I will need a brief statement with the following: 1) what the issue is, 2) what, if anything, has been done, 3) any supporting documentation, and, 4) any help or assistance required. Please be aware that, if this is a controversial subject, I may refer it to the Board of Directors before placing it on the site. Any updates or follow-up will be posted within each issues ‘ section.
The 1st issue is from Terry Taylor N7BDL regarding Standpoint’s ordinance relating to amateur antenna towers. (14 Oct 2024)
When I first approached the City of Sandpoint about installing antennas at my home in Sandpoint, I was told that ground mounted towers were not allowed and that anything I did could be no higher than 40 feet. They did allow a roof mounted tower, so I installed a tri-band beam on a roof tower with an overall height of about 25 feet. I am disappointed with it’s performance compared to my beam in Arizona at 50 feet, so I went back to the City with evidence that PRB-1, an FCC regulation, requires localities to make “reasonable accommodations” for Amateur Radio.
The City yielded on both the ground mounting and the overall height, but came up with a new requirement. Originally, it was that a tower could not impact a neighbor’s property if it fell, but that was changed to say it could not impact a neighbor’s house. During our last meeting last week, I pointed out that my neighbors on both sides have trees that could hit my house if they fell (50 feet tall or more). I also mentioned that I have installed towers at four locations and none of them fell. The representative said that he would talk to the City’s lawyers and get back to me, but I have not heard back yet.
I left them with two documents:
PRB-1: attached here
Ham Radio Antennas: What does the law require of Localities or Municipalities?: attached here
I am hoping to convince the City that their policies are contrary to FCC regulations without hiring a lawyer.