Distributed Antenna Systems “are becoming an increasingly important part of...
Distributed Antenna Systems “are becoming an increasingly important part of wireless network infrastructure in the United States,” but the FCC’s decade-old historic preservation rules “are ill-suited to DAS and small cell technologies that do not rely on towers,” said a…
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report submitted to the FCC by PCIA. “Because DAS and small cell antennas are commonly installed on existing structures, often existing poles within or near utility rights-of-way, they cause little ground disturbance and create almost no additional visual effect -- a quality that recommends the technologies for use in and near historic districts,” the report said (http://bit.ly/16Jnz3v). But, the report notes, DAS and small cell solutions were little used when the Collocation Agreement was developed in 2001 and the Nationwide Programmatic Agreement in 2004. Both are focused on towers, the report said. “As a result, while some of the provisions in these agreements appear capable of accommodating DAS and small cells, there are areas at which the technology and regulation do not comfortably mesh and the current procedures can actually discourage DAS and small cell use in historic settings.” The report recommends the FCC make some tweaks to its rules, which would reduce the level of scrutiny DAS projects would get when submitted for approval.