On 1/13/02 1:00 PM, K7LXC@aol.com at K7LXC@aol.com wrote:
> You've got to remember that 1) the building department thinks that
>everything is a habitable structure and 2) they've probably not run into a
>ham tower application before. Your job (or your contractor's job) is
>partially to educate them about what's appropriate and what's not.
A big AMEN to this. I put up a modest 49.5' tower in Gwinnett County, GA.
For insurance and legal purposes, I wanted to do everything "by the
book".
Took 1.5 days of effort to obtain a building permit. Yes, even though the
county had a procedure for such structures, they handle them so rarely
that they don't know what questions to ask.
When in doubt, they make you jump through every possible hoop. My wife
had to go on the second day and have an "environmental study" done. This
was in a separate office across town. When she got there, they asked here
"what the heck are you doing here." Best point was when someone realised
the foundation was 2 feet square - "well, I suppose you don't have to
have a soil perculation test, then...."
Once I had the BP, it was much easier. Inspections weren't a problem at
all. I had two, with the pre-pour inspection and the final inspection.
>> I'm thinking of acquiring a US Tower crankup - my understanding is that I
>> can get engineering diagrams from them. Since they are located in
>> California, they should be acceptable to the County. But, I haven't seen
>> them yet. I have modest goals of a tribander at 60'.
>
> Yes - they have "canned" drawings you can buy and you shouldn't have any
>problem getting them approved by your building department.
Again, it all depends. Here in Gwinnett County, Ga, the requirements vary
depending on the hieght of the structure:
* < 50 feet - only a Building Permit is needed. No drawings.
* 50-70 feet - "canned" drawings may be submitted for approval for the
Building Permit.
* 70-110 feet - Drawings must be drafted by a local PE. There are also
requirements for public notice to be given, and some sort of official
county hearing about it.
* above 110 feet - Requires a variance.
Your requirements will likely be different. You should contact the county
to get exact details on what is required.
You can guess why my tower is only 49.5 feet....
Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL Mail: aa4lr@arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
-- Wilbur Wright, 1901
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