San Clemente : Dish Antenna Ordinance Enforcement Postponed

Because of a technicality, the city’s first ordinance regulating satellite dish antennas will not take effect for another month.

The City Council originally adopted the ordinance Jan. 2, and most city officials expected it would go into effect 30 days later. However, at the time, the council also asked that a definition of satellite dish antennas later be written into the ordinance. That request postponed enactment of the new ordinance.

This week, the council adopted the definition, which calls a satellite dish antenna “an electronic element utilizing a spherical dish to receive or transmit telecommunications signals, such as radio or television transmissions.”

The ordinance now will go into effect in mid February.

The proposed ordinance restricts the size of antennas to 10 feet in height and 10 feet in diameter and prohibits their placement on rooftops or any other parts of residential buildings. They must also be screened from adjacent properties. Dish antennas, however, are allowed on commercial buildings if they meet the height limits of the area.