A method of operating a base station (BS) for a coexistence operation in a wireless communication system is provided. The method comprises performing a first measurement of first signals received from neighbor BSs over channels that are shared with the neighbor BSs before receipt of a spectrum access grant from a network entity; generating a registration request comprising a first measurement report based on the first measurement of the first signals; transmitting, to the network entity, the registration request comprising the first measurement report of the first signals; receiving the spectrum access grant from the network entity; and performing a second measurement of second signals received from the neighbor BSs over the channels that are shared with the neighbor BSs after receiving the spectrum access grant from the network entity.