“Upton OKs variance for cell phone tower” |
| Upton OKs variance for cell phone tower Posted: 22 Dec 2010 10:08 PM PST The town's cell phone coverage gap may soon narrow due to recent efforts by a Marshfield company. Industrial Tower and Wireless LLC hopes to build a 140-foot cell phone tower on Pratt Hill, off Warren Street. The proposal was approved by the town's Planning Board on July 1, but was rejected by the building inspector because it lacked the proper frontage. Attorney Jeffrey Angley last night asked the Zoning Board of Appeals to grant a variance from the 210-foot frontage requirement for the lot. "It's remote. There aren't any houses really nearby," Angley said. "A good part of the tower is blocked by trees so you won't be able to see the top of it. It's a great location." Angley cited the Federal Telecommunications Act, which prohibits town zoning decisions and ordinances that hamper efforts to reduce significant wireless coverage gaps. The Zoning Board granted the variance unanimously, but not without debate. "My main concern is we're setting a precedent and it could be a very dangerous precedent," Zoning Board Chairman John Lebrun said. Angley said the decision would not set a precedent. "The point is, we're asking for a variance from frontage to build the tower," he said. "You could say that variance is only for the purpose of allowing construction of a telecommunications tower on lot 30 and no other reason." The site of the tower is on Upton Assessors Map 15, lot 30. The facility would be located at least 1,200 feet from any public way, and would be accessible by the Upton State Forest access road. Power lines laid in the ground along that road would provide electricity to the tower. The tower would provide service for T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T and Verizon users. Resident Mike Diverdi expressed concern over radio waves emitted from the facility. "I'm wondering if these towers emit radio waves, for the people who live close by, if there is some kind of health issues," he said. Angley said residents would not be affected by anything that happens at the tower. He said towns are not even supposed to take that into account when granting a permit. For the past five years, Industrial Tower and Wireless has been searching for a tower site in Upton, Angley said. The company was fully permitted to use a Pratt Hill site in 2008. Objections from Indian tribes prevented it from doing so. In 2009, Industrial Tower and Wireless received a special permit and site approval from the Planning Board for a facility on Pearl Street. The Zoning Board of Appeals denied the requested variances. After further analysis regarding the impact on cultural and religious interest for Indian tribes, the company returned to a lot owned by Mark Uhlman on Pratt Hill. The company will now have to return to the building inspector for a building permit. Julie Balise can be reached at 508-634-7546 or jbalise@cnc.com. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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