Business & Tech

Residents Concerned Over Possible Cell Towers

Tower proposed near San Domenico.

A small sign went up on a wooden post near 's riding stables. That sign has some neighborhood residents concerned.

It notifies hikers in the area of a proposal to locate a cell phone tower on the ridge above the stables, near popular open space.

According to County Planner Neal Osborne, the proposal from AT&T is for a 60-foot support pole that would be disguised as a tree with a number of antennas at the top. There would also, he said, be a 240-square-foot building at the base, and the existing fire road off of the main San Domenico road, right before the stables, would be paved for access.

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The proposal is only preliminary and hasn't been submitted for review yet, said Osborne. "We're waiting to get more information back."

The fire road, which would be used for access, may be too steep, he said, to comply with county standards and could require grading and drainage work as well. 

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The tower would be located on San Domenico school property, which is in the unincorporated county land in Sleepy Hollow. It would be on a ridge above the stables, Osborne said. 

No action is expected in the near future, as the application has to first come back with more information and then the county has 30 days to respond before sending it out for public notice and a review.

. A proposal for a cell tower on Tamarancho land was preliminarily denied. 

Verizon is currently appealing the decision and it is expected to go before the Planning Commission on June 13.

Lorene Jackson, the county planner who worked on that proposal, said that the project was denied "because it was inconsistent with the county's telecommunications policy." 

When locating a tower on top of a ridgeline, she said, a detailed alternative site analysis must be done to demonstrate that alternative locations were unsatisfactory. While an alternative site analysis was complete, Jackson said, the county didn't feel it was adequate. Verizon had been invited to submit more information.


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