File Photo
David Maxson.
Branford received an 11th-hour reprieve when a cell company agreed to postpone a hearing scheduled next week for a 160-foot cell tower on Pleasant Point Road.
The town’s Cell Tower Advisory Committee and its consultants, including David Maxson, the town’s consulting engineer (pictured above) met Monday with T‑Mobile to present Maxson’s new options. Afterwards, T‑Mobile agreed to postpone the Tuesday, Aug. 16 hearing and study the alternative proposals.
Linda Roberts, executive director of the Connecticut Siting Council (CSC), said the council voted Thursday afternoon to grant a 90-day extension. The CSC, which has sole jurisdiction over cell tower placement, had scheduled public sessions next Tuesday at the Blackstone Memorial Library regarding the 160-foot pole.
First Selectman Anthony “Unk” DaRos said he is pleased that T-Mobile is willing to look at other options developed by Maxson, the town’s outside cell tower engineer.
“We’re not stopping them,” DaRos said in regard to T-Mobile. “We’re trying to make the towers less intrusive.”
Doug Marsh, chair of Branford’s Cell Tower Advisory Committee, briefly outlined some of the new proposals during a meeting last week of the Stony Creek Association. He said there are several possibilities, such as using space on the existing Acorn Road cell tower, building an 80-foot cell tower on the outskirts of Stony Creek, and cutting the size of the Pleasant Point Tower in half.
By way of perspective, Marsh said the flag pole at Town Hall is 100 feet tall.
The 160-foot tower was slated for construction on property owned by Tilcon at 77-145 Pleasant Point Rd. Unlike other towers where several cell companies share space, T-Mobile was the only applicant at the site.
DaRos had high praise for the local committee whose members have been grappling with cell tower issues for over a year. “I’m very pleased with the work the committee is doing. They’re doing a great job.”
Attorney Karyl Lee Hall, a member of the local advisory committee, said the meeting Monday with T-Mobile went well.
Hall said it took time for the committee and the consulting engineer to devise the alternatives before meeting with T-Mobile. “We wanted to go in with a credible proposal,” she said.
Hearings for the Pleasant Point site were initially scheduled in January, but T-Mobile requested a postponement claiming one of their experts was unavailable and they were not able to respond to questions from Branford’s consulting attorney prior to the hearing date. Branford was granted intervenor status in the Pleasant Point proposal and is being represented by New Haven attorney Keith Ainsworth, who specializes in cell tower issues.
The CSC recently approved a 109-foot cell tower for the Medlyn farm property along Route 146. It will be disguised as a rustic water tank. Verizon must submit final development plans before proceeding with construction.
T-Mobile built a 125-foot tower last year on Pine Orchard Road, despite an outcry from neighboring residents.
Plans for a Short Beach tower are still undecided, but AT&T is currently looking at a location in East Haven that could provide coverage for both communities.
###
