By Mary Romaniec
Grafton News Reporter –
The Planning Board is coming up against a wireless facility bylaw that is posing a dilemma for an upcoming town sponsored project.
During an Aug. 29, meeting representatives from Vertical Bridge, LLC and Verizon Wireless discussed plans to construct a 175-foot cell tower at 104 Creeper Hill Road. A town-owned property sale was recently approved at a Special Town Meeting for $200,000 to a private developer to attract industrial business to the area. Part of the property was also designated for use of a cell phone tower, with the town retaining rights to the access road in order to collect thousands of dollars in leasing revenue from a cell phone tower company.
But a town bylaw created in 1997 hovers over the final determination of whether a cell phone tower can be built on the property, or an existing structure would need to be used instead.
The almost 20-year-old bylaw is similar to those in other municipalities that were established at a time when local governments were trying to reign in the construction of cell towers in their communities, said Town Planner Joe Laydon. But with new federal regulations established in 2015, local communities are being urged to adjust their bylaws to reflect the new standards, and to keep up with encroaching network demands. “The bylaw does need to be revised,” said Laydon.
Representing Vertical Bridge was attorney Michael Dolan who said his client was planning to build a 175-foot single pole in the hope of attracting multiple wireless companies to lease space.
Verizon Wireless representative Carl Gehring said his company had wanted to purchase the tower site but were outbid by Vertical Bridge. Gehring said Verizon was glad to be able to lease space from Vertical Bridge at the 120-foot mark.
Dolan explained that any additional carriers would be placed in 10-foot increments above the 120-foot mark, which led to a long discussion on just how high the tower needed to be to accommodate the needs of the carriers without adding to the visual footprint in the surrounding communities, not just Grafton.
Planning Board member Bob Hassinger went into detail on the parameters of the current bylaw, which stipulate that all appropriate existing structures must be evaluated for potential colocation use before any new cell tower is erected. This means nearby high tension wires or smoke stacks must be ruled out first before this particular tower can be built.
While no specific bylaw existed that limited the height of the tower, the general approved height for towers in Grafton does not exceed 90 feet, which is why Hassinger pressed the necessity of the proposed cell tower height and other dimensions.
Gehring said Verizon averages 150 to 190-feet on their towers. Dolan remarked his client could adjust the height of the tower to meet the needs in Grafton but they would need the tower to be high enough to accommodate for future growth. One aspect of the bylaws is that towers can be increased in size by 20-feet once the tower is built.
Vertical Bridge conducted a balloon test at various heights at the proposed cell tower area to gauge how far the tower would be seen. It will more directly impact residents off Creeper Hill Road, especially those who live on Faulkner Road.
However, Laydon acknowledged the area is also adjacent to the back part of Wyman Gordon and other industrial businesses. “From my perspective we are not dealing with a pristine mountain ridge,” said Laydon.
At stake within any bylaw revision is the ability for Grafton to meet the network needs of residents in the North Grafton area, while potentially pulling in revenue from a leasing source. Dolan said his company intends to put on another four carriers in addition to Verizon. Gehring relayed that his company is switching out equipment on the towers every six months just to keep up with demand.
The Planning Board turned to David Maxson, an engineer from Isotrope, LLC, to help the town meet federal regulations and guidelines for this and future cell towers constructed. Maxson intended to evaluate the proposed tower to determine if other carriers could be placed below the 120-feet Verizon has set stake in.
The next meeting to discuss the proposed tower will be on Oct. 3, which is when the review of the alternative structures and heights will be presented.
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