Cell tower builder calls approval ‘bittersweet’ after 3-year review
After a lengthy review, a controversial cell phone tower targeted for western Delmar has received the needed approvals from the Bethlehem Planning Board.
ESCO Towers is now poised to begin construction on its 132-foot-tall tower, which is to be located at Sunnyside Farms off of Van Dyke Road. ESCO Vice President Tom Butler said a construction date isn’t set though, in part because a 3-year approval process has been more costly than anticipated.
The scrutiny we got versus the dollar value of our project makes the economics of our project pretty tough, he said. `The level of scrutiny we got was, I think, totally undeserved.`
All in all, the project appeared at 13 Planning Board meetings and nine Zoning Board of Appeals meetings, and saw three public hearings between those two bodies.
Planning Board Chairman George Leveille said the drawn-out review was in part due to the fact ESCO’s application was initially submitted incomplete, and also because the town had to consider a competing tower that would have been sited on nearby Bethlehem Central School District land. Putting that project through its paces took months, with the Planning Board deciding ESCO’s tower would have less of a visual impact.
`We have to be deliberate and make sure we listen and consider all those viewpoints,` Leveille said.
The cost of the new cell tower will also be increased since the town is requiring a monopine design, which is disguised to look like a pine tree.
Butler wondered if Bethlehem will fall behind ` or continue to lag, depending on who you ask ` the rest of the Capital District when it comes to cellular coverage. Building cell towers is a specialized business, and developers are keenly aware of the impact a difficult approval process can have on their ventures.
`I would think very hard before doing another project in the Town of Bethlehem,` Butler said. ESCO is based in Delmar.
But controversy over the project was not contained to just the Planning Department. Residents have in fits and starts staged protests over cell tower construction, first over the tower planned for school district property and more recently over the ESCO application. The primary objection is over the effects of radiation emitted by cell towers. There is a host of conflicting data on the subject.
ESCO’s tower would be a few hundred yards from Eagle Elementary School and not much farther from the high school.
Though there was a larger-than-usual audience at Tuesday’s Planning Board meeting, only two members of the public spoke on the matter during the public comment portion of the meeting.
One, Leo Hooley, noted petitions have been collected from nearby residents who have health concerns and are also worried about property values decreasing.
`We really want you to listen to the taxpayers and the residents,` Hooley said.
But as counsel to the Planning Board Keith Silliman reported, the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 prohibits public boards from taking health concerns into consideration in a review.
`To put it simply, the Town Board, the Planning Board and the Zoning Board are preempted and cannot discuss health and safety concerns,` he said.
Planning Board member Steve Rice noted a Spotlight/Siena Research Institute poll conducted last year indicated a majority of town residents want improved cell phone coverage. He also spoke about the board’s hands being tied.
`The health issues touch all of us…but this board is strictly and clearly prohibited from taking that into consideration,` he said.
ESCO could begin construction as soon as it obtains building permits from the town, which is generally a straightforward process.“
