Cell companies to pay boro
for space at water tower
By vincent todaro
Staff Writer
SPOTSWOOD — As a result of legal action taken against the borough, an ordinance has been adopted by the Borough Council that will allow areas for the placement of cell towers.
The council adopted the ordinance July 1, changing the way the borough regulates the placement of antennas, which in many communities have been the focus of debates among residents, officials and cellular companies. Despite the claims of some opponents, cellular companies attest that the antennas do not propose a health hazard to those living nearby their placements.
Mayor Barry Zagnit said the federal Telecommunications Act of 1997 prohibits communities from denying antennas be installed based on alleged health hazards.
He said the last time the Borough Council modified Spotswood’s cell tower ordinance was in 1997, and since then there have been several cases of legal action being taken against towns with similar ordinances. Spotswood was sued in 2001 by Crown Atlantic over its ordinance.
"Our current zoning regulations would not stand up in court," he said. "Our ordinance was too restrictive, and it limited the areas that cell towers could be placed."
Crown Atlantic claimed that Spotswood’s ordinance was overly restrictive, and subsequently served the borough with court papers. Zagnit said local officials consulted with experts in the field, who concluded that the borough would lose the case in court.
"They said it would be very prudent to amend this ordinance to go with federal law," he said. "We indicated to [Crown Atlantic] we would consider modifying it if they would withdraw the suit," which the company agreed to do.
Officials in Spotswood said they still did not want to become a haven for the cell antennas, however.
"We retained an expert to craft an ordinance so we could still have some control and oversight," he said.
Anyone who wants to install a cellular antenna must present an application before the Planning Board for approval, Zagnit said. The governing body wants to limit the areas the antennas can be placed to existing perches such as church steeples and water tanks, he said, "so we don’t have an antenna farm."
Those types of existing areas are conditionally permitted, he said, but a company can still request a use variance to place an antenna in another area.
"Other places are possible, but they need more approval," he said. "Everyone has to come before the Planning Board. They need to file an application, have an engineering review and a hearing."
He said the governing body did not wish to fight Crown Atlantic over the issue.
"It would be foolish and a waste of tax money, knowing your position is weak or poor," he said.
Borough Business Administrator Jacqueline Ascione said there are presently no cell towers in Spotswood. However, the borough is currently in the process of soliciting bids for space on the municipal water tower, which will have to be repaired and painted before it can be used for such a purpose. Zagnit said the borough will construct equipment on top of the tank to allow for the antennas as part of the tank’s overall rehabilitation project, which was already taking place. The mayor said he was not certain how many antennas would be allowed on the tower, but that the renting of space for cell towers will become a source of revenue for the municipality.
"They would pay a fee for the rental space," he said.
He said the 1997 ordinance regulating cell antennas was legal when it was adopted. It came about as a result of concerns about antennas proposed for installment on Summerhill Road.
"It was not an attempt to zone them out of the borough, just to set an area so they are not [installed] throughout the community," he said.