By sandi carpello
Staff Writer
HELMETTA — Saying it will help relieve the borough’s fiscal crisis, the Planning Board granted a variance last week to AT&T Wireless for the placement of six telecommunication antennas on the borough’s existing water tower.
The cellular telephone company will pay the borough an annual fee of $32,000 for the use of the 120-foot-tall water tower, which is located off Maple Avenue. The borough expects Omni, a second carrier, to use the site as well, thus generating a total of $64,000 in revenue per year.
"The use [of the site] promotes the public good and general welfare," said Judith Babinski, attorney for AT&T Wireless. According to Babinski, the site is needed to provide cellular coverage in areas throughout Helmetta and the surrounding area. Presently, the borough’s coverage is limited, she said.
Babinski noted that, in 2002, nearly every municipality in Middlesex County has rented space to AT&T for antennas. Because Helmetta is such a small municipality, it only calls for one site, she said.
Jay Sutter, an architect with ArcNet in Holmdel who represented AT&T, presented the board with the proposed layout of the site. According to Sutter, four equipment cabinets with cables must be installed at the tower to provide the cellular service.
Several residents were concerned that a cellular tower in the borough would generate a radiation count that could cause cancer. However, Jenny Yerra, an engineer with Bechtel, Rochelle Park, assured residents that they would not be at risk. The Federal Communications Commission has performed many studies, showing the radiation count does not pose a health threat, she said.
The placement of the six antennas will have "no negative impact," said Board Attorney James F. Clarkin III.
Borough Councilman Ed Romano, in responding to concerns raised by residents at a recent council meeting, said he sees the cellular antennas and the revenue they will bring to the borough as a positive endeavor that will defray the tax levy.
In giving site plan approval for the application, the board also granted AT&T variances for both the use of the site and the height of the structure.
The board required that the antennas be painted the same color as the towers. In addition, the board prohibited the use of flags on the antennas.
Babinski stated that construction of the telecommunications facility could begin as early as this month.

