Cell Tower Site Disputed

Sorry to have been absent for the past few weeks. Unfortunately there has been much to do pertaining to our efforts to convince the Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission and Verizon Wireless to not locate a cancer causing, property devaluating Cell Phone Tower in our back door. If you would want to help with this effort your help would be really appreciated. If you are a resident of Daviess County Kentucky then you can become involved by signing the two petitions shown below and sending them to me or call and I will come and pick them up. The other thing that you can do is mark your calendars for September 11 and come to the OMPC meeting on the 4th Floor of City-Hall in Owensboro KY.

I’ve gained a great deal of insight from the current conflict with Verizon wireless and their plans to erect a tower adjacent to our property and, I’ve uncovered several flaws in the process through which applications to construct cell towers are processed.

There are three root causes why these flaws exist. The first is that there is no process through which the accuracy is verified of information that is submitted by totally biased cellular communications companies; such information is only reviewed for content to ensure that the applicant has included statements consistent with what the ordinance expects to see. An example is that the ordinance requires collocation of equipment on existing towers whenever possible; to circumvent this requirement a document need only be produced that says that there is none available. Another example is that the ordinance requires that the construction of a tower shall not have an adverse impact on property values; the applicant need only say that there will be no adverse impact.

The second of these flaws is that all materials and testimony provided by cellular communications companies is accepted as objective evidence, whereas materials and testimony given by an opposing member of the public is not considered as objective evidence regardless of the quality and the level of detail of this evidence. Therefore the burden of proof is inappropriately born by the public. Surely, the first mandate of planning commissions is to protect the public interest; therefore, the general public should have equal footing.

The third flaw is that there are significant shortcomings in our existing zoning ordinances related to the placement of cell towers. A petition containing eleven remedies for these flaws and a petition to relocate this tower is being circulated and can be viewed at:

Madashell-Party.blogspot.com

The current dispute playing out in the Utica area pertaining to the placement of this cell tower has a whole other dimension that we have not raised, and that is the adverse health impact of living next to one of these towers. As strange as this may sound the Telecommunication Act of 1996 precludes the Owensboro Metropolitan Zoning Board from even considering this kind of information in their decision making process. We should all become incredulous with the Federal Government’s intrusion into our local government. Space and time does not afford an ample opportunity to discuss the health issue in detail here. However, everyone should be aware that there is evidence that shows that breaks in the cell’s DNA structure occurs from exposure to low power microwave communications devices. These breaks are being linked to Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, Autism, Alzheimer, and Dementia. There’s plenty of information available on the Internet about this. Some are saying that by comparison, the health impact of cell-phones will make asbestos and cigarettes look like a walk in the park.

Finally, we are not saying to Verizon not to build a tower on the property they have selected; we are simply saying to move it to the back of that property so a buffer is provided between it and the adjacent property owners.

Petition One: I've included an image so you can see the requested move.

Adjacent/Affected & Concerned Citizens
Petition to the OMPC

We petition the OMPC to deny the request of GTE Wireless of the Midwest Incorporated, d/b/a Verizon Wireless request to Construct a Cell Tower at 931 Highway 140 West (378 36’ 09.79” N) (878 07’ 49.35” W), as indicated by the green stickpin on the attached image, unless this Tower’s location is moved to the area of (37°36'25.13"N 87° 7'45.55"W), as indicated by the orange stickpin. This location is at the same address but is approximately 470 yards North of the proposed site. Failing that we request that another suitable low-impact location be found.

Sign your name and include your address, date, and Ph Number (Phone Number is not requried)

Petition Two:

Concerned Citizens
Petition to the OMPC
To amend Planning & Zoning Regulations

We petition the OMPC to amend, modify and/or add the following changes to the Planning & Zoning Regulations and Ordinances pertaining to the location of Cell Phone Towers:

1. A thirty-day Notification of OMPC and Adjacent Landowners prior to application to the FCC for Cell Tower Construction.
2. Currently the public does not have access to any information contained within an applicant’s file that may be requesting to construct a cell tower because this file in its entirety is deemed to be “confidential”. This broad-brush classification of all information within a file places the public and especially the adjacent property owners at a tremendous disadvantage. We request that guidelines be established through which information is classified into non-proprietary and proprietary categories, with the non-proprietary information being available to the public.
3. Legal notices should be placed in the paper two-weeks prior and again one-week prior to the hearing on the request to construct cell towers in conjunction with postings at the property site one week prior to such hearings.
4. Request to construct cell towers shall include a detailed area survey of other towers or building structures in the area on which equipment can be co-located.
5. The requestor to construct a cell-tower shall provide a property & business impact study to include property values through a certified unbiased appraiser, which shall be selected from a list of unbiased appraisers maintained by the OMPC Staff.
6. Request to construct Cell towers shall contain a detailed site plan clearly shown on a certified and registered survey, using South State Plane Coordinates to locate adjacent property lines, structures and the proposed cell tower site and the exact distances of the proposed cell tower center to all adjacent property lines and structures.
7. A setback distance of 500 yards shall be maintained from the proposed cell tower center to adjacent property owner’s property lines.
8. Free Standing Towers shall be camouflaged to blend in with their surroundings.
9. Request to construct cell towers shall include a demolition plan for their removal when they become obsolete or are not longer used. Such plans shall be secured through a bond.
10. The approval process for requests to construct cell towers shall include the Daviess County Fiscal Court.
11. Information submitted by cellular communications companies that stipulate that there are no existing towers or structures on which they can collocate their equipment shall be validated through an unbiased RF Engineer.
    
    
    Sign your name and include your address, date and Phone Number (Phone Number is not requred)