Residents in the Palm Coast, Florida area who have opposed the construction of a cell tower on a local golf course declared a victory when the Palm Coast City Council unanimously voted against construction. The city previously supported the plan to erect a 150-foot cell tower on the grounds of the city-owned Palm Harbor golf course, reports FlaglerLive.com, but reversed its decision in the wake of public outcries.
Attorney Brent Spain channeled the emotional language into a legal response based on land use interpretation. He communicated to Mayor Milissa Holland that he believes constructing a cell tower at that site would violate local laws regarding height restrictions and usage limitations of the parcel. Spain pointed out that city language calls for “either a golf course or any other public recreational use” in that location which would exclude the construction of a cell tower there. Proceeding with plans to continue building on this municipal property could open the city up to a lawsuit, he asserted.
In response, Holland stated that, “I took a tremendous amount of time after listening to your concerns, put a lot of thoughts into what I think would be helpful and appropriate moving forward and I just want to thank you for the residents’ participation in this process. I want to thank you for your patience.” She reminded her audience the city has worked with Diamond Communications since 2017 to address coverage gaps. Diamond has already erected four cell towers as part of the plan “to fill the gap for cell phone coverage and try to blanket our city to ensure public safety was met and also accessibility.”
Holland concluded her remarks by making a motion to discontinue plans for the golf course cell tower.
“What happened here right now, was exactly what us taxpayers want to see every time,” said jubilant resident Perry Mitrano. “That you hear us, that you listen, that you make very good decisions. It’s impressive. It feels good. It feels like a better direction everyday. Thank you.”
“If there is a future location to help blanket this coverage area that will come forth on a future agenda,” said Holland in response to opposition leader Lou Vitale, who volunteered to provide suggestions for an alternative location. “So what we’re deciding today is to permanently remove this location as an option for the cell phone tower,” she concluded.
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