Court Upholds Tower Denial  

A state appellate court in New Jersey upheld the Bernardsville borough’s decision to deny a Verizon cell tower proposal. The decision released on Wednesday pleased the residents who fought the 155-foot tower that would have been concealed as an evergreen tree. The court agreed with the Zoning Board’s decision that the tower would have “a significant negative visual impact on the surrounding residential neighborhood” because it would be 50 to 70 feet taller than surrounding trees. (My Central Jersey) After months of hearings, the Zoning Board denied the request in December 2011, after which Verizon appealed to the Superior Court. Judge John Coyle of the Superior Court ruled in April 2013 that Verizon failed to prove that the board’s decision was “arbitrary or capricious.” The court agreed that the “significant harm to the neighborhood” did not balance “the relatively minimal additional benefit to cell-phone coverage in a relatively small geographic area.” (My Central Jersey)