UPDATE After additional discussions with AT&T, the York, ME Town Planning Board eventually issued its 5-0 approval for AT&T to proceed with the telecom’s plans to add cell tower equipment to a town water tank. As Seacoast Online reports, the matter has come up for consideration before, with concerns expressed about whether or not it was truly the best connectivity option for the area. The AT&T network site, painted to conceal its visibility, will now be able to improve digital coverage in the area with the placement of six-panel antennas atop the water tower on Roots Rock Road.
“It’s an opportunity to use an existing structure which the wireless ordinance promotes,” explained Planning Board member Peter Smith. “They found an opportunity to take advantage of it.”
AT&T representative, Michael Dolan, confirmed that the selected site was the only location in York that could adequately address gaps in service. Dolan confirmed that AT&T was compliant with all local and federal regulations governing the placement of cell tower equipment. He added that AT&T had no plans to relocate to a “better” location in York and advised that co-locating the limited water tower space with other providers could be detrimental to AT&T’s service. Seacoast Online noted that Vertex Towers, which has also wrangled for cell tower space in York, has been watching the AT&T situation with interest.
Some Planning Board members reportedly expressed regrets that co-location was not a viable option for the water tower, but acknowledged that town ordinances do not always allow for a lot of alternative suggestions. When approached by residents objecting to potential threats to their property values and phantom health concerns based on the proximity of the cell tower equipment, Smith commented, “I hear you, it’s an emotional thing. I don’t think this is going to make any real changes to your neighborhood.”
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