Verizon Wireless has spent 10 years trying to find an appropriate site for a new 100-foot monopole in Williamstown, MA to bridge coverage gaps along Route 7. But after evaluating 25 potential sites and making numerous concessions to concerned residents, the company is still struggling to obtain the town’s approval for construction. According to The Berkshire Eagle, a public hearing in February ended with Verizon’s proposal being passed from the Zoning Board of Appeals to the Conservation Commission, who will consider a site in Margaret Lindley Park, located on state conservation land.
Approving construction of the tower at Margaret Lindley Park would require a unanimous vote from the Commission, residents’ permission, and a motion from the state legislature. One member of the Conservation Commission already indicated opposition to the proposal, so Verizon does not consider the Margaret Lindley Park location feasible, according to Verizon representative Michael Fenton. “We really feel that given the need to provide the best service possible and fill that communications gap, and having completed our due diligence, we feel that 1161 Cold Spring Road is the right location,” Verizon RF design engineer Jay Latorre told The Berkshire Eagle.
Verizon offered several proposals to try to garner support for the Cold Spring Road location. It moved the tower’s planned location 25 feet further from the road, offered to camouflage the equipment by painting it green, build a fence around the site and assuage public safety concerns by installing pollards and a cover for the propane tank. But these measures did little to satisfy concerned residents, according to The Berkshire Eagle.
Some residents were excited to increase coverage near Mount Greylock, including Dinny Taylor, who lives in the “dead zone” near Route 7. “If something were to happen there, cell phone coverage becomes very important. And coverage there has been a problem for a long time. So I don’t get how the whole town will be disrupted by one tower,” Taylor said.
March 20, 2018
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