Texas
Last week, the Austin City Council rejected an application to change the regulations for a 90-foot cell tower planned near a condominium complex and apartment building, reported the Austin Monitor.
The proposed tower is meant to expand bandwidth on the current network, and although the applicant looked for other locations, they had not been successful in finding a spot, according to a representative.
Residents cited health concerns and tower proximity in a petition against the zoning change, reported the Monitor. If constructed, the proposed tower would be less than 200 feet from some apartments; city regulations state that cell phone towers must be at least 200 feet from single-family homes, but just 50 feet from multi-family homes.
One resident argued that the regulations are discriminatory and some Council members agreed. According to Councilmember Leslie Pool, the city’s telecommunications code language is, “a pretty striking example of disparity, and this makes me very concerned that we’re treating people who live in apartment complexes differently from people who live in single-family homes.”
“I want to point out that the staff and the Council should work to repair this disparity in the new (land development) code. It doesn’t give equitable consideration to apartment dwellers,” Pool added.
Greg Guernsey, director of the Planning and Zoning Department, said the city does not prohibit cell phone towers as part of zoning any more than it prohibits religious assembly and group homes.
April 16, 2019
Reader Interactions