Plymouth Church, Verizon Forge Ahead With Controversial Antenna Plan

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Residents in Belmont, MA, continue to wage war against Verizon’s plan to install cell phone antennas in Plymouth Church’s steeple.

“The Plymouth Church and Verizon plan to install cell phone antennas in the church’s steeple is moving ahead despite the widespread opposition of its neighbors,” wrote Glen Herosian in Belmont’s Wicked Local on March 3. “The church’s project could not have gotten this far without Verizon’s rehearsed subterfuge and the cursory review by the town. Where is the fairness of town officials in applying a double standard favoring the church over the town’s aggrieved citizens?”

One of the biggest complaints is the reported amount of radiofrequency energy in the 300 foot zone outside of the church. Residents say this violates “FCC rules on human exposure.”
 The  op/ed said there was a double standard in favoring the church “over the town’s aggrieved citizens” and that the Bristol Historic District Commission’s planning board rushed to “approve a misleading submission by Verizon despite the concerns of skeptical and distraught neighbors.” 

“The church and Verizon carefully timed their application, on Christmas Eve, to minimize public participation and limit the time available for opponents to review their application. Normally, the town’s planning board advocates for aggrieved abutters, but in this case, the board shut off debate and rushed to take a vote before conducting any expert testimony verifying Verizon’s claims of a compliant application,” the op/ed reported. “The town refused to acknowledge its notification errors and citizens’ demands to reopen the hearing.” Additionally, Wicked Local reports “Verizon is being allowed to propose exterior compressors with noise levels dangerously close to the limits set by the town’s by-laws.Additionally, arbitrary changes to the building’s historic exterior are being considered in direct contradiction to recent rulings by the BHDC on the use of original materials in the historic district.”

The op/ed says Verizon had at least three other “suitable locations” for the base station that would collect revenue for the town and not offend neighbors.

There are more than 175 people that live close to the proposed antennas.

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