The Springbrook Golf Course in Naperville, IL is supposed to be the site for a 130-foot, Verizon Wireless tower, but now the project is on hold. The Naperville Sun reported that the tower’s location would be near the 1,800-acre Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve, which is home to several species of grassland birds that are listed as endangered and threatened by the state.
Tower opponents and wildlife preservationists, like the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, are urging the city to allow it to review the structure’s effect on area wildlife. City officials are trying to determine whether the consultation is mandatory or voluntary.
Vicky Sroczynski, speaking on behalf of Joe Suchecki, site steward and bird monitor at Springbrook noted, “The proposed tower has the potential to impact birds through collisions with it. Communication towers kill birds, particularly birds that migrate at night under certain weather conditions.”
According to Ray Shinkle, speaking on behalf of Verizon Wireless and leasing agent Central States Tower, a new cell tower is needed near Springbrook Prairie to resolve coverage deficiencies. “There is nothing in this area we can co-locate on,” Shinkle said. “Believe me, if there was, Verizon would have been there a year ago and have the site up and running and on air.” T-Mobile is also interested in co-locating on the new tower, noted Shinkle.
Naperville City Council members voted 8-0 to table a vote on the cell tower until later this month.
October 23, 2017
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