Neighbors and SBA Towers Join Forces in Port Charlotte

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Earlier this summer, the County Board of Zoning Appeals gave its approval to construct a 125-foot cell tower on the grounds of the FaithLife Church in Port Charlotte, FL. The tower’s builder, Tillman Infrastructure, had requested a special allowance to construct the cell tower that is both above the 50-foot local ordinance, and in a residential neighborhood.

As The Daily Sun reports, two separate writs of certiorari have been filed by SBA and residents of the Port of Charlotte that would compel the lower courts to deliver their records to a higher court for further review. Both parties have said they would like to see the cell tower approval either revoked or revised.

One of the filers is SBA Communications, which already operates a 90-foot cell tower in Port Charlotte. Attorney Melissa Murrin, representing SBA, stated that the existing tower would need some modification before it could host external antennas in support of 5G. SBA contends that the FaithLife tower would be unnecessary if SBA was simply allowed to modify its existing tower. Murrin indicated that SBA was already in the process of filing for upgrades to the 90-foot tower.

Residents of the Port of Charlotte filed the second writ. At a recent ZBA meeting, community members asked why SBA Communications was not given permission to modify their 90-foot cell tower when a second, taller cell tower was not welcome in their residential neighborhood.

“We, the local community, have petitioned against the zoning exception of a 125-foot communications tower,” said neighbor Paul Haber to The Daily Sun. “The property the exception was approved for is residentially zoned. The zoning code specifically notes that only a 50-foot tower is allowed. We, the common sense of the community, have residential zoning codes for a reason,” he continued. “This is not a fence variance or a shed variance; it’s a 125-foot commercial entity that does not belong on a residentially zoned property in the middle of a residential community.”

“We do think we were ignored by our officials and in a really big way,” agreed Port Charlotte resident Liz O’Connell. “It’s very important that we in this community pay attention to these tower companies so they don’t just pop up everywhere when one already exists and can be upgraded.”

So far, there has been no official response from Tillman, the FaithLife Church, or town officials. 

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