Some residents in the Florida community of Kelly Pointe have expressed fears that a new cell tower will hurt their property values. A balloon test has shown neighbors how a cell tower in their midst might appear, prompting some residents to voice their concerns to WTLV-TV reporters.
“If you’re standing in front of my house, it looks like the chimney in my house, basically,” said neighbor, Jeff Wettschurack. “Knowing that someone’s taking away that kind of money from me, is something I just can’t stomach.”
If completed, the current cell tower design would place a 170-foot structure in a residential section of Nocatee. WTLV-TV does not name the developer or any potential carriers. However, it was reported that the developer is trying to work with local jurisdictions to address siting locations that are hindered by the presence of both wetlands and building restrictions.
“We need to explore other options to see if the cell tower can be relocated elsewhere or not,” said District Councilmember Raul Arias. Arias added that the developer could alleviate the visual impact of the cell tower by disguising it as a pine tree. Nocatee has a restriction barring the construction of monopine cell towers.
The source correctly noted that phantom health concerns cannot be factored into cell tower placement issues as the FCC and World Health Organization agree that humans are not endangered by cell tower transmissions.
Neighbors apparently agree that better connectivity would be an asset; they just can’t agree on where to place a cell tower.
“There still needs to be more time for the neighbors to actually explore more questions to be answered,” said Arias. “And in this case, we decided to just defer it and the applicant was okay with that.”
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