UPDATE “We have felt that enough is enough,” said Westmont Hilltop school board president, Robert Gleason. “This is serious business.” Gleason is referring to the ongoing roadblocks thrown up by the Upper Woodmont Group, a collection of 25 homeowners who continue to fight efforts to allow the school to construct a cell tower on school property.
As the Tribune-Democrat reports, after years of challenges and delays, the Westmont Hilltop School District has engaged an attorney to advocate for the cell tower. Gleason said that concern for the safety of the students finally prompted the board to take legal action. After the tragedy at Uvalde, school representatives stated that without a cell tower in place, the connectivity is unreliable and could leave endangered students unable to summon help.
The matter has been brought to court before with the Upper Woodmont Group claiming that a tower would spark health issues, lower property values, and simply be an eyesore. Thus far, the school and Vogue Towers have won each of the legal challenges but face new obstacles every time a victory is achieved.
“The time has come for action on this,” said Gleason. When asked if there was a cap on how much the school would spend to keep attorney Manning J. O’Connor II of Metz Lewis Brodman Must O’Keefe LLC fighting for the cell tower, School Director Joseph Nibert said that there were no limits. The source also noted that there may be a separate lawsuit brewing to allow Westmont Hilltop to collect damages.
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