While the appeal of reliable wireless communications extends throughout Vermont, there are some communities ready to do battle to keep cell towers out of their towns. As WCAX-TV reports, the governor’s plan to spend $51 million to erect 100 new towers across the Green Mountain state has encountered stiff resistance in some areas.
State Department of Public Service employee, Clay Purvis, said that most towns accept development plans with minimal outcry. Though he noted that with 100 potential locations, responses are bound to vary from town to town. The sites are identified on a needs basis, he added. “When we go to select locations for siting,” he explains, “We are taking into account the town plans and the regional plans and making decisions that the town is aware of and supportive of in advance of building a site or applying for a permit to build a site.”
“We remain willing to continue our work with local officials and permitting authorities to identify a solution that balances the needs of our customers with the concerns expressed by some members of the community,” AT&T noted in an official statement.
Assurances from government entities and service providers are not enough to satisfy all Vermont residents. Worcester residents, for example, have rallied petitioners to try and stop Industrial Communications from constructing a cell tower in their town. The final decision on the placement of cell towers in the state rests with the Vermont Public Utilities Commission
“We don’t want it near the trail and we don’t want it 300 feet away from the nearest neighbor,” said Worcester Select Board Chair, Ted Lamb.
“Imagine sitting down for dinner knowing this 200-foot tower is looming over your home 300 feet away,” neighbor Kathy Burrows told WCAX-TV. “We understand this is much larger than our little town, but our little town cares for one another and we have lots of reasons to think this would not be an acceptable delivery of this kind of service,” she added.
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