Subject: [NEXTEL-1] County looks at controlling cell tower growth

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 2003 02:09:13 -0500

Thursday December 18, 2003
Local News
County looks at controlling cell tower growth
By Travis Morse, The Journal-Standard

FREEPORT - It may be time for stricter state legislation regulating local
cellular phone towers, Stephenson
County officials say.

County Board Chairman John Blum and Zoning Administrator Terry Groves want
better control over cell tower siting
in unincorporated parts of the county. In such areas, the county has very little
control over the number and size of
cell towers, assuming the towers follow state guidelines, Groves said.

Blum said he could foresee a "problem or hazard" in the future of having too
many cell towers. This past August,
county officials reported problems with "phantom" 911 calls that might be
related to cellular technology
malfunction.

County officials are concerned with the aesthetic disadvantages of having
numerous cell towers in the
environment and also how they could impact residents' quality of life. In the
past, complaints have surfaced about
the lights used on towers being too bright. Such contention would only multiply
with a lot of additional towers, Blum
said.

"We're just researching a better way to control the proliferation of cell towers
in the county," Blum said.

The county currently has 20 to 30 towers, utilized by companies including US
Cellular, Verizon and Nextel. To
obtain zoning permits, cell companies do not have to go through a formal hearing
process because they are
considered "utilities" by the state, Groves said.

This means there is not an effective way for neighboring property owners to
register complaints about the towers.
Also, the permits do not have to be reviewed by the zoning board and County
Board.

Groves said the county collects revenue from the cell companies for issuing
permits. With the fee system, the
county has tried to regulate cell tower growth somewhat, but there is a limit to
what can be done. The county
charges companies considerably less money, around $1,500, to share a tower or
"co-locate" with another
company. It costs about $25 a linear foot for a company to establish its own
tower.

Other than this method, the county can do little else
to restrict cell tower development, Groves said. If a
tower is to be located more than a mile and a half
from a municipality, there are few restrictions.

"Cell companies have got quite a bit of leeway in
unincorporated areas, if they follow the state
guidelines," Groves said. "Outside cities, they can
pretty much go anywhere."

There are some guidelines, such as Federal
Aviation Administration restrictions on height. Groves
said there are towers as high as 360 feet in the
county. Towers are restricted to 200 feet within a
mile and a half of municipalities.

The county may eventually approach the state about
strengthening regulations. State Rep. Jim Sacia said
he has not yet been queried about this issue, but
would be willing to investigate the matter.

Most tower space is leased from local property
owners, who receive a monthly payment for allowing
towers on their property, said Chief County Assessment Officer Ron Kane. The
towers are spread out over a wide
area, but there is a particularly noticeable cluster north of Freeport, near
Henderson Road.

Kane said GIS technology might be useful in the future for mapping out where the
best sites would be to locate
towers. One of the goals is not to locate a great many towers in one area.

"When I look at the number of towers, there could probably be some
consolidation, some co-locations," Kane said.

Whatever comes of this investigation, Blum would just like the county to have
some control over how many towers
end up dotting Stephenson County's landscape. Specifically, he wants to see more
sharing of tower space among
companies.

"I'd like to have a better plan for how we control and place towers in the
county," Blum said.

Travis Morse can be reached at 232-0178 or via e-mail at
[email-masked]

http://www.journalstandard.com/articles/2003/12/17/local_news/news33.txt

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