Berlin ZBA To Decide On Cherry Plain Cell Tower

by Phillip Zema
On April 15 the Berlin Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) will decide whether Mariner Tower can construct a cellular tower on Doug and Melinda Goodermote’s property in Cherry Plain. The construction site is located on the west side of Rt. 22, and, as is evident from February’s public hearing, a considerable number of local residents support the tower. It will reach approximately 150 feet high and be fenced off from the community. Those who favor the tower claim it will be an asset to the area.
Those who oppose the project claim that cell towers pose health risks and are aesthetically displeasing, thereby reducing property value. At the public hearing, residents voiced their concern that cellular towers could, in the long run, have detrimental effects on our health. Federal law, however, forbids local municipalities from ruling against cellular towers on the grounds that they might endanger public health. If built, the tower would have to comply with federal regulations; moreover, if it actually posed a legitimate health threat, it would not be allowed anywhere near residents.
Before any vote is taken, the ZBA is required by law to follow several legal procedures. New York’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) requires all governing bodies “to identify and mitigate the significant environmental impacts of the activity it is proposing or permitting.” It was claimed that this requirement may have been an obstacle to the project. Nevertheless, at its last meeting, the ZBA decided unanimously that the tower will not negatively impact the town or local environment.
Furthermore, under town law, the tower must not be too close in proximity to an abutting property line. The tower’s location will stand near Murray Saunders’ property. If he so desired, Saunders could make a legal claim against the tower’s construction. Saunders, however, fully supports the project. Regardless, the ZBA is still legally required to pass a variance (a legal deviation from the normal rule of law) that permits Mariner Tower to build close to Saunders’ land. The ZBA will vote on this variance at its April 15 meeting.
Decision Not A Certainty
If the ZBA approves the variance, it will subsequently decide whether to approve the cellular tower project. At least one ZBA member favors the tower’s construction, while others have yet to reveal their hand.
Town Supervisor Robert Jaeger, along with other residents, believes the tower will positively impact the community. Not only will strong cellular coverage attract new businesses, but it will provide innumerable health benefits as well, he believes. Moreover, the Town’s need for strong cellular coverage has been accentuated by recent accidents.
This past March, while driving by the Berlin Lumber property at night, a handicapped young-adult woman drove across black ice. Her car skidded and went off the road. Lacking cellular coverage, she was trapped in her car for nearly two hours. By some fortuitous occurrence, she was able to contact her family; yet if she had cellular service, help would have arrived sooner. Paramedics said that if it were just a little colder, she may have frozen to death. In a similar circumstance, a seventy-year-old man in Petersburgh was able to get immediate help because he had coverage. These examples, it has been argued, support the claim that the benefits of cellular coverage heavily outweigh its risks. Ultimately, the ZBA will decide on April 15 whether a cellular tower serves the best interests of the community.