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Cell Tower Variance Denied In Lakewood

LAKEWOOD — The contentious prospect of a 180-foot cellphone tower’s construction in the village of Lakewood is no longer up for discussion.

On Wednesday, it was announced that the Village of Lakewood Zoning Board of Appeals had denied the granting of a use variance to Up State Tower Co. and Blue Wireless for the placement of the aforementioned tower within village limits.

“This was an extremely complicated and arduous process,” said Mayor Cara Birrittieri during Monday’s meeting of the village Board of Trustees. “However, with the skilled guidance of both our Village Attorney John LaMancuso, and special counsel, Rich Stanton, along with Deputy Chair Myra Blasius, the ZBA followed the law and arrived at a decision.”

With a vote of four-to-one against the variance, the ZBA cited several reasons for its decision. Among them was the prevailing opinion among many residents and officials that the structure would have an adverse aesthetic impact on the use of surrounding recreational lands, which are currently being used and further developed as baseball fields, nature trails and other recreational facilities.

In addition, the board found that Up State Tower and Blue Wireless — which had stated that the tower was necessary to fill a gap in its services — failed to show significant coverage gaps that are not covered by existing business relationships. Also, the ZBA said the companies had suggested the tower was necessary per license requirement, though the requisite license requirements had been met; refused to provide data at lower heights; and refused to consider a variety of requests, including a potential alternate site.

The matter was the subject of much debate and dissenting viewpoints during a public hearing held last month. Several village residents had voiced various concerns over the placement and necessity of the tower, which appear to have been taken into account by the ZBA as per its decision, while the Lakewood Fire Department had argued that the tower would have served as a good source of income for the department — as it owns the land that the tower would have been placed on and a lease agreement would have been struck up.

The village said the ZBA’s decision was made in accordance with state law, which says that an applicant for a use variance for this type of structure must demonstrate that the height and location is necessary to cover gaps in their service area, and that the proposal is a minimal intrusion or burden on the community.

“Many members of the ZBA spent countless hours reviewing volumes of documents that were important to the application,” Birrittieri said. “This decision was not arrived at lightly, however, it was arrived at carefully. This board (of trustees) and the citizens of this village are fortunate to have such dedicated servants in this community.”

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