Item 3 - PH/Ord. on Cell Towers - Laserfiche WebLink

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· Control .cell tower siting ' Rural residents deserve p rotection T he cellular telephone industr~ Ifs impossible to insulate any propel- is one of the fastest.~rowing in ty from electronic signals. But it's history -- seemingly overnight, reasonable for property owners to ex. 40 percent of the population has cell pect that cell phone towers will be phones. These phories won't work sited to minimize the stren~,h of sig. without a network of towers to re- nal~ in nearby homes. celve and transmit signals. The towers State Sen, Rick Metzger, D- .are sprouting in rural areas to fill Welches, has sponsored Senate Bill gaps in coverage. Lane County's land. 815, which would allow local govern- use rules need to catch up with this ments to estabUsh setback require- fast-spreading phenomenon, ments for cell towers. The bill is : The Telecommunications Act of stuck in committee, and its prospects 1996 prevents local governments from an' receding, But IJane County banning 'gell towers, ,but the act .needn't wait for the Legislature to · should not be read as allowing the define the scope of its authority. Oth- 'towers to be built anywhere and er- er local governments across the coun- erywhere. The law allows govern- try have already taken step~, .within merits to regulate the general place- the limits of the Telecommunications ment, construction and modification Act, to pre~,ent .inappropriate cell tow- athe towers..The ~un~ should use er siting. '- .[.i..., ~5. ~' . ." :;',.. ' · ~es-~-4~e~-n~a~i~ctio~_Of sugge~d by County Commi~ioner ~map~p~.r.o.p._n.'~at.e.l~s:..._... _. Cindy Weeldreyer,'is a requirement The threat to orooert~ ..~.~-u.u. is~is that cell phone companies "co-locate" r e~phonttn nb setback requirements, their towers -- that is, put the. ir-m- e companies can build towers ceiving and transmitting gear on the nearly on top of property lines. An same mast rather than building thre~ article in last week's Registex.-~._uard [or four. Co-location may not ~ pra~( cited the case of a woman :,.~ho6~.' Cai 'in. ;.a!!.}...instam~ ',' but:it i~l_d: ~ murdty COllege' would be literalS'in towers iff i-ttral areaS.. · the shadow of a. 12~foot cell tower on Cell phone, towe~..may be a temgo:. a neighboring piece of property. The 'rary feature of the lanitscape -- a~ tower would clearly detract from the intermediate' step to satelll~ tele- rural atmosphere that attracted her ¢o phone communication. For now, how- the Seavey Loop are~ "'- ' ever, the towers are becoming ubiqui- In addition to aesthetic oit~dons, tous, and they are especially notable some people living near cell lowers in rural areas wher~ they can't be are .concerned about the health effects hidden on b~tl]dln.t,~ or other 8trtlc. of cell phone signals. These effects are tures. The cellular telephone lnd~ unproven, but the concerns can't sim- lz rtlShtng tO create a network of tow- ply be dismis,~.-- pegple am being ers providing blanket coverage. The made to assume a risk, however small rush should not preclude siting that it may be, that did not exist before, resp~ts property owners' interests. IV-107