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187 CELL TOWERS CELL TOWER~ ll~8 You will need to know which board is responsible for writing such An ~ of Zoning: ro~,ulations. It may not be the same board as is given the siting powers, or /47uat It Can -And Cannot Do - According To FederalLaw. later -- enfOrcement powers. For instance, in Massachusetts, tho planning board may.write the regulations, but a Special Permit Granting Authority The parameters of zoning for "personal wireless' servic~ facilities" (SPGA) may be the board of selectmen or the zoning ~_~d of appeals are sot out in federal law, in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, Section (ZBA). 704.' Once you've determined the specifics of your situation, find out '"~' Cutting through the lngaleso of the Telecom Act, a colmnu~ can when and whore the decision-making board meets. Attend some meetings ' still regulate many aspects of tower siting. Where a tower is located, how to get a flavor for the personalities of the board member~ and a sense of tall it can be, what caa go on tho tower, and how such installations arc the way they approach their work. monitored for radiofi'equency (RF)'e~ssions to make sure they are in - It helps to contact other municipalities for information, or local compliance with the FCC standards -- among many other things, still fall newspapers that have run articles about other tower-siting scenarios, under local jurisdiction. But, there are better and certa~y worse ways of Network. You will find that people who have been active in this field love going about the exorcise of that control. to share their stories, expertise, and resources. Consider placing an ad in The Telecom Act also stipulates that communities must bo carotid tho local newspaper to attract other citizens wh0are concerned. An ad as' i in denying pormit~. Deniala _~___hould bo for substantial r~asons minted inca simple as: "Interested in the issue of cellular towers in our neighborhoods? written record of tho proceedings. Tho better tho zonln-.° regulations are,, Call mo at..." .will cost only a few dollars and may help you begin a citizens group that can share the workload- ~ inappropriate. Good regulations are tho blueprint for successful le~d It's fair to ~ay one person cannot'do this alone. Few people have .~ actions, should that como to pass. the spare time,, energy, or tenacity to move SUch issues onto center stage What a community cannot do is to completely ban personal and ~e public officials to act constructively. Plus, there is power in. wireless service from that community. Does that mean it must allow a numbe~... No city council, or planning board can afford to ignore a room tower or base station within the community? Not necessarily. If tho full of p~ople who have a clear agenda. But they have little problem ~ company could provide service fi.om another adjacent community, and is ignoring one citizen (or even a small group) whom they can dismiss as ~:" already located on a tower in that nearby town, whore by addling NIMBY's. .~:' · -- By organizing your neighbors and others throughout the ~. antennas they could also cover your town m then you might be able to keep that company from building a now tower in your town.2 Tho bask community, you will develop a larger, voice that will attract tho local ~ legal argument is that your town is not p~ tho company from media. When you attend municipal' meetings to speak about tho issues, .:~, providing service to tho community but rather disaliowing.a now base you will be heard in a very different way than before. ~ ~ station to be ere~tccl within town boundaries. Th~ reason for doing so is Om' local group in Great Barrington, Massachusetts ~ Folks for ~:, ' that the company can already provide service fi.om aa existing tow~ to Appropriate 'Cellular Tower Sites, or FACTS ~ became a force to be .'; which the company already has legal access. reckoned with when it could consistently, and .on very short notice, get · '~' Under the Telecom Act, communities cannot "unreaso~i~ fifty or .so people to any meeting where the .tower issues were up for ' discriminate among providers. This means the town cannot block one disou~on. It did not matter than only about three or four of those people ~ cellular company from providing' service in tho community if' other were really wo~in8 diligently on th issue; Tho-grOup took on a force far greater than the individual efforts of the members. / .... ? ~ 2Reccntcasolawsuppoflsthi_~_ Sco Jam~Hobsoll's~ CdhdlrT?-'~llo . ,, , Co. v. Zo~i~ 13cad or. Adjumum.