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AT&T floats cell tower proposal in Fort Stamford [The Stamford Advocate, Conn.](Stamford Advocate (CT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jul. 17--STAMFORD -- Parks commissioners this week shot down a preliminary proposal to erect an AT&T cell phone tower in Fort Stamford, a historic site and city park that has remnants of redoubts dating back to the Revolutionary War. Representatives from the communications giant met with the Parks and Recreation Commission during its monthly meeting Wednesday to discuss a potential "stealth flagpole" tower, no more than 80 feet high, installed in the historic park to bridge a cell-phone coverage gap in Westover. Commissioners unanimously rejected the preliminary proposal, and AT&T representatives said they would knock on doors in the Westover neighborhood, looking for an owner willing to lease their land to the company so it can build the tower. The state Siting Council has final say over free-standing cell phone towers, but takes into account public concerns when approving them, city officials said. The plan comes amid controversy in Greenwich over an 80-foot tower wireless service carrier T-Mobile proposed on private property in North Mianus. Town officials -- along with state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal -- opposed the tower, as did dozens of Greenwich residents. Last month, Greenwich planning officials voted down the plan, but final say still lies with the council. AT&T representatives reached out to Stamford officials and the parks commission earlier this month to gauge input. Commissioners and city officials said public outcry would be too great to consider approving the request. "I said I can't fathom this going through," said Mickey Docimo, the city's parks superintendent. "If we had a public hearing, I don't even want to imagine what would go on. I'd be on vacation." The preliminary proposal calls for a long-term lease with the city, a lawyer representing AT&T said in a letter to Stamford officials. AT&T would pay the city rent to use the land. Fort Stamford was built in 1781 to guard the city during the Revolutionary War; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's also a state archeological preserve and the park features earthworks built as defensive structures during the war. "It runs against the grain from a historical standpoint," Parks Commissioner Thomas Lombardo said of the proposal. Under the plan, the wireless service carrier would construct the tower, build needed improvements, pay for utility usages and insure the facility with no burden to the city or parks personnel, the letter said. "We're trying to make sure you get enough revenue to make the park looking as good as it does," said Christopher Fisher, the lawyer from a White Plains firm representing AT&T. When commissioners asked how much AT&T would offer the city, Fisher said it was a preliminary proposal and would not give an amount. AT&T chose Fort Stamford as a starting point for a cell phone tower because it has wireless service gap in Westover and the park rests on some of the neighborhood's only non-residential land, Fisher said. In 2007, the parks commission turned down a request from Verizon Wireless to erect a cell phone tower in Chestnut Hill Park. The wireless phone company offered to pay the city $150,000 over five years to lease a quarter-acre in the North Stamford park. Derek Phelps, executive director of the Siting Council, said his agency has not received an application from AT&T for a tower in Stamford. He said telecommunication companies have a 60-day period to consult with municipalities about plans to install towers before submitting an application. Stamford City Planner Norman Cole said plans for free-standing towers in Stamford have routinely drawn the ire of residents and elected officials. Cell phone companies, though, do use antennas on office rooftops and have them hidden inside church steeples. A volunteer firehouse in North Stamford, the Long Ridge Fire Co., also rents out space on its emergency communications tower to cell phone companies as a way to make money, Cole said. "This proposal that is floating around now is kind of interesting because if it is proposed, we have to test whether the local zoning authority has jurisdiction, or whether it's regulated by the state," Cole said. Staff Writer Jeff Morganteen can be reached at [email protected] or 964-2215. To see more of The Stamford Advocate, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.stamfordadvocate.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Stamford Advocate, Conn. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |