Politics & Government

T-Mobile Returns Tuesday With Plan for Antennas at Green Knoll Fire Dept.

The Bridgewater Township Zoning Board of Adjustment will hear more testimony.

The hearing concerning a T-Mobile application for cell phone antennas will continue Tuesday as the applicant comes before the Bridgewater Township Zoning Board of Adjustment Tuesday.

The application is for cell phone antennas at the Green Knoll Volunteer Fire Company on North Bridge Street. Although the hearing was initially scheduled for earlier this month, it had to be continued because of a prior hearing concerning a different application that lasted until about 9 p.m.

One of the representatives with T-Mobile spoke before the zoning board Aug. 3 to request approval to attach six cellular power antennas to a flagpole at the fire house, in addition to installing new radio equipment in a container at the base of the flagpole. T-Mobile is looking to get a use variance to place the antenna panels on the flagpole because the equipment would be in a residential zone.

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In addition, T-Mobile is looking for variances for height, lot coverage and fence height.

Residents speaking out at the Aug. 3 meeting asked questions about the dangers of radiation being emitted from the antennas, and how that could potentially affect them and their children.

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Daniel Collins, a health and safety expert working with T-Mobile on the application, said radiation levels would not be an issue, because they would only be a small fraction of the limit allowed and set by the Federal Communications Commission.

Other questions centered around whether the antennas would disrupt the day-to-day operations of the fire company, but Collins said that would not be a problem either because they would operate on a different radio band than the fire company's emergency radios.

A few additional residents expressed concerns about the application at the Aug. 16 Bridgewater Township Council meeting, emphasizing that they did not believe a volunteer organization like the fire company should be involved in a commercial application.

The residents who spoke said they did not like the idea of bringing something commercial into their residential neighborhood, and questioned how much money the fire company would be getting out of this investment.

Council President Matthew Moench said the council does not comment on pending applications, but encouraged residents to attend the zoning board meeting to voice their concerns in front of the board and applicant.

The meeting will be held in the municipal courtroom at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.


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