The city’s planning commission will consider approval Monday for AT&T to build a 155-foot cellular tower on property north of the Roger Short Soccer Complex.
The meeting will begin at 5 p.m. in the upstairs courtroom at City Hall.
AT&T is seeking to build the tower on property Lowndes County owns near Moore Creek, just west of The Magg Dispensary.
County supervisors approved a five-year lease to AT&T in July, with options for five additional terms, effectively making it a 30-year deal, County Administrator Jay Fisher said Friday. The company has agreed to pay the county $1,200 monthly throughout the life of the lease.
To build the tower, AT&T must first obtain a permit from the city since the land is in Columbus, Building Official Kenny Wiegel said.
City ordinance allows cellular towers in C-3 (highway commercial) zones, which includes the property in question, but the city council must first approve the permitted use, Wiegel said. That process starts with a public hearing before the planning commission, which will send its recommendation to the council for a final vote.
“The planning commission or city council may require landscaping around the tower,” Wiegel said. “(The ordinance) mentions noise, the possibility of (requiring) camouflage. … I believe they have the discretion to suggest another location.”
Trip Hairston, president for the board of supervisors, said the company first approached the county “out of the blue” in November 2021 wanting to build the tower on the Moore Creek property to enhance the services of FirstNet – a nationwide cellular network that keeps first responders connected during major emergencies. The tower would help fill a gap in the network locally, he said.
“They said, ‘Y’all have this piece of property that’s stranded over here. … We think this is where a tower can go,’” Hairston told The Dispatch. “… Functionality is where the need is. If a tornado comes through and knocks down a bunch of cell towers, and you’ve got this type of tower that’s still up, it prioritizes first responders (over private citizens). … You hope never to have to use something like that, but when you have to, it’s very significant.”
But not everyone is excited about the possibility.
Amanda Meadows, an attorney representing The Magg Dispensary, worries about the eyesore that would stand near the soccer complex and adjacent five-block Burns Bottom Redevelopment District, where the Columbus Redevelopment Authority is trying to nail down a deal for a mixed-use project.
From a health standpoint, she worries about the impact 5G radio frequencies could have on her client, whose business is within 300 feet.
5G towers have shorter wavelengths and stronger signals, which Meadows fears means more exposure to radiation.
“You’re putting this right at a location which treats medically compromised people who have already gotten a medical diagnosis to have medical-grade cannabis,” Meadows said. “… In addition to that, they have an agricultural product they grow there that has to be a certain medical grade. So if (the tower) is offputting radiation … it may make their whole product unusable.”
Meadows also is concerned about impacts to the Moore Creek watershed and the heavily populated area around the proposed site.
“What if we find out five years from now that this is an enhanced carcinogenic and no one has raised the red flag now?” Meadows said. “… You’ve got great cell phone service, but at what cost?”
According to the World Health Organization website, no adverse health effect has been causally linked with exposure to wireless technologies. Provided exposure remains below international guidelines, the site said WHO does not anticipate consequences for public health.
Per city ordinance, Wiegel said, neither the planning commission nor city council can deny the permit for health concerns alone if AT&T presents information showing the power density meets Federal Communication Commission standards.
Under the lease terms, AT&T would have 120 days after termination to remove the tower and repair the land within reason to pre-agreement conditions, Fisher said.
As to what happens to the lease if the city denies tower construction on that property, Hairston said, “we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
“I would assume they would break the lease with us and try to get some remedy,” he said. “… We made it very clear to them there is a permitting process for inside the city limits.”
The Dispatch could not reach Andy Rotenstreich, an attorney with the Baker Donelson firm in Birmingham, Alabama, who is representing AT&T.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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