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Proposed Cell Phone Facility Gets Poor Reception
USA Created: 20 Nov 2007
Neighbors are contesting a utility pole on Bainbridge as the city ponders easing rules to make wireless service more reliable.

Nick and Peg Nickum's panoramic view from their home on a south Bainbridge hillside includes historic West Blakely with its quaint Victorian homes. Beyond that, they can see Rich Passage, the ferries and the hammerhead crane in Bremerton.

But now, standing front and center in the Nickums' spectacular view is a new 45-foot utility pole, on which Verizon Wireless hopes to install cell phone transmission equipment.

"It's a sore thumb," Peg Nickum said.

"It's like an insult, David Snedeker said.

The Nickums and Snedeker and his wife, Bonnie, believe the new pole violates law. They have appealed to the city hearing examiner a decision by the city's Department of Planning and Community Development to allow the project. Nick Nickum, an attorney, is not ruling out a lawsuit.

The case has shined a new light on city rules on siting cell phone facilities, and it's raised the question of whether they should be updated on this island full of wireless-dependent professionals, where reception can be poor or nonexistent.

In an effort to update city rules on cell towers, Councilman Jim Llewellyn has proposed allowing bigger cell phone towers in the island's three neighborhood service centers — Lynwood Center, Island Center and Rolling Bay. The big towers are now allowed in industrial areas and low-density residential areas. But virtually all have been located in industrial areas. Spotty reception has resulted, especially between Island Center and Lynwood Center, Llewellyn said.

No action has been taken on Llewellyn's plan.

In September, the city planning department issued a building permit for Verizon to construct what's known as a smaller "Facility 1" wireless communications facility atop a utility pole on land off Blakely Avenue owned by Jeff Powers and his wife, Debra Haase. Verizon proposed attaching antennas at the top of an existing 30-foot pole, which was replaced with the 45-foot pole. In addition, the proposal called for building a small structure alongside the pole to house electronics equipment. The taller pole went in this fall.

The Verizon proposal stated the facility was exempt from the height limitations in the area and from State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements.

The Nickums and Snedekers disagree.

The Nickums have a 1989 restrictive covenant signed with previous owners of the land where the pole sits that they contend prohibits the 45-foot pole.

"The pole clearly violates the covenant," Nick Nickum said.

In the appeal, the couples contend the city's planning department was wrong to exempt the Verizon application from SEPA review because Verizon sought it by claiming the antennas were to be attached to an "existing structure" and not the new, higher pole.

They also contend the facility would exceed city height limits for the area, and that adequate screening and setbacks for the equipment structure weren't planned.

Beyond the appeal, David Snedeker said he and his neighbors are concerned about perceived health hazards of living near a cell phone facility, as well as noise from the equipment running in the structure. He said neighbors were never informed of the "stealth cell tower." Snedeker and Nickum contend the new pole has diminished their home values.

Georgia Taylor, a spokeswoman for Verizon Wireless, said, "We were in compliance with all the environmental and jurisdictional requirements." Her company is reviewing the new appeal, and it has put the project on hold for now. No antennas are yet on the pole.

Powers said he has no way to get out of his lease to Verizon and regrets the flap with his neighbors.

"Given what's going on now, it's not worth it," he said.

Meanwhile, the Nickums and Snedekers want cell towers out of residential neighbors.

"They should go somewhere else, on higher ground," Nick Nickum said.
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Source: Kitsap Sun, Rachel Pritchett, 19 Nov 2007

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