Residents Voice Concern Over Potential Cell Tower

A large crowd of concerned residents gathered in the Westwood High School auditorium on Tuesday night for the continued public hearing regarding a cellular tower proposed for 7 Clapboard Tree Street at the Temple Beth David.

Matt Watsky, representing Temple Beth David, noted that the Temple has tried to be as cooperative with its neighbors as possible.

“Some have questioned the Temple’s motives in the process,” said Watsky. “Our motives really are identical to the town of Westwood, which is to lease space on our property for carriers to reduce rent.”

The matter has been a hot-button issue for some time now; a number of residents have expressed concern through a comment stream on a Westwood Patch article that ran in early February that discussed such concerns at a . The applicants for the project include SBA Towers II, LLC; T-Mobile Northeast, LLC and MetroPCS Massachusetts, LLC.

Ricardo Souza, who represented the applicants, explained at the last meeting that they are seeking to construct a 99-foot, 6-inch flagpole style monopole that would contain three T-Mobile panel antennas at the centerline height of 95 feet, 3 inches. MetroPCS would have an antenna at 86 feet, 9 inches.

Souza has maintained throughout the process that the main goal in creating the tower is to fill in coverage gaps in an area that Souza said the cellular companies have identified as areas of little to no coverage. He also brought several experts with him who told the Board and the public that there are no health risks and no evidence of property value diminishing.

Souza has also said that the antenna, which is a “flag pole design” that is 36 inches in diameter, is the most aesthetically pleasing type of structure that they offer.

Members of the public, however, have felt otherwise. In the weeks leading up to the meeting, Westwood Patch has received a variety of comments from concerned residents which were echoed during this meeting. The comments have been for and against the creation of the tower, but with most leaning away from it. They commonly refer to the aesthetic aspects, health risks and property value.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, concerned resident Donna Kutzer brought forth a petition of 292 signatures to the Planning Board, and said that she and 14 other neighbors went door to door and that the 292 signatures represent the concern that the community has regarding the project.

Chris Hobson, another concerned abutter, explained that this is not an attack against Temple Beth David. He said that over the years he and other abutters have maintained a good relationship with the Temple, and he also noted that cellular towers being erected are inevitable, and not something he is trying to stop.

What he, along with many others, is concerned about comes down to three main aspects. The first is that the tower would be a large, ugly structure located in a quaint neighborhood. The second is that it is out of pattern in comparison to the other cell tower structures around town. The third is the impact on house values.

Hobson pointed out that a 36-inch structure may be hard to visualize, but noted that flag poles are generally only 19 inches.

“This is not a flag pole,” said Hobson. “This is a huge industrial column in the neighborhood.”

Hobson said that the flag pole is out of pattern compared to the others in town for a number of reasons, but the most glaring one is that it is so close to so many houses. There are 29 houses located within 500 feet of where the structure would stand, Hobson added.

Other such cell towers are located at Fox Hill on the water tower, Morrison Field near a foul pole, Thurston Middle School, Glacier Drive, First Baptist Church and Lowder Brook. Hobson admitted that before looking into the Temple Beth David cell tower, the others were so out of the way that he didn’t even know they existed.

As for property value, Hobson said that upon doing research he found cases where houses drop in 10 to 20 percent in value. There are, however, other reports that indicate no reduction. Katie Barnacle also presented letters to the Planning Board from real estate agents regarding the value reduction.

Hobson, along with other residents, directly questioned whether the town even needed the cellular tower.

“I carry a T-Mobile phone and have no problem with coverage,” said Hobson.

However, Hobson noted that the Temple Beth David and SBA are in the legal right, and that the Planning Board doesn’t need to take aesthetics into account. Still, he said that if they can’t work something out that is suitable for the community, he recommended that the Board deny the plan outright.

As far as health concerns go, residents were in agreement that they don’t want to put a community at possible risk of radiation. While expert reports currently say that there is no harm, many residents voiced that they don’t want to risk what they may not know yet. Other residents noted that there have been studies attributing cell towers and cell phone use to such diseases as Alzheimer’s, autism and cancer.

Michael Cagan of 69 Elm Street stated that he has been a health care researcher for over 25 years, and said that upon review, it is troublesome to see that there actually health effects.

“In the last year I’ve reviewed hundreds of papers regarding cell phone radiation,” said Cagan. “Unfortunately I’ve found that there are a number of hazardous effects.”

Chair Steve Rafsky said that he was pleased with the amount of information presented during the meeting, but also noted that the Board still has much to discuss before making a decision.

The hearing will continue on May 10 at 7:15 p.m.