Residents not sure on 150-foot cell tower



NEW SCOTLAND – While public opinion varies widely over whether a 150-foot cell tower should be allowed near the town’s oldest church, sentiment sounds united for the struggling New Scotland Cemetery Association.

The cell tower would be located on land owned by the cemetery association, bringing in hefty leasing fees.

Without any financial assistance, the cemetery can sustain itself for two more years, before it would, by law, have to be turned over to the town, said Arlene Herzog, a member of the cemetery association.
"As a community, we should find another way to support the cemetery," said resident Mardell Steinkamp, a member of the church, at a public hearing last week jon the cell tower proposal.
Resident Edie Abrams pleaded with the cemetery association, "Let the community help you because we value the cemetery and we value the church" I’m Jewish and I want to help you."
"The biggest negative aspect of this cell tower is that it’s not built yet," said resident Bruce Zeh. If the cemetery is turned over to the town, burials will stop, said Zeh.
Zeh said that his father is buried in the New Scotland Cemetery, and his 93-year-old mother intends to be buried there as well. "I don’t want to tell her she can’t be buried there," he said, adding that maybe the town could.
Kathy Ricky, an elder within the church, responded by explaining that, even if the cemetery were to be run by the town, burials would continue in existing family-owned lots. She added that she is "opposed to the cell tower for historic reasons."

Herzog announced that lots are currently for sale, and interested residents should contact the cemetery association.

A variety of concerns were voiced last Tuesday in a packed Town Hall.

Members of the New Scotland Presbyterian Church, which was organized in 1787, oppose the tower, citing its impact on the historical significance of the church and the cemetery, where the bodies of 14 Revolutionary War soldiers and a United States representative are buried.

Supporters say that it will improve safety in the town. The New Salem Fire Department and the Onesquethaw Volunteer Fire Company have expressed interest in co-locating on the tower.

Several residents with family members buried in the cemetery vowed they would not be buried in a cemetery that was maintained by the town, and support the tower because it will provide much-needed income for the cemetery association.

The applicants — Enterprise Consulting Services, a company that develops wireless telecommunications structures; T-Mobile; and the New Scotland Cemetery Association — are requesting a use variance to allow for a tower in a commercial district, and two area variances, one for the height, and one to allow a reduced lay-down area.

If the tower is approved, a 150-foot monopole will be constructed in a vacant field just east of the cemetery itself. [See related stories on-line at www.altamontenterprise.com, under archives for New Scotland for the dates: Oct. 5, 2006; and Sept. 6, Oct. 4, and Oct. 18 in 2007].

The board will make a decision on the application at its Nov. 27 meeting.

The need for the tower

Mike Crosby, a radio frequency engineer with T Mobile, told the board last week that a drive test of routes 85 and 85A was conducted last Monday. It indicated there was little to no T Mobile coverage in the area, he said. However, coverage does exist at the cemetery, as it sits on a hill, and makes it a desirable location for a tower, Crosby said.

Jacqueline Phillips Murray, the attorney who represents Enterprise Consulting Solutions, told The Enterprise that, during a drive test, a radio frequency engineer uses a special handset to test existing coverage in a designated area. The device collects data and determines the signal strength at every point along a given roadway, she said.

The special handset tests consistently, Murray said. It uses a three-color scale to establish the quality of the signal, if any, she said. Black indicates no signal; green indicates that a signal can be produced within a structure; and yellow means that the signal is strong enough to service people in cars, she said.

The coverage objective, Murray told The Enterprise, is to extend service to the north and east of the proposed site. "There is no service there for T Mobile," she said.
Several tests are used to determine the needed height of a tower, Crosby told the board. "Rest assured there is a lot of evaluation that goes into determining the height," he said. The optimal tower height was calculated to be 180 feet, Crosby explained, and, a height lower than 150 feet would result in dropped calls.
"The frequency at which T Mobile operates is different than what other companies operate at," Murray said this week. Verizon’s signal, for example, reaches farther, she said, referring to the possibility of co-location at lower heights on the tower.
Federal Communications Commission licensing is the reason for the differences in frequency, Murray said. "T Mobile was one of the last entrants into the market," she said.

Notice policy

Abrams opened the public-comment portion of last week’s meeting with concerns regarding the town’s policy for informing residents of public hearings.

The town mails letters to landowners within 500 feet of a particular site, Paul Cantlin, the town’s building inspector and zoning administrator, told The Enterprise.

Blackbird Prime Properties, a 33.6-acre mobile-home park, is located east of the cemetery along Route 85. Howard Amsler owns it; he has more than 35 lots currently occupied.

Amsler did not inform his tenants of the public hearing, Abrams told the board; she added that some residents were upset they were not told. Abrams suggested that the town revise its notification policy, adding that 500 feet is too small of an area for a proposal such as the cell tower, which would likely affect commuters along routes 85 and 85 A more than residents who live only 500 feet away.
Cantlin said this week that there is "almost no way" the town would have access to the names and addresses of Amsler’s tenants. The notice of the hearings on the cell tower proposal, he said, was sent to landowners within 500 feet.

At the request of the planning-board or zoning-board chairmen, the town can increase the notification area to 1,000 or 1,500 feet, or whatever they feel is adequate, Cantlin said.
"I checked with neighboring towns and they do the same," he said.

Amsler told The Enterprise this week that he has "unfortunately" been out of town for several weeks. "I wanted to notify my residents and attend the public hearing, but I am out of town," he said.

He has some concerns about the fall zone and aesthetics, as well as long-term medical effects the tower might have on local residents, he said.
"I don’t ever like to stop growth," said Amsler. He said he believes there are other locations in town that would be better suited for the tower. "Why would we want to put it in a residential hamlet"" he asked.

Opposing views

Daniel Mackay, a New Scotland South Road resident who works as the director of public policy with the Preservation League of New York State, has been vocal in his opinion that the tower would negatively affect the historic character of the area.
"It irks me that, in one of the more historic corners of our town" the applicant has manipulated the process" and SHPO [State Historic Preservation Office] let them get away with it," Mackay said at last week’s meeting.

At the time the application was first submitted, neither the church nor the cemetery had been nominated for consideration of eligibility on the state or national historical registers.
Since SHPO issued a letter indicating there would be "no effect" to historic or cultural resources, members of the church have contacted the state’s historic office requesting an eligibility determination, which was granted, said church member, Margaret Ewart.
"We ask that the board consider this status," said Ewart.
"While the federal process may be over, the zoning and planning process is not," said Mackay.
Murray said this week that historical concerns have already been considered. "We did everything that was required," she said. "We asked SHPO for their opinion, it replied there would be no effect," she said, adding that the applicants’ obligation has been met.
"The cemetery can’t afford to operate anymore" This is an economic boon for the cemetery," said Chris Hendrickson, who has been the cemetery’s caretaker for the past 25 years.
"The cell tower is coming whether it is at the cemetery or some place else," said Hendrickson.
"There is all kinds of stuff in there that needs to be restored, and it’s never going to be restored when the highway department takes it over," he said of the cemetery’s disrepair.
The tower would be an all-out gain for the cemetery, he said. The area where the tower is proposed is "worthless wetland," he said.
"If it’s a win for the cemetery, it’s a win for the town of New Scotland, and for the taxpayers," Hendrickson said.
Mardell Steinkamp, a landscape architect and member of the church, said that she feels the cell tower will be an eyesore. "We’re selling out to corporate interests," she said, adding that if the tower is approved she will be "very disappointed" with the town and its people.
"We love this town for what’s here now and we don’t want it ruined," Steinkamp said.
Barbara Moak, a member of the cemetery association, said that she has numerous family members buried in the cemetery, and had always planned to be buried there as well. "I do not want to be buried in a cemetery run by the highway department," she said.
"No one has ever come up with any real good ideas to help fix it up," said Moak, who is in favor of the tower.
"Good neighbors make good neighborhoods," said resident Katy O’Rourke. "This is all of our problem."
O’Rourke gave her "personal commitment" to the cemetery. "The cell tower seems like a drastic solution to a cemetery problem," said O’Rourke, who asked that the board give the community a chance to come together.

The town’s rural character, she said, makes New Scotland unique, and is a valuable asset. It is the zoning board’s responsibility to preserve that rural character, she said.
The tower will not help to preserve open space, it has no school-tax benefits, and will be a "scar" on the community, said O’Rourke.
"As mush as I don’t want the cell tower, I don’t want our community divided," said Ewart after more than an hour of back-and-forth between residents.
"We have tried every trick we can think of," said Corinne Weeks, a 20-year member of the cemetery association. She explained that the financial problems the association is facing are not new.
"We need a lot of things," said Weeks.
"We just lost a 1745 stone," she said, anger rising in her voice. She urged any residents with any information as to the stone’s whereabouts to come forward.
The cell tower, she said, "looks to us like a funding possibility.
"Our responsibility is to keep the cemetery going," said Weeks. Many important people are buried there, she said, adding that no one will ever know about them if the cemetery is not kept up.