Council Is All Talk and No Action on Cell Phone Moratorium News
that the Morgan Hill City Council has asked the Utilities and
Environment Subcommittee for greater clarification on the intent of
a cell tower moratorium is troubling for several reasons. How much
clearer does a request to stop building cell towers while the city
creates an ordinance need to be?
News that the Morgan Hill City Council has asked the Utilities and Environment Subcommittee for greater clarification on the intent of a cell tower moratorium is troubling for several reasons. How much clearer does a request to stop building cell towers while the city creates an ordinance need to be?
Residents first cried foul on a recent Sprint PCS proposal to construct a cell tower in Jackson Park after reading a public notice in the Morgan Hill Times last August. They worried about potential health effects from the tower and the eyesore it would create in their neighborhood park.
The city responded to residents’ concerns by asking the subcommittee to review the problem and suggest an alternative. Their solution was to enact a moratorium on cell towers while the city created a cell phone ordinance to handle future requests.
The city council, however, failed to pass the moratorium during their last meeting. In fact, they failed to do anything at all by sending the issue back to the committee – and that’s the problem. They didn’t even vote on the issue because no one called for a motion – even its strongest supporter, Councilman Mark Grzan.
While a potential moratorium sits in limbo, plans for new and expanded cell towers will proceed. And it’s likely any company interested in putting up a tower in Morgan Hill will quickly apply while the city ponders its next move.
Representatives from cell phone companies bullied the council, claiming FCC regulations prevent them from denying towers based on unfounded health concerns. While we agree that fear of cell phone towers making people sick hasn’t been proven, a moratorium would make sense considering the city has no ordinance.
That should have been created years ago and the council and city staff should have seen a need for it in our digital age. Now the council says a cell phone ordinance won’t be ready until next spring, and if passing the ordinance moves at the speed of government, it will likely be next summer or later before it actually comes to fruition.
It’s absurd to think an ordinance should take six months to appear before the council when they need not look further than Gilroy or San Benito County for guidance.
In those areas, cell phone towers are limited to industrial sites or away from residential areas – thus serving the cell phone companies’ need to increase their capacity while showing concern for the public’s wishes.
Our council should order immediate action on creating an ordinance and give them a deadline of the end of the year. City staff has admitted they’ve developed policies over years of experience with the cell towers that should be easily adaptable into the new law. Think of it as a Christmas present to local residents and cell phone companies alike – a clear set of rules that protects the public’s interest while allowing cell phone companies to remain competitive.
