Cell tower proposed atop salt dome

By NEAL RENTZ

The Lewisboro Town Board on Nov. 24 heard a proposal to place a cellular communications tower atop a salt dome on the town-owned property where the Highway Department and a New York State police station are located.

Representatives of the town’s Antenna Advisory Board and Homeland Towers discussed their proposal; the board has been studying potential sites for a new wireless communications tower since 2020.

The proposal was outlined by Advisory Board Chair Joseph Neu and committee member Robert Cummings.

As stated in the group’s South Salem Tower Site Briefing, the salt dome is the most appropriate site for a new tower as it sits on town-owned land and has the highest elevation for full radio frequency coverage. There has been “moderate” opposition to the use of the site on potential visual and environmental impacts; the site is supported by AT&T and Verizon. 

“Initial site proposals from Homeland Towers were brought to the Town of Lewisboro in June 2020 for a new cell tower that would address the coverage gap along Route 35 between the existing Leon Levy Cell Tower and Town Park Cell tower,” the site briefing stated.

The salt dome tower “would fill gaps” in cell service, Town Supervisor Tony Gonçalves said.

Homeland Towers regional manager, Raymond Vergati, described his Danbury, Conn.-based company as a tower developer. Aside from the phone companies using the new tower, it could also be used by emergency services agencies, he said. South Salem has been looked at by the carriers as a place for a new tower to alleviate coverage gaps, he said. 

“This is critical infrastructure,” Vergati said. “We’re in the business of saving lives.”

There were objections expressed during the meeting.

Highway Superintendent John Winter said he wished the salt dome area was larger. “This area just gets smaller and smaller,” because of increased usage of the property, he said.

Winter said he understood the need for cellphone coverage, but the salt dome site was too small already. 

“Look at the big picture,” he said, adding that the neighboring residents living near the property line need to be consulted about the project.

Adam Stolorow, an attorney representing residents who are organizing in opposition to the proposal, told the Town Board, “Forcing an unwanted location leads to litigation and fighting.”

The town should look for “creative solutions” to improve cell service, he said. 

An alternative location for the proposed four-carrier tower could be the Presbyterian church steeple at 111 Spring St. in South Salem, Stolorow said. 

A study indicated that the church site would provide coverage similar to the salt dome. Six or seven homes were predicted to not have adequate coverage with the church site, but that could be solved by constructing a second tower, which would be concealed. 

Gonçalves said there will be additional discussions of the cell tower proposal.

“We didn’t make a decision on this,” he said. “It took years to get to his point.”