Planning board approves T‑Mobile rooftop replacement at 743 Passaic Avenue with conditions

The City of Clifton planning board on a motion approved a conditional‑use application and site plan allowing T‑Mobile Northeast LLC to relocate a rooftop telecommunications installation from 777 Passaic Avenue to 743 Passaic Avenue and to install antennas with a maximum top height of 66 feet.

Board approval matters because the move replaces an existing carrier site that will be decommissioned and aims to maintain mobile coverage and capacity along Passaic Avenue and Route 3, the applicant said.

Frank Ferraro of the firm Ferraro & Stamos spoke for T‑Mobile and presented three expert witnesses: Ryan Martin, an RF engineer with Piercon Solutions LLC; Robert Marsac, a licensed architect; and Timothy M. Kronk, a New Jersey licensed professional planner. Martin’s network and capacity analyses showed the existing site serves about 1,700 people over roughly 0.3 square miles; the proposed replacement would serve about 1,500 people over about 0.26 square miles. Martin testified that the replacement site is intended to preserve service and avoid degrading neighboring sites,…