Gadsden council hears objections to proposed 180-foot AT&T monopole; public hearing tabled

The Gadsden City Council on a public hearing day heard detailed presentations from the city’s wireless consultant and the applicant about a proposed 180-foot monopole and then voted to table action after several residents urged delay.

David Andrews, the city’s wireless consultant with the Center for Municipal Services, told the council the resolution would authorize Vertical Bridge LLC to build a 180-foot monopole at 1202 Eastview Drive and to host AT&T equipment there. Andrews said the applicant must move because “AT&T was notified that they needed to come off of that tower because the tower is being demoed” on Gadsden State property, and he recommended approval after reviewing alternatives and the application.

The applicant’s attorney, Andy Rotenstryke, said the company designed the site to minimize impacts: “That’s why we offered to make it a monopole. That’s why we wanted to get it under 200 feet and not light it. We’re doing our best to make it as not obtrusive as possible.” He showed the council photos comparing the existing guyed tower and the proposed monopole and said the new structure was about 1,970 feet from the existing tower.

Residents who live near the site urged the council to delay. Richard Chester reviewed notices residents received and asked the council to “table this today until you as council people can look into the result the physical results.” Paulette Lipscomb, who said she is 79 and receives regular medical care, told the council she and neighbors are “definitely opposed,” listing what she described as research linking radio-frequency exposure to health effects and saying many neighbors “cannot afford to relocate.” Larry Lawson, another nearby resident, added a safety concern about low-flying medical helicopters that repeatedly pass over the property.

Council members and staff fielded questions about technical and procedural safeguards. Andrews and Rotenstryke explained the monopole will be under 200 feet so it will not carry FAA-required obstruction lights and said the monopole is designed so that, if it fails, it will fold within the compound rather than fall into surrounding properties. Andrews also said the applicant provided documentation showing compliance with FCC limits and the city’s ordinance requirements, and he reiterated that federal rules limit local governments from denying a tower application based on health effects: the city can require proof of FCC compliance but cannot base denial on health determinations.

Council members also explained the city’s public-notice practice: the wireless ordinance notifies property owners within a 1,500-foot radius of proposed sites, a planning-derived distance that is not an exposure boundary. Council members described the site as a wooded parcel and said the applicant had offered a balloon test to show the tower height.

After public comment and council discussion, a council member moved to table the resolution to the next called council meeting. The council voted to table the item; no final approval or denial was recorded during the hearing.

Why it matters: the existing tower atop Gadsden State property will be removed, and without an alternate site local coverage for parts of East Gadsden, downtown and the I-759 corridor could be interrupted if carriers do not relocate equipment. Residents objected on health, aesthetic and safety grounds; city staff and the applicant emphasized compliance with federal regulations and technical mitigations.

The council did not set a new hearing date at the meeting; council members asked staff and the applicant to provide additional information and for the city to engage further with neighbors before the matter returns to the council.