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Gwinnett commissioners approve taller cell tower at Old Ivy Court with conditions
Summary
The Board of Commissioners approved a change in zoning conditions to raise the maximum allowed height for a proposed telecommunications tower at the 2700 block of Old Ivy Court, adopting planning commission conditions.
The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 28 approved a change in zoning conditions to raise the allowable height of a proposed telecommunications tower at the 2700 block of Old Ivy Court, adopting conditions recommended by county planning staff and the planning commission.
The change in conditions request would increase the permitted height of the tower from the existing 125 feet to the new limit read into the record as 154 feet. Planning staff described the site as approximately 6.07 acres and said that, while the unified plan’s “urban median” designation envisions mixed‑use development, site constraints made a mixed‑use project unviable and a telecommunication tower would be compatible with existing utilities on the property. Miss Chen, planning staff, read that summary into the record.
An applicant representative said T‑Mobile reviewed the proposal and concluded a taller structure—about 150 feet—was necessary for the carrier’s propagation needs; the applicant also said the tower location had been adjusted to meet setback requirements. Commissioners moved to approve the change in conditions with the planning commission’s recommended conditions; the motion carried after a voice vote.
Why it matters: increasing the tower height allows the applicant and carrier to meet technical coverage needs but alters a development standard that previously limited visual and dimensional impacts. The county’s approval is conditional, and the applicant must meet the planning and permitting conditions adopted by the board before construction.
The record identifies the applicant as Kelly Towers 3 LLC and the owner as MAG USA LLC. The board’s approval was procedural: the change in zoning condition was approved with the planning commission’s recommended conditions; no specific permit or construction timeline was stated at the hearing.
