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Resident urges borough to pursue small cells, leasing existing towers instead of a single large tower
Summary
During the Jan. 15 Franklin Park borough council meeting, resident Charles Horton said a consultant presentation showed that small-cell deployments and leasing space on existing towers could improve emergency and mobile coverage faster, cheaper and with less visual impact than building a large tower on the golf course.
Charles Horton, a Franklin Park resident, used the public-comment period at the Jan. 15, 2025, borough council meeting to urge officials to prioritize small-cell deployments and leasing existing tower space rather than building a large new tower on the borough golf course.
Horton, who identified himself as living at 1654 Farmington Court, said the borough had heard a presentation from consultant CityScape on emergency services and cellular coverage. He told council that CityScape identified alternatives that were “realistic, feasible, actually more affordable and would be quicker to deploy” than erecting “a giant eyesore” cell tower on the golf course. Horton said those options would “protect the residents’ property values.”
Horton summarized three points he said CityScape raised: that alternative options exist for emergency-services coverage; that a network of small cells — rather than one large tower — is a viable option for the borough; and that carriers can use existing towers or permit small cells. Horton also said Verizon had already installed four small cells in Franklin Park via the county-road permitting process, and he added that carriers could rent space on existing towers rather than building new structures.
“Let’s go with the simple, easy, quick, no-eyesore way,” Horton said during his remarks.
The comments were made during the meeting’s public-comment segment; council did not take any formal action or hold a vote on cell-infrastructure policy at that meeting. The transcript does not include a direct presentation transcript from CityScape or statements from any wireless carriers; Horton’s summary and claims were presented as his account of the consultant’s advice and of carrier activity.
