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Planning commissioners recommend denial of 150-foot Arcola Towers monopole near Front Royal Pike
Summary
The Frederick County Planning Commission voted to recommend denial of a conditional use permit for a 150‑foot telecommunications monopole proposed at 1930 Front Royal Pike after neighbors raised proximity, property‑value and wildlife concerns and commissioners reviewed federal and local permitting materials.
The Frederick County Planning Commission voted to recommend denial of a conditional use permit for a 150-foot monopole telecommunications tower proposed for 1930 Front Royal Pike, a property in the B-1 neighborhood business district, following a public hearing with multiple neighbors and the applicant’s representatives.
Planning staff presented the application as a tower intended to fill a documented coverage gap for T‑Mobile and to be designed for co‑location by other carriers. Jonathan Yates, representing Arcola Towers, told commissioners the tower would be a 150‑foot galvanized monopole within a secured compound, and that the Federal Aviation Administration and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources had cleared the site. Yates said the tower’s radio‑frequency emissions would operate at “1.09%” of the federal exposure limit cited in the applicant’s RF compliance report.
Neighbors attending the hearing said the tower would sit close to existing homes and raised concerns about property values, wildlife and health. Jackie Valencia, the resident immediately adjacent to the proposed compound, told commissioners the tower would be “175 feet from the tower” and said she was “in strong opposition” to the permit, adding that many neighbors had not received or had only recently received notice of the application. Other nearby residents raised similar objections and cited potential impacts to historic properties, the river corridor and migratory birds.
Supporters of the permit included a few T‑Mobile customers who said coverage is weak in parts of the area; one T‑Mobile customer present said his household experienced service deficits in valleys and dips along Route 522.
Commission discussion referenced federal law. County staff noted that federal preemption under the Telecommunications Act limits local land‑use bodies from denying towers based on RF emissions; staff and commissioners also discussed the limited medical consensus about long‑term health effects and emphasized the federal RF limits and the applicant’s compliance documentation.
Following public comment and applicant reply, the commission took two roll‑call votes. An initial motion to recommend approval failed. A subsequent motion to recommend denial passed by roll call; the planning commission’s recommendation of denial will be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for its meeting on June 11, 2025.
The applicant said it will continue to work with nearby residents on mitigation, including landscaping. The Board of Supervisors will consider the commission’s recommendation and the full record on June 11.
Evidence from the staff packet and the hearing record shows the applicant obtained FAA concurrence and state historic‑resource review, and submitted RF emissions and NEPA materials for the site.
