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Board approves 199‑ft Verizon monopole to fill coverage gap near Harrodsburg
Summary
Tag Towers LLC received conditional use approval to construct a 199‑foot monopole for Verizon after staff found the site met conditional‑use standards; nearby residents raised visibility and property‑value concerns but the board approved the permit 5‑0.
The board approved a conditional use (CDU‑25‑11) to allow Tag Towers LLC to construct a 199‑foot monopole style wireless communications facility on a roughly 1.29‑acre lease area off South Gore Road to expand Verizon coverage in a rural gap near Harrodsburg.
Planner Drew Smith said the site is in an Agricultural‑Residential 2.5 district and the monopole was required to come before the BZA because it is taller than 60 feet and not concealed. Planning staff found the location satisfies code standards for siting (rural location, distance to existing towers, limited traffic/noise and the ability to meet landscaping buffers) and that the tower would fill coverage gaps shown in the carrier’s propagation analysis. Tag Towers and the carrier provided line‑of‑sight photo simulations and a certified fall‑zone analysis: the site was sited so a worst‑case structural failure would not impinge nearby buildings.
The petitioner’s representative, Royce Lau, explained the network “honeycomb” constraints — too much overlap can create interference and carriers choose sites to avoid coverage holes. He said Tag Towers designs monopoles to facilitate collocation and the company expects multiple carriers could mount equipment in future.
One nearby resident, Marley Fry, opposed the application, saying the simulations did not show views from her newly completed home or leaf‑off conditions and argued the tower did not demonstrate documented emergency‑service coverage failures. She also requested a more substantive landscaping/screening plan and argued the tower would reduce property values and change the rural character. Petitioner said the operators are anchor tenants (Verizon) and designs were intended to minimize visual impact; he added that monopoles are structurally robust and rarely fail.
After deliberation about public safety benefits, the honeycomb rationale for site placement and the limited local density, the board granted the conditional use 5‑0. Staff noted the site still must pass final site‑plan review, landscaping buffer verification, and all federal (FAA/FCC) permitting prior to construction.
