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Board upholds DPW and planning approvals for NextG wireless installation
Summary
The Board of Appeals denied a neighborhood appeal and upheld the permit for a Next Gen Networks wireless facility near Laguna/Hickory/Fell, finding the application met code and planning review; the board required post‑installation verification.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals voted 4–0 on Feb. 8, 2012, to deny an appeal of a Next Gen Networks wireless installation on a joint utility pole near Laguna Street and Fell/Hickory and to uphold the Department of Public Works' issuance of the permit.
Appellant Lauren Palmetir, an electrical engineer, and neighbor Maria Virag asked the board for additional measurement data and questioned two illustrative graphs in NextG's engineering report as misleading. Palmetir said she did not appeal on health grounds but requested neighborhood power measurements and clearer documentation: "I asked the DPW to ask NextG to take out of the report because they are inaccurate and misleading," she said.
Next Gen Networks' Natasha Ernst described the engineering review and emphasized that planning and DPW found the application complete, that the submittal met the city's Article 25 criteria, and that a post‑installation verification measurement will be performed. "We...will be doing a post installation verification, which we have agreed to do and will be doing," Ernst said, and offered to conduct in‑home measurements for nearby residents.
DPW staff noted that RF power compliance is governed by federal rules and that the department relies on health‑department review for compliance with FCC exposure limits. DPW also said planning reviewed the location for visual impacts. The board concluded the permit met applicable local standards and code and voted to uphold it.
What happens next: NextG must perform post‑installation verification and provide the results to DPW and the health department; the board's determination affirms the permit and leaves RF technical compliance to the designated review process.
