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Residents urge San Mateo council to rescind small‑cell permits and oppose FCC rulemaking
Summary
Dozens of residents urged the San Mateo City Council to oppose FCC docket 25‑276 and to rescind small‑cell permits they say were approved under flawed applications; staff said it will review hearing‑officer findings and report back but cautioned that revocations pose procedural challenges.
San Mateo — Dozens of residents and community groups told the City Council on Nov. 17 that recent hearing‑officer rulings show Crown Castle misrepresented a key technical limit when seeking permits for small‑cell wireless equipment, and urged the council to rescind improperly issued approvals.
Speakers from neighborhood associations and organized groups described the hearing‑officer decisions as proof that some Crown Castle applications relied on a conclusory “200‑foot” limitation in alternative‑site analyses and that several permits should be revisited. Erin Ruger, a homeowner who appealed an earlier approval, said the officer’s findings “confirm what we were trying to argue” and urged the council to consider a resolution “rescinding all improperly issued small‑cell tower permits.”
Other speakers emphasized legal and process concerns. Multiple commenters asked the council to send a letter opposing FCC docket 25‑276, a notice of proposed rulemaking they said would curtail local authority over placement and aesthetics of wireless facilities. Irina Mavridis of the advocacy group No Sellouts told the council the proposed rule “would override essential local authority” and allow antennas and towers “directly in front of homes and schools with little or no notice.”
City staff and the city attorney acknowledged the public record and the potential for conflicting decision paths. The city attorney noted that the 2021 design guidelines include an Appendix C that authorizes the public‑works director to revoke permits obtained through misrepresentation, but cautioned that “to take a conclusion of a hearing officer in one case and to apply it to previously issued permits can pose a procedural challenge.” Staff said they can research the issue and return with a written report on options.
Council members did not take immediate formal action to rescind permits but asked staff and the city attorney to investigate the hearing‑officer rulings and procedures for potential revocation. The transcript records repeated requests from residents for a special meeting or a council resolution to address the most problematic approvals first.
The council also heard comments urging it to submit formal comments to the FCC to correct what residents and the city attorney described as factual errors in the FCC’s characterization of San Mateo’s ordinance. Mayor Newsom and other members said correcting the record is appropriate while staff evaluates next steps. No council vote on rescission or an FCC letter was recorded at the meeting; city staff committed to report back with options and next steps.
