Board approves Verizon 199-foot monopole to improve local cellular coverage

The Dinwiddie County Board of Supervisors voted Aug. 19 to grant a conditional-use permit to Cellco Partnership (Verizon Wireless) to build a 195-foot steel monopole telecommunications tower with a 4-foot lightning rod (total height 199 feet) at a roughly 7.5-acre parcel on Namazene Road.

Planning staff told the board the site met all zoning setback requirements, was about 401 feet from the nearest residence and included a 10,000-square-foot lease compound with a 60-by-45-foot fenced area. The county required the monopole be engineered to accommodate co-location by up to four additional broadband providers and required a landscaping and screening plan that uses existing tree cover to minimize visual impacts.

Verizon representatives said co-location on nearby county infrastructure did not meet coverage goals for the area and that a balloon test showed the proposed monopole would be visible only from a few limited vantage points. The applicant said the tower would improve service on a known coverage gap and that the site would be constructed without required lighting at a 195-foot height because federal rules and design choices permitted unlit monopoles below certain thresholds.

Board members had technical questions about the timing and equipment installation; the Verizon site manager said the company expected the previously approved tower in Sutherland to be online soon and projected this site could be built and on air within about six months after permitting and construction. After discussion, the board approved the conditional-use permit by unanimous roll call.

The approval included conditions to ensure required setbacks, annual review for compliance and engineering requirements to support co-located carriers and to comply with all federal, state and county rules.

The approval means Verizon may proceed with final design, permitting and construction subject to the stated conditions and any required county inspections.