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Planning board conditionally approves Verizon modification at 17 Ashland Ave, seeks bond documentation
Summary
The board approved a Verizon modification to the 17 Ashland Avenue monopole to upgrade antennas for 5G service, conditioned on verification that a tower-removal bond (recorded amount believed to be $25,000) remains in force and that documentation be provided by the applicant or tower owner.
The Manchester-by-the-Sea Planning Board on June 8 approved a special-permit modification for the monopole at 17 Ashland Avenue to allow Verizon to upgrade antennas and supporting hardware, but the approval is conditional on the applicant or tower owner supplying documentation that a tower-removal security bond remains in place.
Attorney Brett Smith, representing Celco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless, said the filing is an eligible facilities request under federal law and "entails removing three existing antennas and installing six new antennas, three diplexers, additional and necessary hardware and cables, as well as expanding the width of the monopole by 6 in" above the crossbar to support upgraded equipment and improve local coverage, including 5G service.
Staff briefed the board on the monopole's approvals history (initial approval in the 2000s and subsequent actions including a 2011 height extension) and said the treasurer's office records contained references to a tower-removal bond that had been increased to $25,000 (most recent record found from 2018) but staff could not locate an expiration or confirm its current active status.
Verizon requested that no additional bond be required of a collocator; the company said collocators do not own the pole and that an owner-level removal bond applies. Board members asked staff to verify the bond and proposed making the permit contingent on that verification. The board asked staff to request documentation from the pole owner (identified in filings as Vertical Bridge) so the condition can be satisfied.
The board moved, seconded and adopted a conditional approval to meet the 60-day federal timeline for eligible facilities requests; staff will draft decision language specifying that the permit is contingent on confirmation that a tower-removal bond remains in place for the monopole (the recorded amount believed to be $25,000).
