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Council continues appeal over proposed 150‑ft radio tower near Ronald Reagan Elementary to Aug. 5
Summary
After technical presentations from city staff and Motorola and testimony from nearby residents raising RF exposure, CEQA and notice concerns, the Bakersfield City Council continued the appeal of a planning commission approval for a 150‑foot public‑safety radio tower at 1000 Buenav Vista Road to Aug. 5 for further site alternatives, renderings and notice review.
The Bakersfield City Council on June 20 continued an appeal over a proposed 150‑foot public‑safety radio tower sited at 1000 Buenav Vista Road, asking staff to return Aug. 5 with further materials on alternative locations, to‑scale renderings and documentation of noticing.
Staff and Motorola representatives said the existing communications infrastructure is nearing end of life and that the replacement system requires higher antenna height to meet line‑of‑sight and reliability benchmarks for police, fire and ambulance radio communications. Brady Weston, Motorola project systems engineer, summarized an independent RF assessment that found projected ground‑level exposure at the site would be a small fraction of FCC limits (staff cited figures on the order of 0.1% or less of the federal general‑population standard at ground level).
Residents and parents who live within the 300‑foot notice radius and nearby homeowners opposed the chosen site, saying it sits about 350 feet from Ronald Reagan Elementary and closer than the municipal baseline setback for similar facilities. Appellant Bo Ko argued staff improperly invoked a CEQA categorical exemption for replacement and asked the council either to relocate the facility to a non‑residential parcel (staff cited a nearby Riverwalk maintenance/commercial site as a candidate) or prepare an initial study under CEQA.
Council considered competing priorities — the city’s described need for reliable public‑safety radio coverage and residents’ concerns about proximity to a school, aesthetics and adequate public notice — and directed staff to provide additional analysis, including alternative‑site feasibility, photographic or rendered visuals showing the proposed 150‑ft tower at scale, and a complete notice record. The council voted to continue the hearing to Aug. 5; the motion passed with Council Member Smith absent.
Attribution: Staff presentation and RF data were provided by Katie Reid, Assistant Director of Technology Services, and Brady Weston, Motorola systems engineer. Appellant statements came from Bo Ko and nearby residents who spoke at the hearing.
