Montebello trustees approve lease for 100‑foot telecom monopine after SEQRA negative declaration

The Village of Montebello Board of Trustees voted 4‑1 on March 25 to approve a lease allowing Homeland Towers, LLC to install a 100‑foot monopine wireless communications tower on Village property at the Dr. Jeffrey Oppenheim Community Center, 350 Haverstraw Road. The Board also adopted a SEQRA negative declaration, concluding that a Draft Environmental Impact Statement is not required.

The vote follows multiple public hearings and a set of technical reports the Board placed in the public record, including RF justification and drive tests by V‑Comm, an RF exposure report by Pinnacle Telecom Group (which found maximum exposure at 6.3654% of the FCC general‑population limit), a Lane Appraisals property‑value analysis, visual resource assessments and TriLeaf documentation finding no historic properties in the area of potential effect. The Board’s written findings apply the Monroe balancing test and conclude the project is exempt from local zoning; the lease allows initial construction at 100 feet and a lease ceiling of 110 feet subject to future Board authorization. Tree removal to comply with seasonal restrictions may begin immediately.

Trustee David Rose opposed approval and laid out several objections, saying the Board’s conclusion that the Facility will not have an adverse public impact “is still in dispute.” Rose questioned how fall‑zone risk to parked cars or people would be handled, suggested carriers could instead attach equipment to existing power‑line infrastructure, and said anecdotal reports of “spotty service” may not prove a service gap given the variety of user devices. He also warned the lease’s allowances could permit lower‑quality installations. Deputy Mayor Stacy Caridi replied that she had reviewed the documents on the record; Mayor Lance N. Millman emphasized that the matter had been the subject of multiple public hearings and professional analyses and that the public had an opportunity to be heard.

The resolution directs that the facility comply with all applicable structural, safety and RF exposure standards, requires a Village building permit for equipment collocation, and conditions the tower’s final color and foliage treatment to be subdued unless the Board acts to change that specification. The lease was described in Board materials as containing provisions for collocation by at least two major carriers and municipal emergency communications. The record includes an appraisal stating the installation “will not result in the diminution of property values” and a structural certification by a New York licensed professional engineer.

Votes at a glance: Resolution 26‑035 (Approval of March 18 minutes) — moved by Trustee Egenhauser, seconded by Trustee Rose; Deputy Mayor Caridi abstained (outcome: approved). Resolution 26‑036 (SEQRA Negative Declaration re: Monroe Balancing Test/Lease) — (outcome: approved by roll call). Resolution 26‑037 (Approval of Lease to Homeland Towers, LLC and Monroe balancing test exemption) — motion by Deputy Mayor Caridi, seconded by Trustee Egenhauser; roll‑call vote Mayor Millman Yes, Deputy Mayor Caridi Yes, Trustee Egenhauser Yes, Trustee Humphrey Yes, Trustee Rose No (outcome: approved 4‑1).

The Board authorized the mayor to execute the lease documents and allowed tree clearing to commence to comply with species‑protection timing, subject to issuance of a building permit for construction and collocation. The meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m.