Planning board approves Homeland Towers/Verizon special permit with conditions

The Town of Ancram Planning Board voted to adopt a resolution granting site-plan approval and a special-use permit for a Homeland Towers monopole to host Verizon antennas, the board chair said after a roll-call vote produced four affirmative votes.

The board’s action followed nearly three hours of presentation, consultant review and public comment. Applicant counsel David Kenny said the proposal meets local standards and submitted a decommissioning plan and visual simulations; he told the board the applicant proposed a brown monopole and will supply the final paint specification for the record. "We did review the draft resolution and noted as a condition of approval, but we did have a decommissioning plan put together," Kenny said during the presentation.

Opponents, led by the Citizens Advisory Committee, argued the tower would not "blend into the surrounding natural environment" as required by the town’s Scenic Corridor overlay. Walter Williamson of the CAC urged the board to apply the Scenic Corridor law's unqualified camouflage requirement and deny the application, arguing that a brown monopole sited in an open field east of Route 22 would remain conspicuous.

Board counsel and staff recommended a detailed resolution that records findings of fact and attaches conditions to provide a clear administrative record in the event of legal challenge. Conditions adopted by the board include a five-year special-permit renewal requirement, annual condition reports to the building department, required landscaping with performance security and bonds for replacement, and the specification of the approved paint color on the final site plan. The board also required annual reporting and reserved enforcement authority between renewal periods.

The motion to adopt the resolution passed on a majority vote; the clerk recorded four votes in favor, zero recorded opposed and several members absent. The board chair said staff will circulate the final resolution and that the applicant may proceed with final plan-signature and building-permit steps once conditions in the resolution are satisfied.

Next steps for the applicant include final site-plan signature, submission of the specified performance bond for landscaping, and coordination with the building department for required annual reports and any follow-up inspections. The board’s file will include the final resolution and the decommissioning plan for public inspection.