Sprint to propose 12 antennas for Villa Grande
Published on June 25th, 2003
STONEHAM, MA - Two hearings set for this Thursday night to discuss proposed cell-antennas to be placed on the rooftop of 159 Franklin Street will most likely be continued to a future date.
According to Larry McDonnell, a spokesperson for Sprint, his company submitted a written request to the Town's Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) asking for a continuance until July 24.
"We did ask for a continuance of the meeting for approximately a month. The reason is two-fold. First, we want to make sure there's a readvertisement of the hearing so that everybody who wants to go can attend," explained McDonnell, referring to a legal notice that contained the wrong hearing date.
"The second reason is we were told a board member might be absent and we'd like to present our application to all members," he added.
According to ZBA Chairman William Sullivan, the requested continuance will be granted.
"I anticipate that for Sprint there will be a continuance. I've recommended to my fellow board members that we just open the meeting right away so that everybody there knows," explained Sullivan, who will not be available to attend the meeting.
Although the ZBA has not received any requests for a continuance from Omnipoint Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of T-Mobile, Sullivan also believes that hearing will be continued as well because an independent study being conducted to verify whether a significant gap in coverage exists has not yet been completed.
"We haven't received anything from the consultants to view yet, so I would anticipate that T-Mobile Omnipoint would accept a continuance until we receive more information," said Sullivan.
While three representatives from T-Mobile met with the ZBA last month to discuss its plans to erect nine antennas on top of the Villa Grande Condominium Complex, Sprint has yet to meet with the board.
Specifically, Sprint will propose that the board approve a variance for the construction of 12 antennas on the roof of the Franklin Street condominiums. Eight of those antennas would be placed on the east side of the building near the penthouse stairwell.
While those eight antennas would not exceed the height of the building's roofline, the remaining four antennas would be enclosed in a stealth chimney that could be visible from sections of Emerald Court, Franklin Street and Franklin Place.
According to site acquisition specialist Jerry Squires, whose company, Atlantic Western Consulting of Woburn represents Sprint, the exact height of those antennas are not yet known.
"The antennas heights are usually five feet high but I don't know what we're showing here," commented Squires.
"The penthouse antennas won't be above the roofline at all. They're going to be attached to the sides. They shouldn't be higher than the penthouse, but they could," he added.
In addition to the 12 antennas, Sprint has also proposed building a steel platform on the ground level of the building that would house its PCS equipment. The facility would be surrounded by a fence.
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