by Gary Danforth
The Town of Hoosick Planning Board meeting took place this past Monday evening, April 20, in the Hoosick Falls Armory with Interim Chairman Jim Dunigan calling the meeting to order at 7:30 pm. Following the Pledge of Allegiance the minutes of the previous month’s meeting were approved. There were five Board members present.
In the only action which took place before the Board on this chilly, damp evening, Stephen Woodworth, representing AT&T, said there was a “gap in coverage” along Route 7 for his company’s cell phone customers. AT&T wants to put up a pre-fabricated 12 foot by 20 foot concrete structure below a pre-existing cell tower structure on LeBarron Road. AT&T would need to install six antennas on the pre-existing 300 foot tower, presently used by four carriers. Town Planning Board Attorney Stan King told the Board that this was what the existing Town law was for, to allow additional carriers to use the pre-existing structure to add services without having to build another tower. King said an application for this action had been received as had a letter from the existing cell tower owner saying this was permissible. A site plan was also submitted. The long environmental assessment form (EAF) was also submitted. A copy of the applicant’s Federal Communication License was also in the packet as was a report by a qualified radio frequency engineer certifying the radio frequencies would be in compliance with federal laws. The existing tower was built in 1997 for County public Safety transmissions and the Town law on cell towers was enacted in 2000. A more recent subdivision of lands surrounding the tower by a local citizen was brought before the Board in 2008. A diesel powered emergency generator will power the cell tower if electricity is lost to the tower. The generator would have its own 70 gallon fuel storage tank and would be able to run for three continuous days without refueling. There would be a catch pan to prevent diesel spills. The company would have to put up $2,500 for an engineer to review the plan on the Town’s behalf.
After much discussion and careful thought by all parties, the Board passed a motion to have an engineer review this application package on the Town’s behalf with the applicant to furnish the $2,500 to pay for this review before the review process can begin. The Board asked the applicant to come back next month.
One of the shortest Planning Board meetings in recent memory adjourned at 7:59 pm.