SCOTCH PLAINS — The zoning board of adjustment will continue a hearing next month on an application to construct a cell tower on the New Jersey American Water Co. property on Jerusalem Road.
CX Towers Leasing LLC is looking to construct a 160-foot-high cell tower on the property owned by the water company, which wants existing cell antennas removed from its water tank and has made space available nearby for a separate monopole to be built. The plan is for the new pole to be located within a 35-foot by 35foot compound surrounded by a 10foot-high barbed-wire fence. Three carriers — AT&T, Verizon and TMobile — will have antennas at the top of the tower, with space for a fourth at a future date.
The discrepancy that led to the halting of the hearing last October involved the distance between the water tank and the proposed new monopole, an important calculation that affects the ultimate height of the new tower because of the importance of ensuring the antennas, which currently serve AT&T, Verizon and TMobile, are above the water tank and, thus, able to provide adequate coverage.
New measurements submitted by engineer Edward Iamiceli showed the new tower, situated north-northeast of the water tank, will be 138 feet from the center of that tank.
Some board members and a Johnson Street resident whose home backs up to the water company property inquired whether the new pole could be located farther onto the property so that its fencing and its base, at least, would be less visible to Johnson Street residents. Mr. Iamiceli responded that the property’s hilly topography would present issues and perhaps could necessitate the pole having to be higher to ensure adequate signals. “Every foot matters,” he told the board. Radio-frequency engineer Michael Webster added that, “location determines the height of the tower.”
Board Chairman Craig Peskin suggested planting trees alongside the pole to shield it from nearby residents. Other board members suggested other ways to mask the pole, including artificial tree branches that have been used on other monopoles in the area and painting it to match the surrounding wooded area. CX Towers’ professional planner will testify at the zoning board’s Thursday, April 4 meeting and residents will be given an opportunity to ask questions and voice their opinions on the application before the board votes.
