Plymouth residents applaud cellphone tower denial
PLYMOUTH, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)— Tensions ran high Wednesday night in Luzerne County over the proposed installation of a cell phone tower. The project would have put the tower right in the middle of town, but locals protested the idea.
Wednesday, there was a decision.
In a long-awaited public meeting tonight, the Plymouth Borough Zoning Board denied a project to construct a cell phone tower looking to be built in a residential area of the town.
Residents say they’re happy they voiced their concerns and got the result they were hoping for.
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Plymouth residents were loud and clear Wednesday, they don’t want a cell tower in their town, and local lawmakers agreed with them.
The residents wanted to remain anonymous.
“It’s like having a billboard there or a factory, put a factory there, it’s the same thing. I want it to remain a neighborhood,” said Resident One.
“I think we always hear safe and effective, we’ve heard it lately in history and it’s proven not to be safe and effective,” stated Resident Two.
The tower would have included nine panel-style antennas, a five-foot lightning rod, and a six-foot fence around it.
Civil engineers who were at Wednesday night’s meeting and who were a part of the project explained there would have been a standby generator in case of power outages. But residents say they don’t want it as part of their borough’s landscape.
“I’ve been there 46 years. I don’t think we need a tower there. I don’t think it should be there,” explained Resident Three.
Residents say they’re worried about exposure to long-term electromagnetic energy from the tower. Engineers with DBM, who are working with Verizon, say the exposure is low and it complies with FCC guidelines.
“I would expect measured resultants to be around a single percent or less if we were to measure at ground level,” stated a DBM Engineer.
“If they want it so bad they can put it in their own yard,” said Resident Three.
This is the second time the project was denied.
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