Government

West Pasadena Residents Win Delay in Cell Tower Addition

Successful appeal to City Council may reverberate in Pasadena and surrounding communities

From STAFF REPORTS
Published: Wednesday, July 13, 2011 | 6:06 AM

A group of West Pasadena residents was successful in convincing the Pasadena City Council to require the Department of Public Works (DPW) to further investigate the installation of a cell phone tower on South Grand Ave. at West California Blvd. at the council meeting on Monday night. The council will take up the matter again on August 8.

“I commend the City Council for the in-depth discussion,” Gretchen Brickson, who spearheaded the appeal to the DPW’s decision, commented. “I appreciate that they thoroughly considered the issue and sent it back to staff.”

The DPW had previously approved the request by T-Mobile to attach a telecommunications array to a wooden guide-wire pole on the northeast corner of Grand and California. It would be the third installation of that size in Pasadena since the approval of a more stringent code two years ago and the only one on a wooden pole.

Residents said they were not opposed to a cell phone tower, but were concerned about the location and the safety of the aged pole. Resident Chris Sutton, whose family first moved into the neighborhood in 1959, said the pole was there when they moved in.

After hearing a presentation by West Pasadena resident Gretchen Brickson and listening to public comments, the City Council identified three issues related to Pasadena’s General Plan for the DPW to reconsider.

In terms of preservation, the proposed location is in an area identified in the National Register of Historic Places. It might be more appropriate to locate the array on an existing light standard on California closer to Orange Grove, or to have T-Mobile install a new light standard to support the array that would be consistent with the neighborhood.

The wooden pole is owned by the Joint Pole Association of which T-Mobile is a member, and not by the city, so the city would not receive rent. Relocating the array to a city-owned pole would result in T-Mobile paying the city $8,000 per year in rent. Members of the City Council were not aware of this until the Monday meeting.

Residents did not receive sufficient notification of the pending installation with accurate depictions of how the array will look. The picture presented by T-Mobile was of a different installation and T-Mobile did not give DPW an accurate simulation until after staff had approved the proposal.

The appeal of the DPW’s decision to approve the proposal caused the council to more closely examine how decisions are made regarding communications towers. The code currently leaves such decisions to staff, so public hearings are not required. The council can request a public meeting, however, which will be done in this case.

Councilmember Steve Madison expressed concern that when the city moves wiring underground in a few years, the pole will be removed and T-Mobile will have to relocate the array. “Will we have to pay T-Mobile for the pole?” he asked.

“Maybe we do need to look at process,” Councilmember Chris Holden said.

The matter was remanded to staff due to concerns about public notification and the location. The DPW will convene a public meeting next week for residents to present their concerns prior to that date.

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