7/2/09
The Board of Appeals has set a public hearing for Monday, July 13, to discuss proposed construction of a cell tower off Blue Hill River Road.
Green Mountain Communications, a telecommunications provider located in New Hampshire, is proposing building the tower, which would stand at 140 feet on land it has leased from MassHighway. The parcel is located next to the southbound Route 93 onramp near Blue Hill River Road and Blue Hill Street, according to documents the company prepared for the town back in April.
Since that initial proposal, the Board of Appeals has walked the site and observed crane tests. The board held an initial public hearing in June to gauge neighborhood opinion about the construction.
According to Joseph Sloane, a representative for Friends of the Blue Hills who attended the first hearing, neighbors who listened to the proposal weren’t convinced that the tower would fit within the area.
“I think we needed a more complete perspective of what the thing is going to look like. The proponent really dropped the ball on that,” said Sloane. “The major concern was that Milton has a specific chapter in the bylaws for telecommunications towers, and that bylaw is heavily weighted in favor of looking at the visual impact of a construction.”
The town’s zoning bylaw on telecommunications structures suggests “the use of wireless communications facilities which employ the least visually intrusive technology available in the industry,” and discourages “the construction or location of free-standing towers.” The bylaw also encourages “eliminating or minimizing the adverse visual and aesthetic impact” of such a tower.
The hearing will take place at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall, located at 525 Canton Ave. For more information, contact the Board of Appeals at (617) 898-4932.
“It’s really an opportunity to get more information. We encourage anyone interested to attend,” said Sloane.

– Scott MacKeen