New Ordinance “will allow the municipality to take as much control as possible with the FCC” in re Small Cell Deployment

By B.N. Frank

A growing number of Americans – including lawmakers – are opposed to cell towers of all sizes, both 5G and 4G, being installed in their communities (see 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24). In Belmar, NJ, officials have made it more difficult for telecoms to do just that.

From Inside Towers:

Beach Town Lawyers Up and Passes Ordinances Opposing Verizon Small Cells

UPDATE Following the advice of newly hired telecommunication attorney Peter Lupo, officials in Belmar, NJ have approved revised ordinances aimed at keeping Verizon off the boardwalk. Since inheriting a connectivity project from the prior administration, Mayor Gerald Buccafusco has been vociferous in his quest to keep small cell towers out of town. An update from TapInto.net notes that Ordinance 2023-09 has been rewritten in an attempt to give Belmar more control over how its rights-of-way are employed.

Language within Chapters 43 and 43A has been revised to be more favorable to the borough’s ability to regulate itself. According to the mayor, the revisions will “protect us more and give us more flexibility when dealing with these telecommunications companies.” Specifically, Belmar has decreed that Verizon will have to use existing poles rather than installing its own small cell wireless poles. The new wording also seeks to incorporate noise restrictions that can be used as leverage against small cell development.

“A noise ordinance is incorporated in there, so if [a cell tower] makes a loud buzzing noise or something that annoys residents, and it’s consistent with the state DOT’s day time and night time noise [statutes], [Verizon] will have to come in and replace it,” Lupo confirmed to TapInto.net. “Also we have provisions where you can’t use advertising. So if you’re a carrier, you can’t have a sign over there. We want to keep this strictly related to telecommunications purposes,” he stated, adding, “There are provisions… so that the carrier, when they approach Belmar, is required to go ahead and use existing infrastructure.”

Lupo explained that “The new ordinances, which will replace these two [Chapter 43 and 43A], have provisions which will allow the municipality to take as much control as possible with the FCC.”

Although Verizon already received clearance to go ahead with a plan to install 20 small cell poles doubling as streetlights along the Belmar boardwalk, it is the expressed hope of the mayor and the borough council that the revised wording will be enough to stop Verizon from advancing. The new, constrictive language was unanimously approved by Buttafusco and the town officials.

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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is supposed to protect Americans by regulating the telecom industry. In 2021, a federal court ruled in favor of petitioners who sued the agency for NOT updating wireless radiation guidelines (including 5G) since 1996. Despite the court order, the agency has still not addressed this or that Electromagnetic Sensitivity (ES) is a federally recognized disability.