Zoning Board denies AT&T's cell tower request

In a unanimous vote last Thursday, the Zoning Board of Appeals denied AT&T’s application to permanently house antennas on top of an apartment building on Riverside Boulevard.

AT&T has had antennas affixed to Granada Towers, a condominium at 310 Riverside Boulevard, since 1990. This dispute was over the change of the placement of the antennas.

Since their installation, the antennas had been mounted on the parapet walls of the exterior of the building. Last June, AT&T was granted a temporary permit by the city to move the antennas to the roof because the building’s exterior needed repairs. AT&T was now asking the zoning board to allow the antennas to remain on the roof permanently.

There was no discussion before the vote took place at last week’s meeting. But at the previous meeting, when the case was heard, a mixture of attorneys, experts and residents spoke for almost three hours to the merits or disadvantages of keeping the antennas on the roof.

AT&T insisted that the roof was the best location for the nine antennas, because their weight can be distributed more evenly, making them more stable and better able to resist wind.

During that meeting, the building’s engineer testified that the original location of the antennas was not ideal, and that keeping them on the roof would make them easier to maintain, and more securely anchored.

But residents objected, on the grounds of both safety and aesthetics. They claimed that the roof was not built to support the weight of the structures. They said they were an eyesore. And they were also concerned about increased radiation exposure.

Jennifer Bambino, a penthouse resident, was most directly affected by the rooftop placement of the antenna, as they were mounted directly on top of her apartment. At the meeting, she presented the zoning board with pictures of her apartment, showing the cracks in her ceiling and walls that she said were a direct result of the extreme weight of the antennas. The cracks were in line with where the antennas were mounted, she said.

Bambino was evacuated in the weeks after Hurricane Sandy. “When I left around Thanksgiving, those cracks were not there,” she said at the meeting. “I only noticed them [in early January] when I went back to grab some things.”

Bambino, who hired an attorney to help handle the matter, said she was thrilled with the zoning board’s decision. Had the zoning board not ruled in her favor, Bambino was prepared to take legal action against AT&T.

“Their vote helped justify the emotional and financial stress that I have been going through over these last eight months,” said Bambino.

If AT&T chooses to reapply to the zoning board, they will be forced to wait a year until they can resubmit their application.