"The foundation for moral leadership is the Truth."
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"The foundation for moral leadership is the Truth." |
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Address to the Barnegat Township Committee on Tues. February 20, 2007 EDITOR's NOTE: The following is a copy of what residents read during the Twp. Committee meeting on Tuesday 2/20. My name is Jamie Griffin, I live at 100 Lower Shore Road directly across the street from the proposed site of the New Cingular cell tower which is going before the Planning Board next Tuesday for multiple variance considerations as well as preliminary and final site plan approvals. This is Ken Warfield of Living Landscapes who owns the old blueberry farm also across from the proposed site. We've lived and worked in Barnegat for the past 22 years. Together we respectfully oppose this as the site of the New Cingular cell tower and plan to express this to the planning board next week. We'd like to present our concerns to you tonight, however, because this is not just a zoning issue; it will impact the recreation plans already set forward by this committee and so, is also a concern for the citizens of Barnegat. The proposed location is an undersized lot and does not conform in terms of area, width, depth or frontal setback. As a result, the proposed variances would place the cell phone tower within 340' of my home. If this application is approved, my daughters and I will literally wait for the school bus in the shadow of it; it'll be less than 50 feet away. When the Barnegat Jr. Bengals and their families come to play at the old soccer fields, they'll pass within 29 feet of these antennas, cabinets and tower. Surely, siting the tower right on the corner of Lower Shore and Old Lower Shore Roads can't be the best use of this gateway to a potentially great recreation area. Ken and I were thrilled to see the old soccer fields spruced up and enjoyed by the Barnegat Jr. Bengals this past summer and fall. We were even happier to see that our local government's insect control efforts really paid off. It was the first time that we could actually enjoy the property all summer long. We hoped that making this the home of the Jr. Bengals was evidence of the town's renewed interest in our beautiful and historic corner of Barnegat. It wasn't long ago that this tract of land along Old Lower Shore Road was considered as a potential site for a county park. Now, with the greenheads and mosquitoes gone, anything is possible. With future potential recreational use of this growing township in mind, placing a looming cell tower at the very entrance to an otherwise appealing area can't possibly be the best land use. We don't oppose the use of cell phones or the need for cell towers, but we respectfully consider this site to be wholly inappropriate in terms of size and proximity to my home and the community's children playing near by. Without getting embroiled in reams of research, we assert that the relative safety of exposure to cell tower emissions is still a matter of rigorous debate and will continue to be for some time. In the meantime, however, let's err on the side of safety and not choose to place a cell tower literally on top of my children, the Jr. Bengals or the many Barnegat residents who run, walk, bike and roller blade along Lower Shore Road. We ask you to encourage the planning board to reject this particular site. We realize that this might not be a big deal in view of all the things you contend with, but for us, it's what we'll come home to. Thank you for your time.
Respectfully,
Jamie Griffin and Ken Warfield Disclaimer: We are not responsible for all views posted on this website. Authors are solely responsible for the content of their articles. Linked material is the responsibility of the party who created it. Commenters are responsible for the content of comments. The opinions expressed in articles, linked materials, and comments are not necessarily those of DowntownBarnegat.com |