Opposition to Blair High School Cell Tower Because of the Radiation

Watch parents, neighbors and citizen groups call to halt the cell tower at Blair High School in the videos below. 

Fact: Once it is up, companies CAN get permits to place their commercial antennas on the 199 foot pole. The landowner will NOT be able to stop it. 

To be clear, the new tower is not proposed as a cell tower, but as a tower that would, at least initially, host 7 of the County's antennas for their public radio safety system.However, commercial antennas can be added later  to this 199' tower as we have seen with other macro towers.  Once the macro tower is constructed it becomes an "existing structure" that other .carriers can co-locate their equipment on.  Wireless companies have targeted this location for years and a previous application at the same exact location for 170' tower by Sprint was found to be too large for the site and not compliant with the County Code so it had to be withdrawn.  By having the County build this new 199' macro tower through a different process called Mandatory Referral,  a loophole can be exploited that allows  additional commercial antennas to be attached without notice or hearing. This would circumvent the required public hearing process for New Telecommunications Towers in Montgomery County.

What can you do? 
If they agree that this is not a good idea, please write to the County Executive who is the one who proposed it and will make the final decision.
The Honorable Marc Elrich, County Executive
101 Monroe Street
Rockville, MD 20850
OCEMail@montgomerycountymd.gov


Contact the Montgomery County Executive  Marc Elrich: Tell him to STOP the tower at Blair and to consider the alternative site at such as the 265 foot tower on Sligo Golf Course which is only 1.5 miles away from this location. The County only needs space for 7 antennas. There is also already a site 1.5 miles to the north that is on top of a building that covers this area.



  

Note that a recent study recommends towers be located at least 1,600 feet from schools. (Pearce JM. "Limiting Liability with Positioning to Minimize Negative Health Effects of Cellular Phone Towers." Environmental Research.)  (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935119306425)

There are 4 schools and a child care in this small area all of which are located less than 1,600 feet from the two towers

Veliza's Child Care (up to 5 years old), 

Silver Spring Day School (2 years old - pre-k)

Pine Crest Elementary School (3rd - 6th grade)

St. Bernadette Elementary School (pre-k to 8th)

Blair High School (9th - 12th grade)