The Castle Rock City Council has approved the construction of a new T-Mobile communications tower at Butterfield Crossing Park amid mixed emotions from surrounding residents.
The council’s unanimous approval of the tower comes after plans to build one at Bison Park were previously rejected.
The tower is a 35-foot-tall structure attached to the pool locker room at Butterfield Crossing Park and will house T-Mobile 5G technology. Under the lease, T-Mobile agrees to pay $3,500 per month for the first year, with 3% increases each year. The lease term is for five years, with an option to extend.
Most residents at the March 19 City Council meeting opposed the tower, citing health concerns and the potential negative impact to property values. The nearest homes are about 470 feet from the tower. Meadow View Elementary School is also near the park.
“Given that it’s near an elementary school, a playground, and surrounding homes, there could be a very large amount of wireless radiation signals present all day, every day,” Abby Meraz said. “My main concern is my health, but I’m also worried about the value of my home.”
The American Cancer Society says there is no solid evidence linking radio frequencies from cell phone towers to health effects, but more research is needed to know the long-term effects. The Federal Communications Commission says radio frequencies from cell towers are “typically thousands of times below safety limits.”
Some nearby residents said they supported the tower because they wanted more reliable cell service.
“I keep my cell phone in a holster on my belt because when you’re 85 years old, you want to be sure you can get help when you need it,” Fred Wolfhoff said. “If I need to call for help for my wife, I want to be able to get help, and I need a reliable signal to do that.”
City Councilwoman Laura Cavey, who works for Verizon, said she sympathizes with residents’ concerns but worries that poor access to cell service will compromise public safety.
“I think there’s a safety issue for seniors or anyone who has a loved one with any kind of health issues,” Cavey said.
She added that she feels the tower’s design will blend into its surroundings and be prominent enough not to impact on the character of the area.
Previous plans to build a tower at Bison Park were rejected following protests from residents in the area who raised similar concerns, but the council felt it would be more appropriate to build the tower at Butterfield Crossing Park as it would be attached to an existing building and there is already another cell tower in the park.
While other locations within the town will be explored, town officials and T-Mobile representatives said there is limited space in Castle Rock to build communications infrastructure because of the ridges and topography.
As part of the tower construction, T-Mobile will also build an accessible walkway near the pool’s locker rooms.
