Cell Phone Tower Called Visual Blight—but Retains Location Rights

A cell phone tower at 7840 El Cajon Blvd. continues to frustrate residents, who describe it as a visual blight on La Mesa's skyline. From one angle, the stately bell tower of St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church seems to have grown Mickey Mouse ears.

"It's a huge eyesore," said La Mesa resident Londell Kinsey.  "It shouldn't be there.  I don't even know if it's safe."

The 75-foot tower, approved under a provisional use permit by the La Mesa Planning Commission in 1994, was installed after it was determined it would not unreasonably increase traffic or noise in the area.

Although residents have consistently called for removal of the tower, local officials say the task is easier said than done.

"It wasn't until shortly after the permit for the tower was approved that the City Council adopted an ordinance that placed much tighter restrictions on cellular antenna facilities," said La Mesa Community Development Director William Chopyk.  "Now, conditional use permits expire after 10 years.   But unless there's an expiration, they run in perpetuity with the land."

What that means, according to Chopyk, is that the city's hands are tied.

"There is no legal way for us to require it be removed," he said.

Councilman Ernest Ewin says that while he agrees with residents that the tower should be taken down, the tower's owner, Boston-based American Tower Corp., is ultimately responsible for that decision.

"For as much as we'd like to see it gone, there's nothing we can do," Ewin said.  "It's ugly, but under terms of the permit it's allowed to be there."

Calls to American Tower Corp.—a Boston-based company that owns more than 32,000 towers worldwide and had revenues of $1.72 billion in 2009—were not returned.

But according to the company's website: "Social responsibility is demonstrated through our Green @ American Tower program. Our focus is on reducing the environmental impact of the materials used in our daily operations. By changing our work practices ... we can contribute to the greater good of conserving our natural resources and helping to improve the quality of the environment."

The company also notes that it strives to "minimize our impact on the environment."

In August 2000, the community of Rohrersville, MD, blocked construction of a proposed 190-foot tower by American Tower Corp., calling it a visual blight on a site near the Appalachian Trail.

In June 2002, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled in favor of Huntsville, AL, and forced the removal of American Tower Corp.'s cell phone tower near Grissom High School.

(Huntsville attorney Michael Fees, who represented the city, was quoted as saying the ruling "is an indication the court will listen to communities and their concerns about aesthetics and safety.")

And in October 2009, Oceanside city planners recommended that use permits for American Tower be revoked because the company hadn't delivered on a promise to make a cell phone tower look like a eucalyptus tree—to fit in with its surroundings.

Randy Roscoe, an employee of Accounting Consulting Tax Services, housed in the building adjacent to the tower, agrees the La Mesa skyline would benefit from its removal.

"It's a monstrosity that blows in the wind," she said.