railtrailbiker
Member
County building 180-foot communications tower in Franklin Lakes
Thursday, November 19, 2009
BY PHILIP DEVENCENTIS
Franklin Lakes - Oakland Suburban News
OF SUBURBAN NEWS
0 Comments franklin lakes — Bergen County is erecting a 180-foot communications tower at Saddle Ridge Riding Center to create a seamless radio network for public safety agencies throughout the region.
The tower, which is replacing a 50-foot one, will provide 95 percent portable radio coverage among participating police and fire departments countywide. Commercial cell phone carriers will not collocate on the tower.
County officials say the existing tower is too small and structurally inadequate to bear necessary radio equipment. It will be razed when the new tower is in operation.
The new tower's height complies with the borough's maximum allowable size for such structures and is required for point-to-point communications with a tower in Mahwah.
The county initially presented a plan for the tower's construction, at 900 Shadow Ridge Road, to the borough's Planning Board in February 2008. The county is not required to submit formal applications to municipalities or to obtain building permits.
A subsequent public hearing in March 2008 was attended by several riding center neighbors, who expressed concerns about the proposed tower's height and its proximity to residential properties.
The county tweaked its plan after that hearing by relocating the tower farther from residential property lines with the consent of the state Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres Program.
The 28-acre riding center is owned by the county and leased to an independent operator; it has more than 50 horse stalls. The land is part of Green Acres' inventory.
County communications director Sheri Hensley said by e-mail on Nov. 12 that ongoing discussions between the county and state regarding the tower's location delayed the next hearing until Nov. 4, when the board informally sanctioned the tower's construction.
Hensley said construction would begin immediately and is expected to take three to four months.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
BY PHILIP DEVENCENTIS
Franklin Lakes - Oakland Suburban News
OF SUBURBAN NEWS
0 Comments franklin lakes — Bergen County is erecting a 180-foot communications tower at Saddle Ridge Riding Center to create a seamless radio network for public safety agencies throughout the region.
The tower, which is replacing a 50-foot one, will provide 95 percent portable radio coverage among participating police and fire departments countywide. Commercial cell phone carriers will not collocate on the tower.
County officials say the existing tower is too small and structurally inadequate to bear necessary radio equipment. It will be razed when the new tower is in operation.
The new tower's height complies with the borough's maximum allowable size for such structures and is required for point-to-point communications with a tower in Mahwah.
The county initially presented a plan for the tower's construction, at 900 Shadow Ridge Road, to the borough's Planning Board in February 2008. The county is not required to submit formal applications to municipalities or to obtain building permits.
A subsequent public hearing in March 2008 was attended by several riding center neighbors, who expressed concerns about the proposed tower's height and its proximity to residential properties.
The county tweaked its plan after that hearing by relocating the tower farther from residential property lines with the consent of the state Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres Program.
The 28-acre riding center is owned by the county and leased to an independent operator; it has more than 50 horse stalls. The land is part of Green Acres' inventory.
County communications director Sheri Hensley said by e-mail on Nov. 12 that ongoing discussions between the county and state regarding the tower's location delayed the next hearing until Nov. 4, when the board informally sanctioned the tower's construction.
Hensley said construction would begin immediately and is expected to take three to four months.
