By John Schwing

WESTPORT — Plans to erect a 124-foot-tall cell tower on a Greens Farms Road residential lot continue to spark controversy — including health, property value and environmental concerns — among neighbors and town officials, mirroring reactions to the project first proposed nearly eight years ago.

Neighbors sounded off at a public information meeting on the latest version of the project, hosted Tuesday by the town via Zoom, raising critical questions about the proposal by Tarpon Towers/AT&T to locate a cell tower at 92 Greens Farms Road.

Representatives from Tarpon Towers/AT&T were on hand to address some of the concerns, although formal studies on some issues, such as the impact on health, were not yet available.

First Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker, noting that the owner of an alternate site at 55 Greens Farms Road recently withdrew that property from consideration, said she is “very concerned” about the remaining location at 92 Greens Farms Road.

Tooker said that building cell towers on residential lots is not appropriate, and urged the developers to continue working with the town to find other possible sites to help fill coverage gaps that she acknowledged plague parts of the Greens Farms area.

Developers willing to consider other locations … for now

Town Attorney Ira Bloom sounded a similar note, saying several other sites have recently been identified, and he asked David Ball, a Cohen & Wolf lawyer representing Tarpon Towers, if the applicant would be willing to review those sites before filing a formal application with the Connecticut Siting Council.

Ball said Tarpon has always been willing to consider alternatives to 92 Greens Farms Road, noting that the developer spent months reviewing the 55 Greens Farms Road site only to see it withdrawn last week.

But he also noted the project has been in a holding pattern since being revived last summer, and indicated the developer is not likely to wait much longer to file an application with the siting council.

Tuesday’s hearing, as well as a series of meetings conducted by two boards on the tower plan, are considered advisory only. The siting council has sole jurisdiction to approve cell towers around the state.

The property at 92 Greens Farms Road, a privately owned, 1.86-acre lot next to Interstate 95, was first proposed as the location for a cell tower in 2014. After generating strong opposition, that plan was withdrawn.

Essentially the same proposal for the property re-emerged late last summer.

The single pole would hold equipment for primary carrier, AT&T, as well as Verizon, T-Mobile and Dish, according to information presented during the meeting. The developers also would let the town add emergency communications equipment at no charge.

In reaction to the resurrected plan, then-First Selectman Jim Marpe expressed serious reservations. And Tooker, his successor, has taken a similar stance, contending that cell towers do not belong on residential properties.

Plenty of static from neighbors

Nearly every member of the public who commented Tuesday raised questions about the plans. Some were vehemently opposed.

Stephen Goldstein, a Hillspoint Road resident, said he is strongly against the project and contended it is designed primarily to benefit drivers on I-95 “speeding through town” and not Westport residents.

He urged town officials to marshal resources to oppose the plan, and suggested they explore what kind of fees could be imposed on the tower if it goes forward.

Speaking of the owner of 92 Greens Farms Road, Goldstein asked, “Why do this deal with the devil?”

Greens Farms Road resident Craig Fisher and others wanted to know if any health impact studies of radiofrequency or radiation emissions from the cell tower have been conducted, noting that many nearby homes are occupied by young families with children.

Neighbor Whitney Kruger also focused on harmful health problems that she said could result from long-term exposure to cell tower transmissions, including a range of cancers to which children and women are particularly vulnerable.

Awareness of that potential harm, she said, should be heightened because the Children’s Community Development Center is less than a quarter-mile away from 92 Greens Farms Road, and Saugatuck Elementary School is about 1.3 miles away.

Kristen Motel, a lawyer for AT&T, responded that the communications firm is required to meet “conservative” radiofrequency emission standards set by federal agencies, and that if it fails to comply, its application would be denied.

Alicia Mozian, the town’s conservation director, said she has researched the project since 2014, and still has questions about its impact on water quality, flooding, wetlands and potentially septic issues.

Scott and Vanessa Mikuszewski, who live next door to 92 Greens Farms Road, joined in voicing strong opposition to the project.

Vanessa Mikuszewski said they organized a petition drive opposing the tower’s proposed location a few days ago and already have collected 125 signatures.

Peter Gold, a Representative Town Meeting member who said he was speaking as a private citizen, questioned several aspects of the project, including whether AT&T could eliminate the need for the Greens Farms tower by increasing the power of transmissions from other nearby towers.

He also questioned the accuracy of a map presented by the developers that showed areas of substandard cell service that the tower is designed to remedy. Gold, however, said he lives within that target area and has no problems at all with his cell phone service.

Neighbor worries about gaps in service during emergencies

Only one resident directly addressed the area’s need for improved cell phone service.

Carol Steinman said cell service at her Valley Road home is spotty at best, so she maintains a land line phone as a backup. But during power outages, both cell service and the land line are knocked out, Steinman said, so she has no means of communication in the event of an emergency.

In its advisory capacity, the Conservation Commission currently plans to hold another meeting on the cell tower plan Feb. 28.