By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — A crew has begun work preparing 92 Greens Farms Road for erection of a 124-foot cell tower.

A wide path through the trees, brush and bramble has been blazed from the road toward Interstate 95, where the monopole tower for AT&T and other carriers will be built on a private lot.

The green smell of freshly chopped foliage hung in the humid air Tuesday afternoon as a crew from Eastern Communications Inc. ate lunch nearby.

AT&T got final approval from the State Siting Council in April to begin work on the tower, said to be needed to fill signal gaps in the area.

The town of Westport and residents tried unsuccessfully to fight the application for the tower or to have it relocated.

Most neighbors who spoke at hearings expressed concerns about safety and radio frequency transmission, including 5G, aesthetics and the tower’s impact on property values and the environment.

Plans for a cell tower at 92 Greens Farms Road, initially proposed in 2014, were later withdrawn after AT&T encountered nationwide budget issues. The project, revived in 2021, is proposed by New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC, doing business as AT&T, and Tarpon Towers II LLC.

A few residents of neighborhoods near the tower site said they do have cellular connectivity problems, but most who spoke out opposed the project. Some did not like the thought that the tower mainly would serve people driving on nearby Interstate 95.

Thane Grauel grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond for 35 years. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.