U.S. Cellular has begun the construction of an 85-foot cell phone tower at 509 W. Depot Ave. on property leased from Whitney Monument Works. U.S. Cellular project manager Gary Duchesne said the site was chosen to meet planning objectives for the network.
A building permit for the tower, which is to be located in a general manufacturing district, where there are no height restrictions, was obtained from the city in June. The city does not regulate cell phone towers.
Concerned residents are rallying to stop the tower's construction because of its proximity to homes and schools.
In a letter to the editor in today's Ledger, Laura Guthrie wrote, "I feel concerned by the growing research suggesting that major health problems can occur from the radio frequencies (a form of electromagnetic radiation) that these towers emit."
Opponents of the tower are pointing to research linking radiation from such towers to cancers, tumors and other health issues.
However, CTIA-The Wireless Association, an international association for the industry, refutes those claims.
"To date, the available scientific evidence does not show that any health problems are associated with using wireless phones. Many studies of low-level RF exposure, such as that which occurs with wireless devices, have not discovered any negative biological effects. Some studies have suggested such a connection, but their findings have not been replicated or supported in additional research," according to a CTIA Web site referenced by Kevin Schuster, a public relations representative for U.S. Cellular.
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