MILFORD -- Nobody at a public hearing Wednesday night seemed to like the idea of leasing city land in Eisenhower Park for a Verizon cell tower, but the intensity of the opposition depended on how close a speaker lived to the park.
About 20 people addressed the Park, Beach and Recreation Commission on the proposal. The first half came from the neighborhood around the Woodruff YMCA on Orange Avenue, where the tower was originally planned.
"I'm not opposed to cell phone towers in general, but if it is needed, I'd prefer it in Eisenhower Park rather than the Y, where the whole property is a playground," said Tina Laychak, of 24 Julia Court.
The second group, residents of Flax Mill Terrace and North Street, an area that borders Eisenhower Park, questioned the fairness of putting a 120-foot tall structure in a park already laced with high-voltage power lines.
"We have the same concerns where we live," Paul Lewis, of 857 North St., said. "A lot of people live near it; this tower would be directly across the street from me.''
The commission held the City Hall hearing because it has jurisdiction over most of the sprawling park, but it took no vote after the hour-long session.
"I want to reiterate that we are only here tonight because this was brought up by the Board of Aldermen," chairman Daniel Worroll said. "The rec commission didn't actively pursue this."
Cellco Partners Inc., which does business as Verizon, withdrew its application
to the Connecticut Siting Council after city officials asked it to consider an alternative site in Eisenhower Park, company lawyer Ken Baldwin said.
The siting council asked the company to consider alternate sites and the Barretta Garden Center property across North Street from the park also is being studied, Baldwin said.
"But that doesn't mean that the Y is off the table," he said. "The plan would be that Verizon would reapply to the siting council with several possible sites, including the Y, Eisenhower Park and the Barretta Gardens Nursery for the council to evaluate."
The process could take six months and would involve additional public hearings, the Verizon lawyer said.
"To clarify the process, the Planning and Zoning Board would also have a say in whether or not to lease city land and the aldermen have the final say," Mayor James L. Richetelli Jr. told the audience. "But the decision on whether or not it is a suitable location belongs to the siting council."
