How many cell towers are too many?

FRANKLIN — A St. Mary Parish Council topic Wednesday exhibited an odd bit of timing, but the subject resonated in light of recent events: How many cell towers are too many, and how many are enough?
In the end, the council voted to allow a second cell tower to be built about half a mile from an existing tower in the Port of West St. Mary area.
Plans by Tillman Infrastructure of Lafayette to build the second tower predated Hurricane Ida, and were recommended for approval by the Planning & Zoning Commission before the storm came ashore at Port Fourchon on Aug. 29.
Construction of the second tower required rezoning, the rezoning required a new ordinance, and the ordinance required a public hearing. That happened Wednesday night before the regular meeting at which the council was to take up the rezoning ordinance.
And into the public hearing stepped Wendell Clark, an attorney representing SBA Structures, the owner of the existing cell tower.
The new tower will duplicate services without offering anything new for consumers, Clark argued.
The current tower serves AT&T and Verizon customers and the FirstNet communications for first responders. The providers use the tower under lease with SBA, Clark said.
He believes AT&T is encouraging the construction of multiple towers in order to lower the cost of leasing space on towers.
And that, Clark argued, runs against parish land use rules, which say “development should be coordinated with the physical and natural environments, placing a premium upon developing in harmony with existing natural features” and “development activity can be strengthened through development in St. Mary Parish that is cost effective, well designed, and sensible.”
“For the parish,” Clark told the council, “it’s a ‘how many towers do you want on the landscape?’ issue.”
Predictably, a spokesman for Tillman, the company that wants to build the second tower, didn’t embrace that view.
“They’re trying to monopolize,” said John Mitchell of Tillman. “He doesn’t know for certain becauce I don’t know what we’ll be offering.
“It’s a power grab,” Tillman said. “It’s a money grab.”
What could have been minor zoning dispute took on some added weight after Ida.
For days after the storm, many St. Mary people lost cellphone service even though the hurricane damage wasn’t severe here.
And the problems went beyond the inability to post on Facebook or call relatives with “I’m OK” messages.
Police communications were also disrupted by the lack of cell service, forcing some officers to dig out older, outdated communications equipment.
During the council discussion, Chairman Dean Adams and Councilman Patrick Hebert of Morgan City argued in favor of allowing the second tower on pro-business grounds.
Councilman Rodney Olander made the case that Ida showed what can happen when a tower goes out of operating. Two towers would offer a better chance of maintaining service, Olander said.
The council approved the ordinance that would allow the second tower’s construction without objection.