No WCF on Single-Family Property

AT&T Withdraws Application

Hi Everyone,

Last night, the Belmont City Council had two items on its agenda related to AT&T's applications for wireless facilities: one was the modification of an existing pole-mounted installation in the public right-of-way on Notre Dame Avenue, and the other was the facility on a single-family residence across the street from that pole. Both proposals had been denied by the Planning Commission in 2014 and appealed to the City Council.

The Council heard the appeal for the public right-of-way installation first and decided to overturn the Planning Commission's denial, thus allowing AT&T the modifications. When asked by the Council what AT&T wanted to do about the second appeal, the representative said he wanted to withdraw the application. 

With that, I will close the petition. Thank you all for signing it and for encouraging your friends and neighbors to do the same. The crowd at the Council Meeting last night and the number of speakers show how important the issue is to the Community.

Many speakers asked the Council to investigate the possibility of a comprehensive solution that would provide the city with better wireless service using new, less intrusive technology, while preserving Belmont's beautiful neighborhoods. Let's hope the Council's agreement to do so was more than lip service. 

Thanks again for your support.

Birgit 

Appeal Hearing on February 10th

Hi Everyone,

The Belmont City Council will hear the appeal on Tuesday, February 10th, at 7 pm at City Hall. Please come to the meeting to show the City Council that this issue is important to many residents.

In the meantime, please keep talking to your friends and neighbors and encourage them to sign the petition. There are still too many people who’ve never heard of this proposal.

And if you have a couple of hours to spare between 2pm and 4 pm tomorrow or between 11am and 1pm on Sunday, please e-mail me at NoWirelessOnResidential@gmail.com, and I will let you know how you can help raise awareness.

Hope to see many of you on the 10th.

Best,

Birgit

City Council to Hear AT&T Proposal

City Council to Hear AT&T Proposal

Hi Everyone,

I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday. Here's the latest update on the proposal: on December 16, the Planning Commission voted on a Resolution of Denial, which was approved by four of the six Commissioners present. The remaining two Commissioners abstained. Thus, the proposal was officially denied by a vote of 4-0-2.

The many reasons for denying the application were related to the Conditional Use Permit, the Design Review as well as the Variance and included the following: the site is not of sufficient size; the installation would be detrimental to surrounding property owners; the use is not compatible with other uses in the vicinity; there is no practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship, and there are no exceptional circumstances related to the property that would require a variance. 

In addition, two Commissioners made it very clear at the meeting on November 18th that they believe an installation like this in the front yard of a single-family residence WOULD open the door for similiar installations not only in Belmont or the Bay Area, but possibly the entire state of California. 

AT&T appealed the decision to the City Council on December 23rd. The Planning Department was not able to tell me when the appeal will be heard, but I assume it will be sometime in the next four to six weeks. 

We need to increase our efforts to defeat this application; please talk to your friends and neighbors and ask them to sign the petition. The City Council needs to see that there is broad opposition to an installation such as this. Seeing many residents at the City Council Meeting will get that point across as well. 

I will keep you posted on the date of the City Council Meeting, and I hope to see many of you there.

Best regards,

Birgit Merian

Planning Commission Meeting on Tuesday, 11/18 at 7 pm

Hi Everyone,

This announcement is similar to the one I posted earlier today on NextDoor.

The proposal is on the agenda for the Planning Commission meeting this coming Tuesday, November 18, at 7 pm. (City Hall, Council Chambers, 2nd Floor, One Twin Pines Lane).

By signing the petition you've aready shown that you care about this issue. Now I'd like to ask you to come to the meeting if you can, because a large crowd will make an impression on the Commissioners. You don't have to speak, just be there and follow the proceedings. In fact, at this point It is unclear if the public will be allowed to comment, since the public comments section was officially closed at the September 16 hearing. Since then, new information has been made available, but it is at the Chair's discretion to reopen the public hearing. 

Hope to see many of you there.

Best,

Birgit Merian

Model of Proposed Wireless Installation

Hello Everyone,

I have created a 3-D model of the proposed installation based on the information provided by AT&T. While there may be minor discrepancies in the heights of some of the equipment, overall this is pretty much what it would look like. The images are now posted at the top of the petition, so anyone who is interested in signing it will understand how large the installation would be and why we're fighting against it.

Best regards,

Birgit Merian

We Need More Signatures

Thank you all for signing this petition. Together with the signatures gathered at the Save The Music Festival, we now have a total of about 140. But we need more. 

The proposal was supposed to be discussed at the Planning Commission Meeting last night, but it was postponed unitl November 18 because the third-party noise assessment is not yet complete. 

This gives us more time to gather signatures. Please encourage your spouses, adult children, friends and neighbors to sign the petition, so that we can show the City government that there is broad opposition to having a Wireless Communication Facility placed on a property zoned for single-family residential.

Best regards,

Birgit Merian

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