milton town hall

Last night the Administration & Planning Standing Committee endorsed staff recommendation PD 026-12.  This was to modify the Town of Milton’s Telecommunication policy, while strongly urging telecommunication companies and Industry Canada to come to the table during discussions like the one we’ve had for the last 2 months and also to state opposition or what is called “non-concurrence” to the application from New Life Church & Altus Group (Bell Canada)

There was definitely an interest from the residents in the area surrounding the proposed tower and from all over Milton in attendance in what was a jam packed council chamber.  There were over 10 delegations listed and throughout the night, each one took ten minutes to explain their reasons for either supporting or not supporting the cell tower application. 

Of those delegates, many applauded town staffs report in its detail and thoroughness.  Some explained of their worries on the potential hazzards of living near a cell tower while others described the impact on the quality of life of business owners & those who no longer have landlines and soley use this technology as their only phone.  What was clear from everyone was this.  There was a call for better communication between the municipalities and the proponents is needed, especially as out town grows.

During my comments, I had mentioned that this isnt a short term issue.  As the Town of Milton grows from what was 35,000 to being approximately 100,000 now to its eventual size of nearly 250,000 people, THIS will happen again and again and again unless something is done about it.  The more people move to Milton, the more demand for better and faster data and phone services will increase.

So now that the Town (assuming the decision is ratified by full council on May 28th) has said no to this particular application, where do we go from here?  Good question.  Once this report is ratified, it will be sent back to the individual parties to see if some kind of resolution can be made on a possible compromise or new location entirely.  Thats a tough call. 

Outlined in the report was Altus Group’s attempt at other locations in the prime area with no success.  These towers cant be just arbitrarily placed whever needed.  There has to be a willing host for the tower and Altus Group found that willing party in New Life Church.

Not to burst any bubbles, but the deal isnt dead.  Maybe the two parties can come to an agreement or Altus Group can find another willing host for a tower.  If they cant come to that agreement on consensus, the eventual decision will be made by Industry Canada.  In some cases, municipalities that have opposed towers and Industry Canada has agreed with them, but thats not always the case.

There have been towns and cities who have opposed cell towers, only to have Industry Canada approve them anyway.  We will have to see how this develops over time.  But there is one thing that is quite clear that needs to happen.

Everyone’s got to come to the table from the beginning.  The Boyne Survey is the next “chunk” of residential development that will start soon and will bring what is estimated to be 70,000 more people to the greatest town in the world.  Imagine that.  70,000 MORE Miltonians.  With those people moving to Milton, it will bring more phones, Black Berry’s, iPhones and push the limits of what we currently have in place.

The reality is NO ONE wants towers in their backyard and in residential areas.  It’s been a clear message I and other councillors have heard over the last 2 months.  If not there….then where?  This is why the TC’s (telecommunication companies) need to come to the table with our planning department so as we plan the Boyne Survey and other developments, we can get an idea of where these need to be placed.  Then we can discuss these locations with current landowners and come to some form of an agreement with them so we can plan around the towers in residential areas and avoid any further issues.

I have read roughly 200 different reports, studies and brochures on this technology.  The good and the bad.  Some were quite clear in their conclusions while some left details and arguments to be desired.  During the two months I have spoken with, and will continue to follow up with a number of real estate agents both inside and outside of Milton to gauge what might happen to property values when cell towers are erected. 

One presenter last night, who admittedly isnt an expert in real estate, but in economics, stated over and over that property values would plummet in areas where cell towers are put in place.  To be honest, the real estate agents I spoke with in detail showed me proof that despite the claims of the presenter last night, property values do not decrease.  There has been no evidence in Milton to prove that property values go down in areas surrounding cell towers.  In particular Duncan Lane, which at some points directly fronts a cell tower located on Bronte Street (near a child care institution) there have been homes sold OVER asking price.

I’m sure that debate will continue as these towers continue to be installed to improve the quality of communication, data transfer and fill in the empty areas to ensure no dropped calls by providers.

During this process I have also had the opportunity to speak with many people both in my ward and all throughout the Town of Milton and have learned a lot from them.  As I continually updated my website, many from outside Milton took the time to read my posts and even offer links to studies and other sources of information.

This past Thursday I received an email from Todd White of Canadian Radiocommunications Information & Notification Service (CRINS) who provided me with a link to their organizations website which I thought was valuable.  With his permission, here is his email:

Dear Mike,

However, I wanted to suggest that you  should feel free to send members of the public to our website – http://www.crins-sinrc.ca/  – specifically to the “I Have A Question…” section which lays out quite clearly the jurisdictional and process issues surrounding antenna siting.  This may reduce the amount of time you spend explaining to the public how the process works, and it will hopefully give you some of your day back.

Todd White
Executive Director  CRINS

Please take a few moments to read through his website as it provides a good source of information and clearly answers a number of questions that people might have.

I wanted to end with a thank you to all the people I have spoken with recently.  I have learned a lot about this technology and its potential affects on the public and more importantly, the process that needs to be followed in case….nope, WHEN it happens again.  I hope that when it does come up again, we have everyone to the table beforehand in an open and frank discussion so that people are not surprised when another application is made.

I’ll see you at the doors.