With the recent announcement that T-Mobile will turn a temporary cell tower located next to the Garden State Parkway into a permanent fixture, the council has been investigating locations for another tower to be placed in the township. T-Mobile is still pursuing an application to place another tower at the township racquet club, leaving the council in a precarious position: resist the encroaching developments, or preemptively place a township-controlled tower on municipal property.

The township has been in conversations with T-Mobile regarding the placement of a separate tower next to the police station in the municipal complex.

Council President Robert Schroeder stressed at Monday’s work session that having a cell tower in town was not an ideal situation, acknowledging that the unsightly structure had the potential to lower property values. A number of residents at Monday’s public meeting echoed this concern.

In an effort to keep the visual impact to a minimum, the council has requested that T-Mobile use shrubbery and a berm to visually screen the 50 square-foot lot on which the cell tower is located. In addition, the town has inquired as to whether the 135-foot tower can be extended to 150 feet so that an additional tower is not needed.

Federal law prohibits the council from blocking cell companies seeking to build towers on municipal property if the towers are necessary for providing adequate cell coverage to their customers.