Milton cell tower could face another appeal

A proposed 140-foot cellphone tower in downtown Milton has twice been the subject of citizen administrative appeals and could be subject to another appeal should final site plans be approved by the planning and zoning commission.

Verizon already has received a special-use permit and preliminary site-plan approval for the tower, which would be constructed near the town’s public works yard on Front Street. Both of those approvals were appealed and upheld by town council.

There is no timetable on when final site-plan approval will be heard by the commission. Typically, it takes an applicant several months between preliminary and final approval because the applicant must gain approvals from relevant state agencies. 

At council’s June 6 meeting, Ridge Road resident Steve Crawford told council that if the final site-plan approval goes through, he planned to appeal the decision to Delaware Superior Court.

“I feel strongly about this because the Milton comprehensive plan has wording about developing this area of the town as a gateway to Milton,” Crawford said after the June 6 meeting. “Front Street is one of the main roads into Milton, and with the removal of the water treatment plant and public works facility, there is a great opportunity for the town to develop this area by taking advantage of the Broadkill River and all the amenities that can be associated with property on the river. Allowing a cell tower to be put in this area on Front Street is counter to what the comp plan is envisioning.”

The proposed tower’s location has been its most controversial feature. Verizon has said the Front Street location and height of the tower will give the best cellphone coverage for Verizon customers in Milton. Opponents say the tower would be an eyesore in a part of town that frequently floods. They also point to the comprehensive development plan, where it says the area is intended to be a gateway, especially after the current wastewater treatment plant is demolished when Artesian’s new plant on Route 30 is up and running. 

Because the land is zoned R-1 residential, Verizon had to get a special-use permit from planning and zoning. That permit was granted, and the decision was appealed to the town council in August. In its ruling then, council stated the comprehensive plan imagines what could be at that site but also calls for improved infrastructure services, which the tower would provide, and that planners put in a condition that says plans for the tower must comply with all state and federal rules and regulations. Council members said issues with the floodplain would be addressed in the site-plan review process. 

The planners approved preliminary site plans in November, but attached several conditions that must be met before final approval, including a geotechnical analysis of the site in both wet and dry conditions, permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a sequence of construction, a restriction on pile-driving, an analysis of runoff and flooding, vibration monitoring, and a promise that Verizon will maintain plantings around the site. 

Preliminary site-plan approval was appealed and heard in March, where council again upheld the commission’s decision. It should be noted that the standard for review in both appeals was whether the commission held a thorough and logical review of the application leading to an informed decision. By that measure, council cited the series of conditions the commission attached to preliminary approval as evidence of a thorough review.