TC Supervisors Revisit Cell Tower Ordinance Tuesday

Sonora, CA — The Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors will consider amendments to the regulations pertaining to wireless communication facilities at its meeting Tuesday.

The existing county cell tower ordinance has been in place for more than three years and has been a hot topic of discussion among the community and the Supervisors.

At a meeting in November the board voted to consider a broad range of changes to the ordinance, which will be presented by the staff Tuesday. Supporters of the changes say the current ordinance is making it very difficult for cell phone companies to do business.

George Segarini with the Chamber of Commerce believes more cell towers have been constructed in Calaveras County than Tuolumne due to all of the restrictions. Some residents who oppose changing the ordinance argue that the cell towers are an eye sore and will deter tourism.

Dan Rule with Golden State Cellular says there are a lot of options when it comes to cell towers. He says that although he would like to see looser specifications, Golden State is looking at putting antennas on existing structures, like buildings, rather than building new towers.

The Board is expected to address the cell tower issue at 1:30pm. To listen to the live stream of the meeting click here. The weekly supervisors´ meeting is brought to you by Blue Mountain Minerals.

Written by Sabrina Sabbagh