Petersburg's cell tower rules advance, flaws and all

Petersburg is writing new rules for cell towers, and the messy way it's getting there has become part of the story. The Borough Assembly advanced the ordinance 5-0 Monday — but even members who voted yes weren't happy with how it came together. Vice Mayor Stanton Gregor called the process "deeply flawed," noting he'd never seen an ordinance need so many fixes: 15 amendments across two readings. "If we have to do 15 amendments, we should have not brought it forward until it was done," he said.

The ordinance would set where and how wireless facilities can be built in Petersburg — requiring Planning Commission review, favoring shared towers over new ones, and setting buffers around sensitive areas. Residents packed the hearing to push back, and the sharpest fight is over those buffers: the setback from sensitive areas was cut from 1,500 feet to 500. Speakers wanted stronger protection for the hospital, assisted living, and the fire hall, and one resident said about 350 people have signed a statement of concern over tower placement. One asked for a moratorium, citing local hazards like this year's heavy ice buildup on structures.

Underneath the local debate is a hard limit the assembly can't cross. Residents wanted the borough to keep oversight of radio-frequency safety, but federal law — the 1996 Telecommunications Act — bars local governments from regulating towers on health grounds, which is why the ordinance defers those calls to the FCC. That's the real bind: the community wants control the law doesn't let it have. A third and final reading is still required.