The Village of Plandome now has until Sept. 9 to vote on an application for ten cell nodes ExteNet Systems is seeking to install on behalf of Verizon, an extension from what was originally a June 22 deadline, according to village officials.
The village board also hired CityScape Consultants, a Florida-based wireless communications consultant for $8,000, with added travel costs, to help the village review the application, said Mayor Thomas Minutillo.
“We were pleased with the 2.5 month extension in order to optimize the services of the village’s new consultant, CityScape Consultants Inc. who is expert in this area and fully apprised of the most current legislation and how it specifically applies to our village,” Minutillo wrote in an email. “We have learned there is a need to clarify some misconceptions. We are in [the] process of mapping out the timeline of activities, with consideration of summer break in August.”
The ten cell nodes have been a contentious issue in the village in recent months, where residents have packed hours long public hearings to raise concerns about home values, safety and the purpose of the technology. The cell nodes would offer short-range 4G service.
Resident responses to ExteNet applications in the village of Lake Success and Flower Hill have been similarly impassioned, and residents in all three villages have hired a communications attorney, Andrew Campanelli, to represent them in their opposition.
The village boards in Flower Hill and Lake Success both hired CityScape as well.
The Plandome Board of Trustees appreciates how many residents have become involved in the issue, Minutillo said.
“The Board could not be more pleased with the level of interest and engagement of the residents,” Minutillo said.
CityScape will be at the next Plandome Board of Trustees meeting on July 8 to discuss the application, according to the village.
Sept. 9 is scheduled as a final public hearing and board vote on the matter.
