Neighborhood finds it's hard to fight AT&T - 48 hills

"The company has a high-powered lobbying firm, Lighthouse Public Affairs, on a $10,000 monthly retainer, Ethics Commission records show. And the Planning Commission just voted to approve a plan to build a 104-foot tower with 12 new antennas in the middle of the residential neighborhood of Diamond Heights. The "monopole" would soar over existing trees and create a major new element on the skyline in a part of town where most construction is limited to four stories."

"The neighborhood was organized, and speakers at the commission meeting were 100 percent against the proposal (although 13 people in the neighborhood wrote to support the plan, with 83 opposed). Speakers noted that the tower would be an eyesore-but also a potential fire threat. In high winds, which are common in the area, tree contact with the tower could spark a blaze, and the facility would have a diesel fuel tank to power a backup generator."

AT&T retained Lighthouse Public Affairs for $10,000 monthly while the Planning Commission approved a 104-foot monopole with 12 antennas in the residential Diamond Heights neighborhood. The tower would rise above trees and alter a skyline dominated by four-story construction. Neighbors organized and nearly all public speakers opposed the plan, citing visual intrusion, proximity to a playground and Glen Canyon Park, and fire risk from tree contact in high winds and an on-site diesel backup tank. Former state Senator Mark Leno noted federal limits on non-ionizing radiation based on 1996 thermal measurements and recounted litigation over neighborhood beauty and safety.

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