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POUND RIDGE, N.Y. More than a year after its building permit for a cell tower behind the Pound Ridge Ambulance Corps building on Westchester Avenue was approved, T-Mobile may finally be ready to begin construction.
Cara Bonomolo, a lawyer representing the cell provider, asked the Town Board last week for an extension on the building permit, which the company received in May 2011.
Bonomolo said T-Mobile has construction drawings prepared and will present them to the town this week.
However, the board and its attorney, J.J. Sullivan, said that before the town would issue the permit extension, it wanted T-Mobile to spell out in writing the timeline for the construction process.
This has gone on and on and on and still there is no tower, Sullivan said. We have been asking what (T-Mobile) is doing and we havent gotten an answer. I would like to see a written explanation of a time frame.
Pound Ridge officials say the lack of cell service throughout the town has become a safety and security issue.
Our emergency services have been dealing with this issue for a year, said Deputy Supervisor John Powers. This was approved a year ago and nothing has happened, so why should we believe anything?
Bonomolo said the economy has played a role in the construction delay, but T-Mobile is now ready to build the tower.
In this economy there have been some changes in the industry, she said. But Im pleased to report that (T-Mobile) is moving forward. The pole has been ordered and should be delivered by July.
At Sullivans urging, the board said it would be willing to grant a six-month extension if T-Mobile provides a construction timeline.
All we want is a simple statement saying that construction will begin here and end there, Sullivan said.
Bonomolo said she thought the company would have no problem providing the statement. The board then approved the extension with the stipulation that the statement is submitted this week.
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