By Dandan Zou
A group of residents rallied Wednesday in front of a Verizon store on Port Washington’s Main Street to protest the impending installation of 16 small cellphone nodes near some of their homes, citing health concerns and what they called a lack of transparency from town government and the telecommunications companies.
About 20 people occasionally chanted “Don’t experiment on Port Washington” as they held signs and passed flyers to drivers stopped near the intersection of Main Street and Herbert Avenue.
“To have a cell node in front of my house is not something I asked for. It’s just being shoved down my throat,” said Mike Gallagher, who co-organized the rally. “I don’t like the fact that there was no transparency from the town or from the telecoms.”
ExteNet, an Illinois-based company hired by Verizon to deploy the equipment across North Hempstead Town, asked town officials in October for permission to install the cellular facilities on utility poles in Port Washington, including one near Gallagher’s home.
After town officials took no action within 90 days, ExteNet sued and won. A federal judge ruled in favor of the company on June 26, and in July he ordered the town to issue ExteNet the required permits to install the equipment. The town is appealing that decision.
Gallagher estimated the new equipment, which would be installed on a utility pole on his front lawn, is about 23 feet from his second-floor bedroom window.
“I didn’t have any say in the matter,” Gallagher said. “We couldn’t voice our opinions at a board meeting. This is the only form we could do that involves the public.”
The town had scheduled a public hearing on ExteNet’s application for March 19, but officials canceled it due to the coronavirus pandemic. No new hearings have been scheduled.
“We expect and demand that corporations in our town conduct themselves as good corporate neighbors,” town spokesman Gordon Tepper wrote in an email Tuesday. “ExteNet and Verizon’s failure to do so will require our town, and other towns, to take unprecedented steps to stand up to this egregious abuse of authority.”
Tepper said the town has issued the permits, but “to our knowledge, construction has not started.”
ExteNet did not respond to a request for comment or answer a question about its timeline for installation.
Verizon spokesman Chris Serico said the company’s network equipment operates “well within” the Federal Communications Commission emission levels. The deployment for the small antennas, which he noted are for Verizon’s 4G LTE network, would generate faster speeds and more reliable connections.
“Small cells like this one are an important part of ensuring reliable connectivity for our subscribers — something so important for people particularly during this time when more are working or learning from home,” Serico wrote in an email Wednesday.
But residents like Daniel Miller argued there’s no need for additional coverage or capacity. During quarantine, he said families have had no issue streaming digital content.
“No one is complaining that the movies are slow or skipping. We have enough. It’s fast enough,” Miller said. “It’s not that we need more. It’s just that they are pushing more for more profits.”
TIMELINE OF RESISTANCE
Early 2017
ExteNet approached North Hempstead Town officials about deploying cellular facilities in Port Washington.
March 2019
Officials amended town code regulating wireless telecommunication facilities.
Oct. 1, 2019
North Hempstead Town officials received ExteNet’s application.
Jan. 22, 2020
ExteNet filed a lawsuit against the town.
June 26, 2020
Judge Edward R. Korman ruled in favor of ExteNet.
July 2020
Korman orders North Hempstead Town to issue ExteNet the required permits to install the equipment.
gordontepper.com 