Six-month moratorium placed on new cell towers in Yorktown

The Yorktown Town Board unanimously approved a six-month moratorium Tuesday on new wireless telecommunications facilities, temporarily halting new cell tower applications as officials review and consider updates to the town’s regulations.

The moratorium blocks the issuance of building permits, special permits, certificates of occupancy and site plan approvals for the construction, establishment or leasing of new wireless telecommunications facilities through Dec. 31.

Supervisor Ed Lachterman told residents who attended the public hearing that they did not need to convince the board to support the measure — officials were already in favor of it.

The decision follows months of debate over wireless infrastructure, including the board’s March denial of a proposed 130-foot cell tower on Granite Springs Road. The proposal drew significant opposition from residents concerned about the tower’s impact on nearby wetlands and its proximity to homes.

According to the local law, Yorktown’s wireless telecommunications regulations were adopted in 1998 and may no longer reflect current industry practices or provide adequate protections for residents’ health, safety and welfare. Officials said the moratorium will allow the town to review the existing law, consider potential updates and determine whether changes are needed.

“If we have the moratorium, we can't put it into the system—that’s really what the importance of the moratorium is,” Lachterman said.

Town officials said the Planning Board reviewed the measure and had no objections. The Town Board also received several letters from residents supporting the moratorium, including many who previously opposed the Granite Springs Road proposal.

Homeland Towers, the company behind the Granite Springs Road application, opposed the moratorium. In a letter to the board, the company’s attorneys raised concerns about the legality and necessity of the measure.

“If the Town Board believes that it should amend the Town Code, it should do so without the need for an illegal and unnecessary moratorium,” the attorneys for Homeland wrote in the June 2 letter.

The moratorium gives town officials time to evaluate future wireless telecommunications regulations and determine how to balance the need for improved wireless service with residents’ concerns about new infrastructure.