Councillors 'to approve' phone mast (From Watford Observer)

Councillors 'to approve' phone mast

3:40pm Tuesday 14th July 2009

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Councillors are expected to rubber-stamp a plan to build a 12-metre tall mobile phone mast in a sedate corner of Mill End.

Telecommunications giant Orange plans to build the mast, disguised as a lamp post, in Berry Lane, adjacent to a railway bridge.

Three Rivers District Council’s development control committee, which will meet on Thursday to discuss the application, is expected to raise “no objection” – despite the concerns of residents living nearby.

Under current planning law phone companies do not require formal planning permission from local authorities – necessary to build even small home extensions.

Instead, masts under 15 metres tall require only “prior approval” of the siting and appearance – with councils allowed only to suggest minor changes within a 56 day time-frame.

Council documents reveal that other sites, including Chorleywood Bottom, Nightingale Road and Valley Road – all discarded because of poor network coverage.

Residents living nearby have lodged complaints about the obtrusive appearance of the mast, its size, potential threat to traffic and even a threat to health.

The council’s planning department, however, has recommended that councillors approve the scheme.

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