City Council OKs cell phone tower on New Hope and Central Heights
By Ty Johnson
Published in News on October 7, 2012 1:50 AM
Nearly three months after originally filing its request, U.S. Cellular finally got its conditional use permit to allow the cell phone company to erect a communications tower in the city last Monday night after the Goldsboro City Council approved the measure as part of its consent agenda.
The 120-foot monopole tower will be located on the Jennings Transmission property on the northwest corner of the intersection of East New Hope and Central Heights roads.
A request was originally submitted in July, but under that proposal the tower would have violated the city's setback requirements for towers. Structures of that type are required to be set back more than 150 percent of the tower height from property lines and residentially zoned property.
After the Planning Commission recommended denying the request, U.S. Cellular asked that it be denied without prejudice to allow the company to bring forward a similar request sooner. An outright denial of a conditional use permit means the applicant must wait at least six months before submitting a similar request.
The new request addressed the commission's concerns.
It was approved by consent along with a resolution registering the City Council's objection to a wind energy project that would impact the mission of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
City Manager Scott Stevens said the resolution is similar to resolutions passed by the Wayne County Commission and other municipalities in the area, except that it doesn't include concerns about the environmental impacts of the wind turbine farm.
Stevens said he felt the city's interest in the project was purely for the sake of the military base, and Mayor Al King appeared to echo those sentiments.
"We love wind farms, but we love Seymour Johnson better," King said.
The council approved the following items, also by consent:
* Setting a public hearing for the contiguous annexation of the Doug Henry property on the north side of U.S. 70 between Pizza Inn Lane and Norwood Avenue for Oct. 15
* The further examination of a contiguous annexation request from Best Properties for property on the southwest corner of the intersection of Cuyler Best and New Hope roads
* Site and landscape plans for State Employees Credit Union, which aims to construct a new branch on Wayne Memorial Drive across from Wayne Community College
* Site and landscape plans for Wayne Montessori School, which will build a new school on New Hare Road
* Site, landscape and elevation plans for Waynesboro Clinic to construct two new offices at the northeast corner of the intersection of Wayne Memorial Drive and Gracie Place
* Site plan modification plans for the Clinic of Life Church, which aims to construct a building on Graves Drive
* Site plan modification plans for Charles Norwood, who aims to repurpose the old SouthCo building on the south side of Commercial Drive between East Ash Street and Oak Forest Road
* Site plan modification plans for McArthur Properties, which wants to again operate a building as a garage on its property at the northeast corner of the intersection of U.S. 117 and Arrington Bridge Road
* A rezoning request submitted by Iris Weaver to change the zoning for property on the northeast corner of the intersection of East Ash Street and Andrews Avenue from residential to office and institutional
* A rezoning request submitted by Madison Avenue to change the zoning for property on the north side of East Ash Street between Madison Avenue and Best Street from residential to neighborhood business
* Closure of the 300 block of West Walnut Street from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. on Oct. 27 for Jazz on George
* The acceptance of federal property forfeiture program funds in the amount of $26,048.31 and state controlled substance tax remittance in the amount of $4,865.99.