Morristown may be getting a makeover next year.
Verizon Wireless is asking town officials to authorize 50 “small cell nodes,” for blanket coverage by the company’s 4G and 5G networks.
Some nodes would be appended atop existing utility poles and street lights. Others would require new poles. Transmission gear could be concealed within “stealth” poles.
While these transmitters can be elevated up to 50 feet, per federal guidelines, “we try to keep that as low as we can, especially in terms of your downtown area where aesthetics is much more of concern,” Verizon spokesman Bryan Cline told the council at its virtual meeting Tuesday.
“We need these small cell sites to bring the highest level of capacity and coverage possible down close to the user, in order to continue to have the bandwidth available now and tomorrow for this explosive use of data,” Cline said.
Slideshow photos by Kevin Coughlin. Click/hover on images for captions:
Each node has a range of about 1,000 feet, and emits radio frequency energy 2,000 times lower than the federal limit, exposing passersby to less radiation than a mobile phone, cordless phone or Bluetooth headphones, according to Verizon’s presentation.
Peak exposure would occur about 25 feet from a node atop a 25-foot pole, said Verizon consultant Andy Petersohn, asserting the technology complies with federal standards “designed to protect everyone, including children and the elderly.”
Fifty small cell sites may be just the beginning for the three-square-mile municipality.
When town Administrator Jillian Barrick asked if two more phases are anticipated, Cline hedged. “I will have to get back to you on that Jillian. I am not entirely sure, as these things are kind of fluid.”
Pressed further, he acknowledged that “as technology evolves and as data use continues to grow, I think it is likely to assume that there would be some additional projects down the road.”
And those projects may not be limited to Verizon. Under questioning by council members, Cline said it’s possible rivals such as T-Mobile/Sprint and AT&T will want to erect their own small cell sites.
Some poles might be shared–it’s being done in downtown Princeton, said Verizon attorney Kevin Jones.
But there are no guarantees, Cline said. Shared poles must be wider and taller, and cannot always accommodate technologies and needs that differ among competitors, he said.
Verizon hopes to start “as soon as possible,” Cline said, by securing council approval, building permits and rights-of-way for deployment in 2021.
The company intends to make a one-time payment to the town. How much has not yet been discussed, Barrick told Morristown Green.
Council President Stefan Armington enlisted Council members Robert Iannaccone and Sandi Mayer to join him on a committee to study the matter. Iannaccone asked to include the Morristown Partnership, which maintains street lights that presumably would be retrofitted by Verizon.
The Verizon team promised a website with more details, and recommended sites of the Federal Communications Commission, the Food and Drug Administration and the wireless industry association CTIA for safety questions.
OUTDOOR DINING EXTENDED; BONDS FOR M STATION
In other business, the council extended relaxed rules for outdoor dining. Restaurants and taverns seeking permission to serve patrons outside can continue bypassing the council, to deal directly with Barrick, the town administrator.
The council authorized this change in June, to streamline approvals for establishments struggling during the pandemic. By a 6-0 vote, the council agreed on Tuesday to extend the arrangement through 2021 or until Gov. Phil Murphy lifts restrictions on indoor dining–whichever comes sooner.
Also approved: An $8.8 million bond sale to finance a traffic roundabout and other off- and onsite improvements promised by redevelopers of the M Station office/retail complex on Morris Street.
Town Bond Counsel Matthew Jessup said Morristown taxpayers are not on the hook for these “non-recourse redevelopment area” bonds. They will be secured solely by payments-in-lieu of taxes from the redevelopers, Jessup said.
Councilman Robert Iannaccone, who cast the lone “no” vote, has contended Scotto Properties and SJP Properties have used the pandemic to shift costs of their promised improvements to the town.
It was a 5-1 vote; Councilwoman Tawanna Cotten was absent.
The council also reappointed town Clerk Margot Kaye. Hired from Mendham in 2017, she now is tenured.
