One of the many sources of aggravation with Asheville City Council meetings through the years has been requests for ordinance amendments on the same agenda as a requests to build something requiring the changes. Little guys who can’t hire attorneys savvy enough to work the system get stuck obeying laws that, since they can be whisked away by big developers, must not be that protective of public safety in the first place. This does not mean big developers are evil for trying to do their thing playing by the loopholes, it means government has too many stupid rules.
Tonight was refreshingly different. When presented with an amendment described as housekeeping, Councilwoman Esther Manheimer made a motion to approve it with all the dotted i‘s and crossed t‘s, but with the language needed to make the next hearing on the agenda viable stricken. Her peers were amenable, and the crowd was happy it wouldn’t be getting an unsightly cell tower in the neighborhood.
“Savvy developer?” I hear you scoff, “He didn’t grease their palms enough!” Maybe so, but Mayor Terry Bellamy did try to add to the amendment language requiring anybody wishing to build a cell tower in the city to provide antenna space for the public good. “Public good or public safety?” questioned Bill Russell. The mayor went on to explain how she wanted it for public good, which is not just for the public anymore, as with eminent domain.
City Attorney Bob Oast argued the city could be setting itself up for a legal challenge if its ordinances, which forbid the construction of cell towers on residential property used for residential purposes, would cause an area to be denied service.
