Antenna gets bad reception
By Joe Piasecki 04/02/2008
Plans to install a 56-foot tall cell-phone antenna in the parking lot of an historic Lake Avenue church are facing opposition from a newly organized group of Altadena and Pasadena residents.
Members of the Altadena Neighborhood Alliance say the antenna, which would be disguised to look like a palm tree, would blight the area, both blocking residents’ views of the mountains and altering the character of St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church. The church was built in 1924 by celebrated Southern California architect Wallace Neff, most famous for designing the Pickfair mansion in Beverly Hills.
A spokesman for cellular telephone service provider T-Mobile said the company is trying to correct a gap in coverage that results in dropped calls near the intersection of North Lake Avenue and New York Drive.
Although the project was approved one year ago today by members of the Altadena Town Council, neighbors have received letters of support from Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff, who wrote to county officials that the group “has legitimate issues regarding the proximity of two landmark churches and the aesthetic impact on the neighborhood as well as its impact on property values.”
On Tuesday, community members voiced their disapproval during a hearing before the LA County Regional Planning Office, which is expected to decide in June whether to allow the antenna.
“They’re proposing a fake palm tree that would basically compete with the church tower and obstruct the panoramic view of the mountains. There’s a valid and growing opposition to placing it just outside the courtyard of the parish center. It would loom over the statue of St. Theresa,” said Steve Escovar, a Pasadena attorney who frequently attends services at St. Elizabeth.
Church staff declined to comment, deferring to the Los Angeles Archdiocese, which was not able to respond by press time.
“People want service where they live work and play,” said T-Mobile spokesman Rod De La Rosa. There are two existing palm trees in the vicinity of the [tree-like antenna] — one at 60 feet and the other at 70 feet, definitely taller than our facility and that would be used to screen the facility. … The Altadena Town Council took a look at this project and supported it.”
Town Council member Michelle Zack, who abstained from that vote, said that body’s approval of the antenna was the last decision of its kind and should not be construed as whole-hearted endorsement.
“We just have had so many of them, and because of laws that exist with the Public Utilities Commission, we’re not allowed to object on the grounds of health or aesthetics. We just got tired of being asked to rubber-stamp these things, so we asked the county for a [cell phone antenna] master plan,” said Zack.
Pasadena City Council members imposed a temporary ban on antenna installations last year.
Zack said the St. Elizabeth’s antenna appeared to be “more sensitively placed” than many others.
Pasadena resident Jody Donnelly, who lives a short distance away from the church, disagrees. A faux-tree antenna, she said, “is totally inappropriate for the site. It’s an insult to trees.”
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