Editorial: Phone home first; consultation is key

OPINION: The rules around the erection of a Telecom cellphone tower is causing consternation in Palmerston North, and city leaders should listen to residents' concerns and ensure planning restrictions reflect community expectations.

A 20-metre tower popped up on Tremaine Ave last week, angering nearby residents because they weren't consulted before it was built. They weren't told about it because the tower was built in an industrial zone and its specifications complied with the district plan. Telecom was therefore given a certificate of compliance by the Palmerston North City Council, and the project was not publicly notified.

Telecom stuck to the letter of the law and, while one might argue it had a moral obligation to inform residents, it would be naive to hope a multimillion-dollar national company would put a handful of people in Milson ahead of its broader business objectives.

It's easy for people not living in the shadow of such an unsightly construction to label the affected Milson residents as NIMBYs (Not In My Back Yard), but as a community we should look at the issue more deeply than that. The question we must ask is: do we want cellphone towers in anyone's back yard?

The council's planning rules should serve the people of this city as best they can. Obviously, effective cellphone coverage is important, but that community need must be balanced against other community needs.

Pillorying Telecom will not reach a constructive solution. Attention should instead be focused on the process by which Telecom could build a cellphone tower so close to residential properties without having to tell the public first. In cases where industrial zones adjoin residential ones, local bodies should consider whether homes on the border have the same protection they have deemed it necessary to give homes that aren't.

If residents in central suburbs must be notified if a cellphone tower is going to be built nearby, why should the rules be different for residents who live adjacent to an industrial zone?

It's quite likely the Telecom tower on Tremaine Ave would have been built even if residents had been consulted, but it's important a decision to make such a significant change to the landscape is made via a process that can be respected, if not accepted.

In this case, it seems the process that has led to the tower's erection has raised issues of fairness that need to be addressed. That will be best done by reviewing the city's planning rules, rather than Telecom's community conscience.

One more thing: With Christmas frighteningly close, time is running out to get that essential shopping done.

It's ironic that a day of peace and goodwill is preceded by a week of frantic stampedes in shopping malls, but I guess it's all part of the fun. Do take a breath and smile, though, and try not to let stress overcome what should be a time to take life a little slower.

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