Cell tower irks La Cienega residents

Mar. 2—A cell tower that AT&T plans to erect in La Cienega has upset residents who say it will mar the landscape in the historic hamlet.

They expressed concerns Monday during an online forum with State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard, saying the 65-foot antenna will be intrusive and her office should have made more of an effort to hear the community's objections before approving the project on state-owned land.

The monopole will be placed on the same site as a water tank and will enable AT&T to provide a wireless service for first responders.

The State Land Office held an online forum in June about the proposed tower but gave no real notice to the public, area resident Robert Romero wrote in an email before the meeting.

Romero said the tower on state-owned land allows AT&T to avoid the county's more stringent review process and requirements.

"It is being placed on state land in order to bypass county planning and zoning ordinances, and the La Cienega community plan, which does not allow cellular towers like this in our planning area," Romero wrote.

Garcia Richard apologized for her office not better notifying residents og the June meeting, but assured them discussions didn't take place "in the dark."

She said her office consulted with multiple agencies, tribes and local governments, including Santa Fe County, which supported the tower. State archaeologists found no negative impacts on historic sites, she said.

Her staff also talked to the Romero family, who own grazing land next to the site, and the Romeros signed off on the tower, Garcia Richard said.

She acknowledged projects built on a state-owned site are exempt from county codes.

"We aren't necessarily subject to those things but do attempt to follow them," Garcia Richard said.

County codes require a carrier to seek an existing structure or building for a wireless service antenna to minimize visual intrusion. Before it can erect a standalone cell tower, it must show with documentation it was unable to find a suitable structure to place the antenna, according to county codes.

And a cell tower must be painted tan to blend with the landscape.

The state has no such provisions for wireless towers. Santa Fe County Commissioner Rudy Garcia asked whether it would be possible to paint the monopole tan or camouflage it to look like a tree.

Kevin Winner, owner of Gravity Pad Towers, which is installing the antenna, said the galvanized metal color blends best with the environment, but painting it another color would be an option. He recommended not turning it into a fake tree, saying that makes it bigger and more obtrusive, and that it would grow unsightly as it ages.

J.J. Gonzales, a local resident, noted the community's height restriction was under 30 feet and the tower will be more than double that.

"Our biggest concern in the community is the height of the tower," Gonzales said. "Going up to 60 or 65 feet — that is way, way more than I think this community would like to see."

Managers of El Rancho de las Golondrinas said the tower will intrude on the "view shed" of the museum, which enacts historic lifestyles.

"View sheds from a historic and cultural landscape perspective are important," said Daniel Goodman, the museum's executive director. "In Las Golondrinas, they're everything. People are able to connect with their history because they step back in time."

Mike Waring, an AT&T representative, said the company needed the tower to provide FirstNet, a federally funded wireless network for first responders. AT&T has the exclusive contract, so it's not a service that other carriers such as Verizon, which already has a wireless presence in La Cienega, can provide, Waring said.

Several residents implored Garcia Richard to hold off on the project to get more community input.

But Garcia Richard indicated the project will move forward and residents' suggestions and concerns would be considered.

Mike Taylor, a longtime resident, said he was shocked to learn that "it was a done deal."

"Now we're talking about how do we put lipstick on a pig kind of thing," Taylor said.