L&M Publications
Merrick Life • Bellmore Life • Freeport-Baldwin Leader • Wantagh-Seaford Citizen

To be or not to be? After an almost seven-hour town zoning Board of Appeals hearing on Wednesday, October 6, that pitted Wantagh residents against T-Mobile, the board reserved its decision, saying it would deliberate and then notify interested parties by mail within a few weeks. 

More than 60 residents including members of the Wantagh Civic Association, were at the BZA hearing to oppose T-Mobile’s application to place six cell antennas on two chimneys and an equipment cabinet, on the roof of the Farmingdale-Wantagh Jewish Center on Woodbine Avenue in Wantagh.

Although the Hempstead Town Board recently passed a new town ordinance regulating where wireless equipment, including cell towers, may be placed within the town, this case “falls under the old ordinance,” board Chairman David Weiss told residents. However, the board permitted  Richard Comi, a consultant retained by the Town of Hempstead, to act as an impartial advisor on T-Mobile’s application. Also on hand was Legislator David Denenberg representing the residents of the Wantagh Civic Association.

It was Pam Dempsey who led the charge against T-Mobile. She told BZA members that the proposed project is “ugly, unnecessary and will decrease property values,” she said. “We believe there will be a negative change in the character of the community.” 

Meanwhile Robert Gaudioso, the attorney representing T-Mobile, called   upon a cadre of experts to prove its case. Experts testified on need, the aesthetic impact on the neighborhood, the site’s effect on property values and safety. He also took exception to Mr. Comi’s presence as an expert witness but was overruled by Chairman Weiss.

Site plan, aesthetics and real estate values

Architect John Gartalmann said there will be three points of construction on the rooftop. The existing chimney will be enlarged, a second false chimney will be built on the south end of the roof near the air conditioning unit and a separate cabinet to house equipment. Also, a ladder will be affixed to the side of the building in order to gain access to the rooftop.

Screening around the cabinet would mimic the building’s brick facade in order to diminish any negative impact to the structure’s aesthetics, said Mr. Gartalmann.

But residents voiced concern about the size of the addition, including the 11,000 pounds of weight on the building as well as what Martin Sorrentino, a local Realtor, called “the equivalent of a parking lot on someone’s roof.”

Mr. Gartalmann assured residents that the structure was strong enough to withstand the additional weight.  

Donna Stippo, of DMS Consulting Services, testified that the construction would have no adverse impact on aesthetics. “The visual changes are consistent with the building,” she said, adding that there is only a “two-foot change in the horizon.”

But Mrs. Dempsey noted that the photographs Mrs. Stippo included with her testimony did not take into account views from bedroom windows or porches. 

By Laura Schofer

Laura Schofer, staff writer for L&M Publications, has been recognized with several awards for many of her feature pieces published in Bellmore and Merrick Life, The Citizen and The Leader.