The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

A 35-foot cellular phone antenna tower and equipment shelter will soon spike the toe of McKinney Butte in the Wild Horse Ridge subdivision east of Sisters.

At a public hearing Tuesday, September 3, County Hearings Officer Karen Green conditionally accepted CellularOne's application for use of a 10-foot-by-20-foot lease area at 68893 Bay Place to construct the tower.

For the tower to go up, Raymond and Doris Hart, the owners of 68893 Bay Place, must remedy a county code violation involving an unauthorized dwelling in a garage on the property.

According to Eric Anderson, technical manager for CellularOne, the company chose McKinney Butte after testing several sites because it is the most strategic site for optimum cellular coverage in and around the Sisters area. There is an existing cellular antenna on Five-Mile Butte, but Anderson said it only provides spotty coverage in Sisters.

Anderson said the proliferation of hand-held cellular phones has increased the need for coverage in the area because they require a stronger signal than car phones.

He said construction of the new tower was warranted by requests for better cellular coverage from the Sisters Police and Fire Departments as well as the Sisters Ranger District. The site atop McKinney Butte sits 450 feet above Sisters and is the least obstructed by trees and neighboring high ground of any site, Anderson said.

Wild Horse Ridge residents attending the public hearing raised numerous objections to the construction of the tower. Several raised concerns about setting a precedent by introducing an unsightly tower in their residential zone.

"We don't want our land to be turned into an antenna farm like Awbrey Butte," said one homeowner. "All it'll take is one approval and then more will follow."

Anderson said that an "antenna farm" scenario is more likely if CellularOne is unable to put its tower in the premium location atop McKinney Butte because more towers would be needed to provide the same coverage.

He also said that planners have tried to divise the least conspicuous setup possible for the tower by keeping it at only 35 feet and hiding it in the tall trees on the property.

"We've done everything we could to minimize visual impact," he said.

Several residents objected to the threat of commercialization brought by the tower, saying it violated the Codes, Covenants & Restrictions of the homeowner's association. Barclay Road resident Mike Moyer said the tower is contrary to the homeowners' CC&Rs which prohibit above-ground utilities.

"Is improving cellular reception worth the commercialization of a private neighborhood?" asked McKinney Butte resident Penny Kristovich.

But Green said the tower falls under the county comprehensive plan and is not subject the CC&Rs. The public record was to remain open until September 10. Green said she would make the decision pending a site visit.

Still at issue is the illegal secondary garage dwelling on the Hart property which has kitchen facilities on the second floor. For CellularOne to begin construction, the Harts must show the county proof of approval or remove any residential facilities in the garage.

"We built that house 14 years ago," Doris Hart told The Nugget. "They (the county) lost half our files since. We'll pull out the stinking stove if that's what they want."