Update / Follow-up on the news
A law setting a 45-day citywide moratorium on applications to build new wireless telecommunication facilities has won City Council approval.
The move temporarily prohibits companies planning to install wireless telecommunications systems in Dana Point from applying for permits and also calls for a public hearing to be scheduled before the moratorium expires.
Council members said they need time to collect information on systems being proposed and to hear from additional residents before granting any more permits.
“Certainly more work needs to be done,” Councilman Bill Ossenmacher said of the issue.
Before the cooling-off period was established, the council had heard from a number of residents who argued for a total ban on telecommunications equipment in their neighborhoods. They said the facilities could be a health risk, lower property values and be unattractive.
“The residents’ concerns must be addressed,” citizen Bob Moore told the council.
In recent months several companies, including Pacific Bell Mobile Services and Cox Communications, have applied for permits to install telecommunications antennas at different locations in the city.
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