Monterey City Council to discuss a proposed cell tower restriction ordinance

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION-TV)- On Thursday night, Monterey City Council will be having a special council meeting to discuss where cell phone towers can be built within city limits.

If the proposed ordinance passes, wireless companies looking to install cell towers will be directed to city's industrial and commercial areas. The ordinance says residential neighborhoods would be the last option to build a cell tower.

The company will have to prove they need the tower to be located in a residential zone because their customers service would be interrupted.

City Council did discuss this ordinance during a council meeting on Feb. 7.

Kimberly Cole who is the city's director of housing and community development told KION that many neighbors have expressed their concerns with new cell phone towers being built in front of their houses. Cole said those concerns have primarily come from residents who live in the Monterey-Vista neighborhood which sits above Monterey High School.

The city currently has 20 cell phone towers and some of them share the same antennas.

On Tuesday, the city's planning commission approved an application from T-Mobile that will modify an existing tower atop of the First Baptist Church on Hawthorne Street.

T-Mobile wanted to add new equipment to the existing tower that will support 5G.

Cole said that the existing cell phone towers in the city will be upgrading to 5G.

The meeting will take place tonight at 7 p.m. and will be livestreamed here.