T-Mobile takes down cell tower after town code violation

A T-Mobile cell phone tower constructed without town permission on the grounds of the South Huntington Water District has been taken down by the company, town officials said Friday.

Last month, the Huntington Town Board voted unanimously to take legal action against T-Mobile for illegally constructing and operating the cell tower.

Town officials said T-Mobile received permission from the water district to erect the 150-foot tower on property on 17th Street.

But town code requires a permit from the town Zoning Board of Appeals to erect a cell tower and then a building permit from the town to actually construct it, a town official said.

Following court action, the town attorney's office met with attorneys for T-Mobile last month and reached a court-approved agreement to demolish the tower and pay a $2,500 fine for violating a stop-work order and for erecting the tower.

The town issued a demolition permit to T-mobile on Tuesday and the company demolished the tower Friday.

T-mobile still has to obtain permits from the state Department of Environmental Conservation before it can demolish the telephone cabinet and the concrete base. The land where the tower was erected is surrounded by protected wetlands.

Calls to the attorney representing T-Mobile, Robert Gaudioso of Snyder and Snyder in upstate Tarrytown, and attorney Michael McCarthy of Huntington, who represents the water district, were not returned on Friday evening.

Town Supervisor Frank Petrone said the town was "pleased" T-Mobile had demolished the tower. "We fully expect that in the future T-Mobile will follow all town regulations regarding cell phone towers," he said.