Babylon hearing set on utility poles

The Town of Babylon has scheduled a public hearing on a proposed law that would require the removal of damaged utility poles.

Utility companies frequently install a new pole directly next to or near a damaged pole, something referred to as a “double pole,” according to language in the proposed law.

Such structures are being left in place “for long periods of time, sometimes for several years,” according to the town, which says there are now “hundreds, if not thousands of aesthetically unpleasant damaged poles” along town roads. Such poles are eyesores and public hazards, the town contends.

The proposal would require the owner of a damaged pole to remove it within 30 days of being issued a permit to install a new pole. The measure says if the owner fails to do so, penalties of “not less than $1,000 and not more than $2,500” could be imposed for each day of the violation, plus “imprisonment for a period not to exceed 90 days.”

The public hearing will be held Aug. 16 at 10 a.m. at Babylon Town Hall in Lindenhurst.