Cell Phone Monopole Update Set For Point Pleasant Beach Council

POINT PLEASANT BEACH, NJ — The Point Pleasant Beach Borough Council is set to meet Tuesday evening to appoint a borough attorney and conduct other business, according to the borough website.

The council was scheduled to meet Feb. 6 but had to reschedule so it could meet a state deadline for appointing a borough attorney, officials said at the Jan. 16 meeting.

Council President Rosa Crowley made clear the intention of the majority of the council at the Jan. 1 reorganization to replace borough attorney Kevin Riordan, a move that seems to stem from ongoing conflict between council members Rosa Crowley, Arlene Testa, and Caryn Byrnes, and Mayor Douglas Vitale.

The agenda for Tuesday's meeting, set for 7:30 p.m., includes the appointment of Michael Collins as attorney.

The business portion of the meeting is set to be preceded at 7 p.m. by a caucus session with additional updates on issues that have arisen surrounding the painting of the water tank and the placement of cell phone antennas.

At the Jan. 16 meeting, borough administrator Christine Riehld told the council that changes in the codes that govern the placement of cell phone antennas have put the borough in a difficult situation. The cell phone companies do not want to put the antennas back on the water tower because they could create too much wind resistance and could damage the tank in high winds or possibly cause them to come down, according to a presentation from the engineering firm coordinating the project for the borough.

The council was told the companies do not want the liability for potential damage, and a 170-foot monopole to hold the antennas is the compromise.

Council members asked Riehl to get further information for a continued discussion of options at the meeting set for Tuesday.

The agenda is published online; read it here.