Ehrhardt citizens outraged over tower location

“I feel like I’ve been raped, beaten and left on the side of the road for dead,” Ehrhardt resident Donna Rogers said of Ehrhardt City Council’s decision to approve the construction of a 300- ft. cell phone tower on Ehrhardt Road in the town of Ehrhardt.

Rogers, a native of Hueytown, Alabama, said that her main concern was that she and other residents along the street were not told the tower would be built on their street.

Rogers says she purchased the home, which is located on Ehrhardt Road, four years ago upon moving to Ehrhardt and now “it is worthless” because of the cell phone tower. She expressed her concerns about the health effects of placing a cell phone tower in a residential area.

“Residents didn’t know the tower was being built. Shouldn’t we have been given the courtesy of letting us know this would happen? We knew nothing about it at all. How in the world could you plop this horrible thing in the middle of our neighborhood?”

Rogers acknowledged that she was aware that there was discussions of the city putting up a cell phone tower, but she said a final location “to her knowledge” was never shared with the people in her neighborhood.

“Putting my health in jeopardy and making my property worthless in this point and time because that tower is going in and is only worth $10.00 per year to this town that SCANA will pay annually. This is not just about me; this is a neighborhood of older residents. I’ve got every penny of my whole 60 years in this house, my retirement, my heritage to my children, my blood, sweat and tears.”

Ehrhardt City Councilman Bill Edinger, whose committee oversaw the project, stated Ehrhardt City Council had three readings on the construction of the cell phone tower and over the past year and a half, the matter had been brought up numerous times in city council meetings, as to the status of the project and “people across the street knew a year ago where the tower was going.”

“It (construction of the cell phone tower) was not hidden Edinger,” said. “If people don’t come to city council meetings how were they to know?” Edinger said that construction of the cell phone tower has been “a longtime coming.” “Everyone has wanted a cell phone tower so bad, and now that we are getting one, people are complaining,” he said, noting that “cell phones don’t work” in town now.

Nell Walling owner of the Walling Agency Insurance Company of Ehrhardt, said that placing the cell phone tower on Ehrhardt Road was “not a good choice.” She stated that the residents should have been surveyed and a thorough examination of health data done on the short and long term exposure to radiation. Walling stated that she thought the tower northwest of Ehrhardt was supposed to be “the tower.”

“My office is within a few hundred yards of the location and my family spends every day there,” Walling said. “My own grandchildren are here many hours each week. I’m sure some landowner with open acreage further away from a town full of people would’ve been willing to lease a site for this purpose. If the town stood to gain to some huge financial extent, I would think that greed was overshadowing the public good.”

She noted that as for citizens getting information on the tower from the local newspaper; “many people don’t get or read the paper” and most people only knew when preparations had begun on the site.”

Councilman Edinger stated that in his opinion the placement of the tower in the town will not devalue property value. He noted that the $10.00 in revenue the town is to receive from SCANA could vary depending on “what’s on the tower” and how many companies are using it.

Edinger said that it was “not an easy thing” getting a company to place a tower in Ehrhardt. He said that he personally contacted several companies and was turned down. SCANA and (SCE&G) has a cell phone tower division and was the only company that said they would place a tower in Ehrhardt. “They were good people to work with.”

Edinger said that city council tried to seek other locations to put the tower but finally decided to place it on property owned by the town. He said the phone company wanted the tower placed in a certain location, possibly for relay purposes.

Edinger noted that the tower, being built on city property was surveyed, checked and cleared with the State to make sure that it was not on Indian land or historical property. “It’s an asset to the town.” As for concerns about the health of citizens living in the area of the tower Edinger said that he knew of no ill effects that the tower would bring, noting that cell phone towers are “all over the country.”

Marion Bazzle, sitting on his porch, down the street from the construction site of the cell phone tower Sunday afternoon, said that he did not know what was happening at the location. But, he went on to say that he had no problem with the tower being constructed on his street.

It’s not the tower, its location, location, location; “I’m not against cell phone towers; I’m truly not against it. I understand people need it, it’s just the location. I’m speaking for the others on this block. I’m going to fight it for all I’ve got,” Rogers said.

A legal notice was printed in The Advertizer-Herald on November 21, 2007 stating that SCANA communications was proposing the construction of a 300-ft Self Support Lattice Communication Tower northwest of the Franklin Street/Murdaugh Reach St. intersection, in Ehrhardt, SC in Bamberg County. The notice also requested in writing any comments concerning the proposed tower to be submitted by December 20, 2007.