UPDATE: The hearing was held Nov. 19, 2019 (related post located here), but there is still time to voice your concerns. Find council contact information at the end of this post.
Tuesday Night, Nov. 19:
Let’s Pack the County Council Hearing to Oppose Cell Towers as Close as 30 Feet from Our Homes!
In order to speak, you need to sign up to make a 3-minute comment Nov. 19, Tuesday, at the County Council hearing on County Councilmember Hans Riemer’s proposal — Zoning Text Amendment 19-07. Also, contact County Councilmembers directly — see links to all below — to share your concerns.
ZTA 19-07 would make it easier to line residential streets with cell towers on street poles in our public rights-of-way — as close as 30 feet from our front doors.
What’s the problem?
- Serious Potential Public-Health Risk: From Scientific American last month–We Have No Reason to Believe 5G Is Safe (Joel M. Moscowitz, UC Berkeley). It links to a recent call from hundreds of scientists and doctors for a moratorium on 5G deployment.
- Corporate Welfare, Compliments of Taxpayers: Corporations prefer to place cell towers in public rights-of-way since they can use our land at cost rather than negotiate a rate with a private property owner: It’s a much more profitable business model.
- Other 5G issues: Sponsors of ZTA 19-07 repeat industry’s hype about the positive potential of 5G. What about its negative potential? In addition to health concerns, predictions include: A new world of 24/7 corporate and government surveillance and control, further diversion from face-to-face relationships with people and nature, harm to trees, and a big increase in energy use to power the new connected devices. Remember the wonders of lead, asbestos, tobacco, CFCs, and fossil fuels? Let’s critically evaluate this new technology before we dive in — not be sorry later.
Tell our County Council ::: Our Health & Safety Is Not Negotiable!
Speak Up — or just show up, with or without a sign — at Tuesday’s County Hearing: Anyone can sign up — you’ll be placed on a wait list, but we hear folks on the wait list generally get to speak. And just your attendance — with a handmade sign, if you like — will be powerful!
Call and Email the Council — Contact Info Below. Connect with them on Twitter and Facebook. Set up meetings in person with staff to express your opinion. They need to hear from you today:
Hans Riemer (At Large) is the lead sponsor of this proposed Ordinance. The 2 co-sponsors are Craig Rice (District 2), and Gabe Albornoz (At Large).
We need 5 of the 9-member Council to oppose it to stop it. Help us reach the whole Council, but especially Evan Glass and Will Jawando, who are also At Large reps for the entire County, as well as Tom Hucker, our own District 5 rep. And urge County Executive Marc Elrich to strongly oppose it too.
Send email to all Councilmembers — County.Council@ MontgomeryCountyMD.gov
— or contact one by one:
Gabe Albornoz 240-777-7959
Andrew Friedson 240-777-7828
Evan Glass 240-777-7966
Tom Hucker 240-777-7960
Will Jawando 240-777-7811
Sidney Katz 240-777-7906
Nancy Navarro 240-777-7968
Craig Rice 240-777-7955
Hans Riemer 240-777-7964
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Contact County Executive Marc Elrich: 240-777-0311
Community Vision for Takoma
