Issues noted with small cell antennas
How is it in Farragut that we are constantly told that nothing can be done to keep 5G small cell antennas out of our front yards because of federal law and Tennessee state law? Sanctuary cities are banned by federal law. There are dozens of sanctuary cities across America. Marijuana is illegal in all fifty states according to federal law. Yet many states have voted on and approved it as legal even though that is still a violation of federal law.
In Virginia sanctuary cities are forming to protect 2nd Amendments rights in violation of new Virginia state law restrictions on guns. Why can we not opt out of 5G small cell antennas in our town of Farragut? The creation of our town was a revolution.
Some may ask, why is 5G small cell cellular so bad for the people of Farragut? It can harm your property value by as much as 21%. People do not want to see these ugly 5G antennas in their front yard. Prospective home buyers don’t want to buy homes with these 5G antennas in the front yard.
Your front yard will be dug up between three to five times to bury fiber optic cables for the 5G small cell antennas if you have underground utilities. Each cell carrier will have their own fiber optic cable. If you have phone poles in your neighborhood you will have an army of 5G cellular fiber optic installers in your neighborhood for years.
For those with underground utilities there may be a pole in your front yard with between three to five 5G small cell antennas. This will hurt you if you wish to sell your home. For those with telephone poles in their neighborhoods it will be even uglier and as damaging to property value. It will not be attractive.
Farragut is not doing enough to protect neighborhoods from these eyesores. Farragut has strict signage laws for businesses to maintain the beauty of our town. The beauty of our homes should have the same standards.
What about the much hyped promised increased cell phone data download speed? In technology there is a phrase called “vaporware.” It is promises that never come true. Your current 4G/4G LTE cell phone can download data from 200 to 1,000 Mbps (megabits per second). 5G small cell cellular will increase that speed from 600 to 2,000 Mbps. Netflix requires only 5 Mbps to download HD quality movies to your cell phone.
The typical wired office network operates at 1000 Mbps which is very fast. Is there an actual need for this promised new speed? What person would need this download speed on a cellphone?
With 5G small cell cellular phone a 5,000 megabytes (5 gigabytes) monthly cellular data plan is consumed in less than a minute. When the cell phone is not downloading data it will downshift to 4G speed for cell phone calls or when the data cap on data has been reached.
The state of Tennessee made a mistake in 2018 when the legislature passed the 5G small cell cellular law that forces all towns, cities, and counties to install this technology without a local option to choose to opt out.
What can you do? Across America towns and cities are demanding local choice. Call and write your Farragut Aldermen and your Tennessee state legislators.
Explain that you require a local option to opt out. This should be a choice at a local level. The harm done by 5G small cell cellular is not worth the promised increase of speed for cell phone downloads.
Mike Mitchell
Farragut
