Franklin joins Farragut in 5G watch
Only two residential poles among ‘20 to 30’ in Franklin
With a population “a little less than 80,000” according to a City of Franklin administrator, this metro Nashville community currently has “20 to 30” 5G poles in place from carries including “AT&T and Comcast” — not counting poles in the process of being installed.
Yet only two are in residential areas, said Vernon Gerth, Franklin assistant City Administrator for Community & Economic Development.
“But as far as (being located in) pervasive and detached single-family neighborhoods, no,” he added. “In Franklin, ours are predominantly on more collector and arterial roads that are predominantly lined with commercial and non-residential buildings. There may be some apartments in those areas.
“Not to say (residential 5G poles) won’t happen here, but we haven’t seen that as far as I know.”
In trying to explain why Farragut has to extent its 5G reach to include poles in residential areas, and not Franklin, Gerth said his city “is hilly, but not that hilly.
“If you have a lot of topography, you’re going to need the poles” in those areas, he added. “It’s about coverage and terrain, as well as usage.”
Using the “Smoky Mountains” topography as an example, “You need to have (more) towers because they’re smaller cells and they don’t have the strength of the taller cells,” Gerth said.
Meanwhile, “I’ve spoken to the (Town) administrator in Farragut (David Smoak) a while back about deployment of 5G facilities,” he added.
As for overall citizen reaction, “There have been some people that have raised concerns from an aesthetic standpoint … but not during public meetings,” Gerth said.
However, the resulting technology from 5G “is important to businesses and people and families ... and it’s always improving, too,” he said.
Saying 5G pole aesthetics have improved significantly, “They’ve put up a similar pole, similar height” to adjacent street lights, Gerth said about the poles, which are “only about 8 inches in diameter.”
As for any citizen health concerns with 5G, “If there is I haven’t heard of it directly,” Gerth said.
“I know that, in reading about 5G, some people believe the microwaves could have affects.”
Getting a jump on the 2018 state law giving 5G carriers broad installation powers within municipalities, “We drafted an ordinance working with utility providers before the state legislature adopted regulations about two years before that,” Gerth said about the ordinance drafted in the fall of 2017, a process beginning “in late 2016.”
