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Dear Altadena Residents,
I would like to bring to your attention some observations that I have made over the last few months.
1. Please see attached correspondence from Richard Ambrosini of Reliant Land Services, subcontractor of AT&T hired to build the proposed cell site. I first reported to the community after meeting with Mr. Ambrosini on June 17th, 2009. Present were Council Members Okorie Ezieme, Sarah Fuller, and myself, as this proposed project dealt directly within our community and Census Tract 4602 of which we were elected. Chairman Gino Sund has stepped into our Census Tract and it can be inferred through Mr. Ambrosini’s e-mail (see below) that they have communicated privately to discuss new locations of the cell tower.
Chairman Sund has not communicated with either myself or Hon. Ezieme regarding meetings with Mr. Ambrosini or new proposed locations within our community. (See e-mail below from Hon. Ezieme to Chairman Sund dated September 17th). According to the Altadena Town Council Bylaws, item 3 of “Duties and Responsibilities” on page 4 states that the Altadena Town Council is to “[provide] frequent fora to encourage the participation of the Altadena citizenry in each Census Tract for the purpose of determining their views and wishes on issues brought before the Town Council, all the while striving to accurately mirror in its policies and positions the desires of the community as a whole.” I have polled the community, as evidenced on this website, as well as communicated with you through e-mail regarding your opinions. The community is in enormous support of the proposed location and for better cell reception.
The question presented to Mr. Ambrosini is why was the location switched from the Lincoln Avenue Water Company to the proposed LA County Flood Control site? Mr. Ambrosini stated in the e-mail dated September 23 that I needed to speak to Chairman Sund for more information (See e-mail below). However, in Chairman Sund’s e-mail to Ken of the McNally Group listserve on September 21st, he stated that “We are not revealing the site until the County signs off on its availability”. Who is “we”? This delays better reception for Altadenans even further.
2. Hon. Ezieme and I both serve on the Land Use Committee, and to our knowledge, neither we nor other Land Use Committee Members have had a meeting since July 1st, during which the new proposed location at the LA County Flood Control site was not discussed. The meetings for August and September were canceled. How and why was the new location chosen without speaking to the community, the representatives of the community, or even to the Land Use Committee?
3. We call to question Chairman Sund acting without notice to elected reps in the proposed cell site in Census Tract 4602. Why has he not responded to inquiries from elected reps? Why were his communications with Mr. Ambrosini undisclosed and not sanctioned by the Altadena Town Council in an official capacity? According to the Altadena Town Council Ethical Standards, Section 3.4 of “Conducting Council Business” on page 2 states that “members shall not knowingly and intentionally withhold substantive information relevant to the matter under consideration, received from sources outside of the public decision-making process, from any other member, or from the public prior to taking action on the matter.”
4. Question: Why is the location such a big secret, according to Chairman Sund’s e-mail on September 21st? We live here.
From: Okorie Ezieme [mailto:oezieme@ngokconsultants.com]
Sent: Thursday, September 17, 2009 12:31 PM
To: ‘Gino Sund’
Cc: ‘Herbert Simmons’
Subject: Loma Alta / Fair Oaks AT&T Cell Site
Dear Hon. Chair,
Please kindly make the alternate cell site information / details available to all. Will this alternate site provide same or better coverage as would the original site? Is the alternate cell site in Census Tract 4602? Isn’t it true cell site(s) may be and as a matter of truth have been erected without notice or consent from ATC / LUC? Please confirm / comment.
I challenge us to exercise caution, consult with the community but most importantly not take action(s) that could be construed as imposing our will over that of the community / popular opinion.
Regards,
Hon. Ezieme
from Gino Sund
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cc Alice Sarkisian Wessen
date Mon, Sep 21, 2009 at 5:10 PM
subject Re: [mcnally-nw] Fwd: FW: Proposed Cell Tower Project
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Sep 21 (6 days ago)
Ken,
I got the notice of withdrawal this morning. I was somewhat surprised when AT&T told me last week that they were going to do this. The original plan was to see if the alternative site would actually be workable before withdrawing. That of course was AT&T’s decision. While the alternative site is looking like it may work, nothing is official at this time.
The latest report, as of Friday is, a plan for locating at the alternative site is being prepared by AT&T with a potential co-locater, T-Mobil, and it should be ready to be presented to the community by the end of October. If the site is available, and the plan is completed by they, the new proposal could come to our Land Use Committee in November.
We are not revealing the site until the County signs off on its availability. There is no need to get excited about a site until we know it can actually be used. I will keep you informed about any new developments.
Gino
From: Richard Ambrosini [mailto:richard.ambrosini@rlsusa.com]
Sent: Wednesday, September 23, 2009 8:06 AM
To: ‘Herbert Simmons’
Cc: ‘Okorie Ezieme’; ‘Thomas Mundl’; ‘Graham, Stephen’
Subject: RE: [mcnally-nw] Notice of a hearing on the cell tower
Hello Mr. Simmons,
I would suggest you speak with Mr. Sund on your questions concerning opposition to the site at Lincoln Water District. I too was under the impression that the constituency was in favor of this site. However, issues were raised by the Land Use Committee and the Town Council regarding the location and aesthetics of the design of the site. These concerns prompted a new review of possible locations. The county flood control site just east on Loma Vista was selected as an alternate site and is in process for application and leasing through LA County Public Works.
The selection of the new site will provide the same coverage as the previous site at Lincoln Water District.
Thank you,
Richard Ambrosini
Zoning Manager
Reliant Land Services, Inc.
From: Herbert Simmons
Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 7:33 PM
To: ‘Richard Ambrosini’
Cc: ‘Okorie Ezieme’
Subject: FW: [mcnally-nw] Notice of a hearing on the cell tower
Mr. Ambrosini, can you please forward the latest update on the cell tower. I need to inform and update the community. The majority of the community wanted the previous site. Why was this all of a sudden switched to a different location ? The community wants better cell coverage. What is the reason for the additional delay ? Please visit the website www.altadenans.com to see the very favorable community poll. Please update me with full details as soon as possible. Thank you.
From: Richard Ambrosini [mailto:richard.ambrosini@rlsusa.com]
Sent: Friday, September 18, 2009 5:06 PM
To: ‘Herbert Simmons’
Subject: RE: [mcnally-nw] Notice of a hearing on the cell tower
Hello Mr. Simmons,
The notification for hearing you received concerns the Lincoln Water District site for the ATT facility. I received notification today that that site is no longer active for ATT and that ATT is no pursuing a lease with LA County Public Works for the Flood Control Site. That site is about 1 block east of the Lincoln site.
Thanks,
Richard
Richard Ambrosini
Zoning Manager
Reliant Land Services, Inc.
From: Herbert Simmons
Sent: Thursday, September 17, 2009 7:18 AM
To: ‘Richard Ambrosini’
Subject: FW: [mcnally-nw] Notice of a hearing on the cell tower
Mr. Ambrosini, how are you ? Could you please update me on what the progress is on the cell site. The community wants better coverage. See message below. You can also go to my site www.altadenans.com and see the voting results since the site went live Aug 30.