Bokeelia cell tower plan divides Pine Island residents over location choice

BOKEELIA, Fla. (WINK)—A proposed 150-foot cell tower in Bokeelia is sparking debate among Pine Island homeowners.

Developers say the project would improve wireless service on the north end of the island, but neighbors tell WINK News the problem isn’t the tower itself, it’s where it could be built.

During a hearing on Wednesday, the company behind the project told a hearing examiner the tower would improve wireless coverage on Pine Island and create space for multiple carriers to share one site.

“Everything around that area is red, meaning T-Mobile customers have no service there,” said a representative of T-Mobile during the meeting.

They say the compound would be fenced and landscaped, and would operate as a quiet service with no employees on site.

Neighbors say they're not opposed to improving service; they just don't want the tower built at this location.

"I don't think anybody in that room that lives in Bokeelia on the north end of Pine Island is opposed to a tower; it's just this location is not good, because that corner is the gateway. It's the gateway to Bokeelia,” said Hart Kelley, who lives near the proposed site.

Residents say the proposed site is along a main roadway used by many people entering the community, meaning the tower would be one of the first things drivers see as they enter town.

"It completely ruins the area, and it was pointed out, you know, the other cell towers on the island were all put strategically out of sight. They're at the end of a, you know, a dead-end road, or somewhere where there's no egress, or for that purpose,” said Chris Blum, who lives in Bokeelia.

Some neighbors also say they believe there are better options nearby, including land where another tower already exists.

"The property they want to develop is 1.2 acres. They're asking for a variance, for setbacks and for height, where other options that I gave them would have been more consistent with what's out there, which would have been at the end of a road where people don't have to see it or drive past it all the time,” said Steve Honc, a neighbor of the proposed site.

The hearing examiner will continue to hear from the public on this proposal on Friday, and a decision should be reached by the end of the day.