Several Upper East Side electeds and a community group are revamping their opposition to the contentious Link 5G towers with a report asking for the city to include more public input in their rollout and consider redesigning them.
Assembly member Alex Bores released the report, which calls on the city to rethink its approach to the rollout of the 32-foot towers, which provide cellphone service and free Wi-Fi. The report asks the city to prioritize building 5G infrastructure on existing street poles over building new LinkNYC 5G kiosks and to share more information about its review and approval.
Bores was joined by U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, Assembly member Rebecca Seawright and City Council Member Keith Powers and members of Carnegie Hill Neighbors at a rally on Monday opposing the LinkNYC 5G towers on the grounds of them being too large and incongruous with the streetscape.
In a statement on the report, Bores focused on the cost savings of encouraging the city to install 5G infrastructure on street poles and existing street furniture — a practice that the city is pursuing in addition to the construction of new Link5G poles. “5G is the future, and expanding access is going to have massive benefits for all New Yorkers — but 32-foot towers which cost more to provide less are not the way forward,” he said.
A spokesperson for CityBridge, the umbrella company operating the Link5G towers, argued that the recommendations would prevent the public benefits like free Wi-Fi that the newly constructed towers provide.
“This ‘report’ represents the latest misguided attempt by a NIMBY group based in one of the city’s wealthiest communities to deny all New York City neighborhoods enhanced public Wi-Fi and high-speed broadband,” said the spokesperson in a statement.
In addition to saving time in the permitting process and money, installing smaller 5G cells on existing street poles helps it blend into the visual aesthetics of a given neighborhood and generally feel less intrusive to neighbors, the report argues.
“Carnegie Hill Neighbors is gratified by Assembly Member Bores’ discovery, outlined in his report, and the breadth of commonsense alternatives in use elsewhere demonstrates that New Yorkers do have options when a forum for discussion is made,” said Joanna Cawley, executive director of the group.
Bores suggested that the process of greenlighting the Link5G poles did not give communities a meaningful opportunity to weigh in. He suggested the city go back to the drawing board to look into efforts in places like Arizona where 5G towers have been incorporated into fake cacti, or in Europe where it has been built into faux church spires.
“We should look toward more aesthetically appropriate alternatives that fit into the character of our neighborhoods. Other cities like Los Angeles, Denver, Portland, and El Paso use more contextual smart pole technology for the city to emulate,” said Council Member Julie Menin in a statement.
CityBridge insisted that the design of the towers went through a rigorous public review process over the past three years that included multiple hearings by the Public Design Commission and review by dozens of community boards and various city electeds.
The city plans to deploy 2,000 Link5G kiosks across the city, with an emphasis on underserved neighborhoods in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and above 96th Street in Manhattan. A spokesperson for OTI reiterated that the public benefit of bringing free public Wi-Fi to underserved New Yorkers through the Link5G towers is in the interest of the city.
“In today’s digital age, reliable, high-speed internet is as essential as heat and hot water,” said OTI spokesperson Ray Legendre.
