The FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau’s Competition and Infrastructure Policy Division (Division) has issued an order declining to require PI Telecom Infrastructure LLC (Parallel), acting on behalf of the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), to submit an environmental assessment (EA) for a tower in Tarrytown, N.Y. The Tarrytown tower will be used in connection with MTA’s public safety communications. The Village of Tarrytown and a resident of the village, Leonard Cardillo, raised concerns of the proposed tower’s potential visual effects on nearby historic properties and the surrounding landscape. The Division found that the issues raised did not provide a sufficient basis for it to reopen the historic preservation review process, which, under the Nationwide Programmatic Agreement on the Section 106 National Historic Preservation Act review process was completed. The Division also concluded that the potential environmental impact of the proposed tower is negligible as it is located in a heavily built-up urban area, adjacent to other industrial facilities, and while visible from many parts of the Village, would not substantially diminish the public’s enjoyment of the Hudson River or the recently rebuilt Tappan Zee Bridge. The Division declined to require Parallel and MTA to submit an EA, and confirmed that the parties may proceed with construction and operation of the tower.
