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After neighbors of a proposed antennae site raised concerns about exposure to electromagnetic radiation emissions, the City Council adopted a 45-day moratorium Tuesday on the placement of all new antennae that support wireless communications. 

The council unanimously approved the recommendation by Mayor Shirley Dean and Councilmembers Mim Hawley and Betty Olds, which sends the question of antenna placement to the Planning Commission. Commissioners will try to determine exactly what the city can legally do to restrict antennae in residential neighborhoods. 

“I don’t know if the city can do an outright ban in residential areas,” Dean said. “But if there’s a possibility of restricting antennae based on health concerns, then we should do it.” 

The city’s 1996 Wireless Communications Guidelines strongly discourages antennae in residential neighborhoods, but the Zoning Adjustments Board has approved every residential antennae application that has come before it.  

Commissioners and city staff have said that, according to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, municipalities are  

precluded from regulating the location of above-ground communications equipment for any reasons other than aesthetics. 

In a related action, the council set a public hearing for Jan. 23, for an appeal of the 12 antennae atop the Oaks Theater on Solano Avenue. 

The Zoning Adjustments Board approved a Nextel Corporation application for the antennae Oct. 12. The appeal was filed by a neighbor concerned about health risks. A number of concerned neighbors oppose the location of the antennae, including those who cite studies in the United Kingdom, which claim a growing body of evidence that exposure to electromagnetic radiation from cell phones and wireless communication antennae is hazardous, especially to children.  

“I’m sure the neighbors will have something to say and the folks who want to put up the antennae will probably be there,” said Councilmember Mim Hawley, who moved the resolution to set the appeal date. 

Allen Michaan, the owner of Renaissance Rialto, which runs the Oaks Theater said the property owner was responsible for the antennae application. He said he is upset about a neighborhood perception that he is responsible. 

“We’re very unhappy to be in the middle of this,” he said. 

The Daily Planet was unable to reach the owner of the theater property, Don Lee, in time for this story. 

The ZAB also had been considering an antennae application from Sprint Corporation for placement of seven antennae on the roof of the Jewish Community Center on Walnut Street, however the JCC Board of Directors has temporarily withdrawn the application because of member concern. There are several preschool programs and an after-school program, which operate at the JCC. 

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A related issue was the adoption of a Telecommunications Ordinance by the council Tuesday night. Some residents hoped the ordinance would include restrictions on locating the antennae.  

As long as the Telecommunications Act of 1996 restricts most local regulation for the antennae, however, the local ordinance would be unable to include placement regulations.  

So, at the meeting Tuesday, Berkeley resident Erica Etelson asked the council to delay approving the new local ordinance until the conclusion of a pending Supreme Court case, Citizens For Appropriate Placement of Communications Facilities vs. the Federal Communication Commission, which is challenging the portion of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that prohibits municipalities from restricting antennae placement for health concerns (the case can be found on the web at www.emernetwork.org). 

“The case has received a lot of (supporting) briefs from other municipalities,” Etelson said. “There should be a decision by the court next summer.” 

The council approved the new ordinance 7-1-1 with the assurances of City Attorney Manuela Albuquerque that it can be amended according to any changes in FCC law. Councilmember Kriss Worthington opposed the ordinance and Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek abstained.