VIDEO: Updated: Exactly What Happened During "The Vote"

There have been questions posed to us lately about the school board's vote back in July to lease the public school property at 9 schools to T-mobile. 

We attended the meeting in person, but in case you missed it, here's how you can watch for yourself:


It is highly recommended that you watch this video of the school board vote:

* 1.  Copy and paste this link into your browser: 
http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/pds-tv24/index/video-on-demand
2.  Scroll down until you locate Work Session and Business Meeting (11 Jul 2011)
3.  Click the link and wait for the video to load.
4.  Skip ahead more than 3/4th of the way through to 2:42:38 in the video.

*  Note:  Updated link information as of 11/23/11

Meeting minutes for this item are incorrect so it is important to watch the video to understand exactly what happened during the board discussion and vote, including discussion about the ability for citizens to object after the vote if they had not been previously informed, as indicated by GTCO-ATL in our petition.

What we learned from watching this video is that board member Donna Edler suggested that she would like to make an ammendment to remove all schools, but that created further discussion about the fact that there were some schools that actually wanted the towers. 

Following the discussion, Ms. Edler put together her ammendment, with some help from fellow board member Pam Speaks who agreed that there were two schools that were very vocal about wanting the towers:  Lakeside and Briarlake (mistakenly called Briarcliff a few times). 

First vote was on Don McChestney's ammendement to remove Brockett, Meadowview and Medlock.  It passed, but was a bit confusing because Mr. Womack indicated that the vote would not only remove the three, but also approve the others.  He started to move on to the next item (as chairman Bowen was absent so Womack was chairing the meeting), but was instructed from the floor (presumably Legal) that the main motion still required a vote. 

Donna Edler then made her motion which would remove all remaining schools EXCEPT TWO: Lakeside High School and its feeder elementary school, Briarlake, because these were the two schools that were known to be in favor of the towers.  How they made this determination, we don't know, especially since it is now so clear that the majority of the parents and community were not informed at all. 

The Briarlake community has launched a huge public awareness campaign to voice their opposition to the cell tower.  It's been stated that only 2 people attended the T-mobile meeting from Briarlake.  We are guessing these are the same two people now named as the co-chairmen for the new Briarlake Foundation which will likely receive the lump sum payoff from T-mobile.  But, that's just speculation from the peanut gallery.  The names of those people may eventually surface, but regardless of whether we know who showed up, what's more important is who are these people that were in favor of the towers?  They were apparantly so in favor that several of the board members agreed that it would not be fair to remove all the schools because these schools were so vocal in wanting the towers for the financial aspect of it (which had only been disclosed publically about 24 - 48 hours prior to this meeting) but also for the benefit (better cell phone coverage for T-mobile customers?). 

A few PTA board members at almost every school have now admitted to being "in the loop" with the proposal from the beginning, so we can only assume that they are the ones who stated their opinions on behalf of the school community.  We are not vilianizing them for having an opinion that might be in favor of cell towers.  Perhaps they were told something that the rest of us were not.  The part we object to is that there appears to be a change of heart, and opinion, with at least one school's PTA that is now speaking out against the towers.  But, if they are not telling the truth about their invovlement from the beginning, how can we be so sure they are working in the best interest of the anti-cell tower community now?  And, why are these parents so confident that they speak for the entire PTA membership?  Clearly, this is a controversial topic and most people would expect an organization like the PTA to err on the side of caution, to protect children from all harm above all else.  And if there is a chance that a cell tower could have unknown health effects on children, why would anyone take a default position of "go for it" without at least insisting on out-clauses in the contract, or more time to consult with the community before rendering a decision?

We are calling this to your attention so that you will know all the facts and can make your own decisions about how to proceed.  It is great to work together - as along as you are all working toward the same goal.  If the PTA or a similar group not directly a part of the school itself stands to get a lump sum of money, how sure can anyone be about their motivations or goals?  It is one of the unfair issues forced upon the schools when T-mobile made this offer of money part of the public announcement.  Can one or two officers speak on behalf of an entire association or school without so much as taking a survey or calling members to ask their feedback?  Is this form of feedback a fair measure for board members to use when signing a 30-year deal?  We don't think the feedback that the board relied upon was fair or accurate, but the leases have reportedly been signed, which means this is a mute point. 

The issue now is whether or not these leases are legally binding and valid.  And whether the school's exemption to zoning laws should apply to T-mobile.  These are issues that must be decided in a court of law as they have no precedent in the state of Georgia.  We do know that your right to be heard in opposition to Cell Tower applications is protected by the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees your Constitutional right to petition government for the redress of grievances.