Can a Cell Tower and a School Just Be Picked Up and Moved?

Here is a recent 2013 WSB-TV map of cell tower schools.
Note the location of Narvie Harris.

DeKalb residents voted yes on SPLOST IV.  Are we facing the same issue that has been reported in Fulton County? (see Patch article below)  Does this mean our Atlanta-area school systems be working together on a "master plan" that has not been revealed to homeowners and taxpayers?


Or is it a coincidence that schools approved in the Fulton SPLOST are now being torn down and rebuilt elsewhere and a recent WSB-TV maps shows a school (Narvie J. Harris Elementary) suddenly appearing in a new location?

Here is a map from a 2011 WSB-TV report  on cell towers.
Note the location of Narvie Harris.

DeKalb approved money in SPLOST for "demolition" without any clear indication of what exactly will be demolished.  Are they planning to tear down schools, homes, businesses, or more?  Will Fernbank, Smoke Rise and other schools we thought were going to be rebuilt in their current locations actually going to be moved elsewhere?  The same name but a totally new school in a new location?

Has this plan already started with Narvie J. Harris Elementary School?

Homeowners Fight Fulton BOE in Eminent Domain Claim
From the Sandy Springs Patch:

Twenty-one members of Riley Place Homeowners Association sent a letter to the Fulton Board of Education to protest possible relocation of Heards Ferry Elementary to their neighborhood on the southern end of Riverside Drive. The site is across from St. Andrews Presbyterian Church.

“We’ve already been threatened with eminent domain.” said Herb Carter, one of the homeowners refusing to sell his property.

Fulton County BOE makes threats to take
over homes that residents don't want to sell.

The homeowners' letter said in part: “The site on the southern end of Riverside [Drive] would require condemnation of at least two homes which homeowners do not want to sell…This is very valuable property made up of minimum 2 acre tracts, and the cost of land per acre, even after condemnation, would be about as high as any residential land Fulton County could consider acquiring.”

On Wednesday, more than 100 residents attended a public meeting at Riverwood International Charter High School on the relocation of Heards Ferry Elementary. Most at the meeting said they are opposed to moving the school to any new location.

Patrick Burke, Deputy Superintendent of Operations, said that by voting for the SPLOST referendum in November 2011, Sandy Springs residents approved moving Heards Ferry. He later added, “We’re studying what it would take to build on this site and keep things on this site.”


More on the SPLOST vote below.
During the meeting Burke said eminent domain is rarely used. “That’s not to say that we won’t use it,” he said.

The Riley Place homeowners represented in the letter do not have confidence in the Fulton County Board of Education. They complained in the letter that two previous meetings this year, on moving Heards Ferry, were not adequately announced to nearby residents and the general public.

Chris Clark, head of Riley Place HOA, said residents learned the Fulton County Board of Education was interested in their neighborhood about two months ago. “Out of six pieces of property that they need, [owners of] four have been approached by a mystery realtor,” he said. “We have not heard anything from [those property owners]. We assume they made a deal.”


Did you know the 2011 SPLOST referendum approved moving Heards Ferry?
Several residents say they now realize that they didn't understand the SPLOST referendum approved in November 2011.

Linda Gold's children attended Heards Ferry and Riverwood. “[Burke] kept saying that the voters voted for us to replace the school. I didn’t vote to replace the school,” she said.

Gold added, “I wouldn’t have voted for the SPLOST had I known they were going to rip Heards Ferry down. I thought that the money was going to build a new place on the site or repair it. I had no idea and neither did any of my friends.”


Did you misunderstand the 2011 SPLOST referendum? How do you feel about homeowners possibly being moved out by eminent domain?

See also: Residents Strongly Oppose Moving Heards Ferry Elementary

Contract Signed for Narvie J. Harris Theme School, Lakeside Stands Alone

(click headline to view full story and contract details)

Get the Cell Out - Atlanta has received a response to our recent Open Records Request. Walter Woods, spokesperson for the DeKalb County School District, sent us the contract for Narvie J. Harris Elementary School 3981 McGill Drive, Decatur, GA 30084.

Narvie Harris T-Mobile Contract

We will have more information on the Narvie J. Harris location and number of cell towers already existing near it. In the meantime, we don't mean to say, "I told you so," but we have been warning everyone for months now that Lakeside High School's claims to want the cell tower for their school would turn out to be bogus. And, so far that's exactly how it looks.

The one school that we were told NEEDED a cell tower (to improve their ATT / T-mobile service) will end up NOT getting one. And, as things stand right now, their nearby feeder school Briarlake Elementary School which has been protesting for the past 8 months looks like it WILL get one. If that's not good enough reason for the community to find a well qualified canidate to run against Paul Womack in the upcoming JULY election, then how about some questionable ethics violations to top it off? (Yes, JULY - the same month that parents everywhere in DeKalb complained about because they were all out of town when the school board voted on the cell towers).

Conflict of Interest - Womack mentioned in a public meeting held last September that he had a son who died from brain cancer, a form of cancer that many reputable medical professionals believe can be attributed to the radiation from cell phones and other radiation-emitting wireless devices. Shouldn't his close, emotional tie to a controversial part of this entire issue have been a reason for him to excuse himself from casting a valid vote upon? What about the fact that he and his wife are big-time donors for the Duke University Brain Cancer Research Center? 

Placing one area's special interest above the good of the entire district - Another violation of the board's own ethics policies, Womack has stated that his main objective for bringing the cell tower issue to the board in the first place was to improve the coverage at Lakeside High School. So, how do towers at MLK High School, Narvie J. Harris Elementary School and Flat Rock Elementary School, all in the very southernmost portion of DeKalb County, contribute to the coverage at Lakeside?

Perhaps Womack was more concerned about how Lakeside High School would "finish the dream" since SPLOST fund were mismanaged and the district had to scale back their plans for the school's improvements. We added up all the money that the cell towers will bring in immediately after they go up (since most of it is in bonuses paid at the initiation of the contract) and, guess what? It's almost an exact match for the approximate $1 million that Lakeside needs to finish its contruction, a project headed by The Valhalla Group, the local booster club. But, when we say "local" that doesn't mean DeKalb County local... it means that some students have special permission to attend Lakeside even though they live in Fulton County. These families are rumored to be running Valhalla and since they are not tied directly to the school system, we can't request to see their financial information to determine if any deposit of funds have occurred from a T-mobile, ATT or DCSS. Go figure.

Using Inside Information to Influence Public Policy - Why else would a school's principal and PTA President be bold enough to talk about the needs for cell phone towers when their nearby elementary school is protesting over concerns for their property values and the health and safety of their children? How can one community be so apparently divided and not really have any luck convincing each other, much less anyone in authority, about who is right and who is wrong? Perhaps it is because the public protests are being led by the same groups, the administration and the PTA. So, they have mutual goals - money and coverage for Lakeside with the loss of Briarlake as an accepted casuality. Property values, they likely believe, are based more on school performance than they are harmed by cell towers. But, they might be in trouble there, too, since recent reports on graduation rates have proven them to be less successful than they once were in this area.

The facts will come out and speak for themselves, like the details of the prior attempt at Lakeside to get a cell tower in the late 1990s, the same time that Brairlake had an FCC permit for a 150' tower approved for their property, right next to the gym. What happened? Rumor has it that members of the community filed a lawsuit to stop the tower and won. Lakeside sits on donated property that cannot be used for commmercial profit. So, Lakeside leaders knew this already, another ethical violation. You can't use information to influence public policy that the public isn't aware of when you are discussing it.

Sound hard to believe?  Read this article about ATT's past with influencing public opinion and paying off people (like the PTA, perhaps?) to run their own agendas.  http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.view&backgroundid=167
If you have any information to support these claims, please let us know in the comments section. If stopping the cell towers is important to you, we want to help.

Erin Brockovich move over!

(click headline for full text)
The DeKalb School Watch Blog featured us back on August 4, 2011, in an article titled Get.the.Cell.Out and we just realized that we never linked to that write-up, which actually contained an excellent summary of what went down the evening of the DCSS vote.

Since the meeting summary and other details might be helpful to the people out there who might be just trying to catch up with everything, we thought it would be a good time to post a copy of that article here.  And, here is a link to their new site:  DeKalb School Watch Two.

Get.the.Cell.Out



Erin Brockovich move over!  We have a mom in town who has posted videos documenting the sheer volume of cell towers in the area in a convincing effort to ban them from school properties (there are at least 86 within a 4 mile radius of Brockett ES already).

As many of you are aware, the board contemplated a 30 year contract with T-Mobile (in the process of being acquired by AT&T) placing cell towers on 12 of our school properties. In exchange, each of the PTAs of those schools will get a one time $25,000 donation and the school system will collect monthly rent on the towers.

After serious community outcry, the board dropped three schools from the list (Brockett, Medlock and Meadowview), however plans were approved to build these monstrous structures on the remaining nine school properties.

Below are my notes from the July board meeting where the subject was discussed and then passed over the objections of Nancy Jester and Donna Edler.

McChesney proposes to remove Meadowview, Brockett and Medlock from the cell tower proposal for 12 schools. Question by Elder to McChesney. Why? McC - we've heard from these communities and they've been clear, so I'm supporting their opinion. Speaks: is there a grace period so that other communities can speak up but haven't had the opportunity [audience claps and Womack admonishes them]. Is there a mechanism for other communities to let the district know that they have an issue? Tyson - no option other than to pull the item. Womack: isn't there a 6 month window? Donahue: T-Mobile has 6 months for [due diligence]. Jester: concerned about many things. I don't like the timing - we didn't get this till Friday. Didn't get financials. Term is too long. I favor an opt in rather than opt out for communities. There may be others we haven't heard from so I am reticent to support.


Edler: Happy to speak on this matter - I've had concerns. Communities have cited health reasons. I rep district 7, but also entire county so I'm not one to pick and choose for health of a particular community. So if we take out 3, I suggest we take out all 12. [Applause and Womack again admonishes.] Lots more discussion. Roberts rules out the window. [Sorry - got distracted - missed some.] I think Edler took out all the others but Lakeside, Briarlake and Meadowview(?). I think Walker insisted on Roberts Rules. So Womack puts out original motion and takes off Brockett, Medlock and Meadowview. Vote. Passed 7-1. Whew!


Edler: Amendment to the motion. Remove the remaining schools we identified before: Jolly, Margaret Harris, MLK, Narvie, Princeton and Smokerise ES. Cunningham: we don't have towers at all in South DeKalb - we're losing signals left and right. We want towers. SCW: I agree. Meadowview is smack dab in the middle of a community. Cunningham can have towers since they have a lot of land, but Meadowview is in a community so yes, it needs removed from the list. Edler: It's not the school system's business to provide cell and internet service to the county.
Vote: on Edler's amendment - eliminates all towers. Motion fails.
Main motion with original amendment: Passes 6:2 (Edler and Jester)

Some of these communities are only going to get a cell tower because they weren't aware of the plan and/or didn't have the time or focus to organize a campaign against them. Apparently, there is still time to fight this action. Visit the newly formed Facebook page, Get.The.Cell.Out, for more info.
To view a map highlighting the locations of the towers, click here. (The locations removed from the list are indicated by a flag.)

UPDATE:
Here's the NEW link to the countywide survey:
Get the Cell Out of DeKalb County Schools

And here's a link to the FOX 5 report on the cell towers:

Opinions Divided Over Cell Towers at DeKalb Schools: MyFoxATLANTA.com

Favorite GTCO-ATL Petition Comment of the Day

From the DeKalb County petition opposing cell towers at all schools, including: Brockett Elementary, Medlock Elementary, Meadowview Elementary, Martin Luther King, Jr. High School, Jolly Elementary School, Lakeside High School, Briarlake Elementary School, Flat Rock Elementary School, Princeton Elementary School, Narvie J. Harris Elementary School and Margaret Harris Comprehensive Center. Our Favorite Petition Comment of the Day is:

"I do not appreciate DCSS's commercialization of the school system by "renting out" the school property for cell towers. This smacks of endorsement and should not be allowed by ANY government entity. Since the elected school board officials don't seem to have the sense to run the board properly, I hope the county zoning officials will step up to the plate. I also encourage all parents to research who voted for and against this decision and take that research to the polls during the next school board election."

You could be picked as our next "Petition Quote of the Day" by simply signing the petition to help us tell our county school board and zoning officials how we really feel! Just go to: www.thepetitionsite.com/1/GTCO-ATL before the next school board meeting, Nov. 7, so we can include ALL the comments in the copy that will be hand delivered to them at the meeting! Thank you!

Coming to a School Near You - RF Radiation 24/7

ATTN: Do you live near any of these schools? Flat Rock Elementary School, Jolly Elementary School, Lakeside High School, Margaret Harris Comprehensive School, M.L. King, Jr. High School, Narvie Harris Elementary School, Princeton Elementary School, Briarlake Elementary and Smoke Rise Elementary School.

Some international studies profiled on www.centerforsaferwireless.org/Living-Near-Cell-Towers.php
have found the following symptoms reported by people forced to live near cell tower base stations:


“sleep disorders (58%), headaches (41%), nervousness or distress (19%), fatigue (18%), and concentration difficulties were most common complaints. Complainants related their symptoms most frequently to exposure to mobile phone base stations…”


"...headache, sleep disturbance, discomfort, etc. 100m for irritability, depression, loss of memory, dizziness, libido decrease, etc. Women significantly more often than men (p<0.05) complained of headache, nausea, loss of appetite, sleep disturbance, depression, discomfort and visual perturbations.”


“People living in the vicinity of base stations report various complaints mostly of the circulatory system, but also of sleep disturbances, irritability, depression, blurred vision, concentration difficulties, nausea, lack of appetite, headache and vertigo.”


"Exposure was associated with discomfort, irritability, appetite loss, fatigue, headache, difficulties concentrating and sleep disturbance."


So, do YOU know where DeKalb County's School Board has allowed T-mobile's next set of cell towers to go? If not, you better check the map below because, chances are pretty good there might be one coming to a school near year. If not, just wait. If the county or the taxpayers do not stand up to this illegal signing of a lease for active school property to a commercial entity without public input, it will become an increasingly easier action to take when they need extra money for a pet project or to cover up money already missing from our general fund.


Click on photo to see enlarged version.

If you have a tower on the way or want to speak up now before it happens to you, please use the link on the left column of this site to sign our petiton. And, call your county and state representatives to let them know that you want to GET THE CELL OUT OF DEKALB COUNTY residentially zoned neighborhoods and public schools!