Protect Our Homes. Protect Our Property Values. Demand Responsible Infrastructure Planning.
A 150-foot telecommunications tower is proposed at 8153 S Morning Star Road, next to Woodlands Crossing and other established residential communities.

We, the residents of Woodlands Crossing and surrounding Bentonville communities, call upon the Benton County Planning Board to DENY Case 26-246 at this location and require the tower to be relocated substantially farther from established residential neighborhoods.

At minimum, the Board should DEFER approval until reasonable alternative locations, co-location opportunities, visual and noise impacts, future expansion, and unresolved issues identified in the County's own Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) report have been fully evaluated.

We support reliable wireless service.

But necessary infrastructure still requires responsible siting.

Before permanently changing the environment surrounding our homes, the applicant should demonstrate why a new tower is necessary, why it must be built at this location, and why less intrusive alternatives are not feasible.

THIS COULD BE ONLY THE BEGINNING
The engineering plans show the initial installation for Verizon.

But those same plans already reserve space for:

• A “Future AT&T 15' × 25' Lease Area”

• A “Future Carrier 14' × 20' Lease Area”

The proposed site is therefore designed to accommodate additional telecommunications carriers in the future.

Future expansion could bring additional antennas, equipment cabinets, mechanical equipment, utility infrastructure, maintenance activity, and potentially additional generators.

The Planning Board must evaluate what this facility could ultimately become—not simply what will be installed on Day One.

Before approval, residents deserve full disclosure of the facility's maximum foreseeable build-out.

WHY BUILD THIS NEXT TO ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOODS?
The County's TAC report confirms that the property is currently designated Low-Density Residential and assessed as residential property.

The surrounding area includes both low-density and high-density residential development.

Families invested their savings here.

Families are raising their children here.

Residents chose these communities because of their residential character and quality of life.

Benton County's Planning and Development Regulations establish goals that include protecting and conserving land values, minimizing conflicts among land uses, and designing special developments—including telecommunications facilities—in a manner that minimizes conflict with surrounding development.

The County regulations also require the Planning Board to carefully review development proposals and assess whether a proposed use may reduce the value and viability of existing land uses.

The question should not simply be whether a tower can physically fit on this property.

The question should be whether this is the right location for a permanent, expandable 150-foot telecommunications facility.

WHY IS A NEW TOWER NEEDED—AND WHY HERE?
Before approving a new tower, residents deserve answers:

• What specific wireless coverage or capacity problem is this tower intended to solve?

• What objective coverage data demonstrates the need for a new 150-foot tower?

• What existing towers and structures were evaluated for co-location?

• Could existing infrastructure be upgraded instead?

• What other locations were considered?

• Could the tower be moved elsewhere on the approximately 10-acre property to increase separation from nearby homes?

The County regulations cited in the TAC report express a preference for co-location where feasible.

A willing landowner is not proof that this is the best location.

Convenience is not the same as necessity.

Before approving a permanent tower, Benton County should require transparent co-location and alternative-site analyses.

WHAT ABOUT OUR PROPERTY VALUES AND ABILITY TO SELL OUR HOMES?
For many families, their home is their largest financial investment.

A 150-foot telecommunications tower visible from homes, backyards, neighborhood streets, and community entrances may affect buyer perception and the marketability of nearby properties.

Some prospective buyers may choose another neighborhood.

Others may expect a price discount.

Why should existing homeowners bear this risk when less intrusive locations may exist farther from established residential communities?

We request an independent, location-specific analysis of potential impacts on nearby residential property values and marketability.

A 150-FOOT TOWER CANNOT BE HIDDEN BY FIVE-FOOT TREES
The applicant's landscaping plan proposes approximately 40 evergreen trees that are only about five feet tall when planted.

The tower will be 150 feet tall.

Landscaping may help screen the fence and ground-level equipment.

It cannot meaningfully screen the tower from surrounding homes and neighborhoods.

Yet residents have not been provided professional visual simulations showing what this tower will look like from their homes.

Before approval, Benton County should require a balloon or crane test, professional photo simulations, and a viewshed analysis from Woodlands Crossing, Cornerstone Ridge, and surrounding communities.

Residents should see what they will actually see for decades before an irreversible decision is made.

THE PROJECT INCLUDES A 210-GALLON DIESEL GENERATOR
The County's own TAC report identifies conflicting information concerning diesel fuel storage.

The applicant submitted documentation stating that no chemical storage would occur on the property.

However, the project plans show a generator with a maximum diesel fuel capacity of 210 gallons stored on site.

Residents deserve clear information about spill containment, stormwater protection, generator testing, noise, emergency operation, and whether future carriers could add additional generators.

These questions should be answered before approval—not after construction begins.

WHERE IS THE PROFESSIONAL NOISE STUDY?
The TAC report relies on the applicant's assurance that the project will comply with County noise requirements.

A promise of compliance is not the same as an objective professional noise study.

The proposed facility includes telecommunications equipment and a generator and is designed to accommodate additional carriers.

Residents deserve to know predicted noise levels during normal operation, routine generator testing, emergency operation, and maximum foreseeable multi-carrier build-out.

Require a professional noise-impact study before approving this facility.

THE COUNTY'S OWN REPORT IDENTIFIES UNRESOLVED ISSUES
The TAC report identifies several outstanding matters:

• Missing measurements to an occupiable residence on the subject property.

• Missing information regarding onsite lighting and signage.

• Missing information regarding the width of the utility access easement.

• An MS4 permit requirement.

The report also states that the Fire Marshal had not provided comments and that no comments had been received from the City of Bentonville when the report was prepared.

The report also identifies an unresolved residence-separation question.

County regulations cited in the report require a 200-foot separation from occupiable residences for this 150-foot tower.

While the closest identified neighboring residence is approximately 274 feet away, the report states that an occupiable residence on the subject property appears to be approximately 106 feet away based on aerial imagery, and the exact measurement was not included in the site plan.

This compliance question should be publicly resolved before approval.

Why approve a permanent 150-foot facility before the technical review is complete?

Complete the review. Resolve the outstanding issues. Give affected residents time to review the information. Then make an informed decision.

THE IMPACT GOES BEYOND MONEY
Our homes are not simply financial assets.

They are where our families live, gather, and expect to feel comfortable.

The prospect of a permanent telecommunications facility next to our neighborhoods has created genuine concern about visual impact, potential equipment noise, future expansion, property marketability, and the permanent change to the character of our communities.

Residents should not be expected to accept a substantial and irreversible change to their living environment without a thorough evaluation of reasonable alternatives.

WHAT WE ARE ASKING BENTON COUNTY TO DO
We respectfully call upon the Benton County Planning Board to:

• DENY Case 26-246 at its current location and require relocation farther from established residential communities—or, at minimum, DEFER approval until the issues below are resolved.
• Require the applicant to demonstrate the specific need for a new tower.
• Require transparent co-location and alternative-site analyses, including evaluation of locations farther from homes and elsewhere on the approximately 10-acre property.
• Evaluate the facility based on its maximum foreseeable multi-carrier build-out.
• Require full disclosure of the maximum number of carriers, antennas, equipment cabinets, generators, fuel storage, and other infrastructure that could ultimately occupy the site.
• Require a balloon or crane test, professional photo simulations, and a viewshed analysis.
• Require an independent, location-specific analysis of potential impacts on nearby residential property values and marketability.
• Require a professional noise-impact study.
• Resolve the conflicting information concerning the 210-gallon diesel generator and complete appropriate environmental, stormwater, emergency-management, and fire-safety reviews.
• Publicly resolve the residence-separation question and all other outstanding items identified in the TAC report before final action.
• Give affected residents meaningful time to review and respond to revised plans, studies, and agency comments.

OUR POSITION IS SIMPLE
We support reliable wireless service.

We support responsible infrastructure development.

But we do not support placing a permanent, expandable 150-foot multi-carrier telecommunications facility next to established residential communities without demonstrating why this location is necessary, why less intrusive alternatives are unavailable, and what the full long-term impact will be.

Our homes matter. Our investments matter. Our quality of life matters. Our neighborhoods matter.

A telecommunications company can evaluate another location. Homeowners cannot move their homes.

Once this tower is built, it will be too late to ask whether there was a better location.

VOTE NO ON CASE 26-246 AT THIS LOCATION.
MOVE THE TOWER AWAY FROM ESTABLISHED RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES.
PROTECT WOODLANDS CROSSING AND OUR SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOODS.
SIGN THIS PETITION. SHARE IT WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS. SEND AN INDIVIDUAL WRITTEN OBJECTION TO THE BENTON COUNTY PLANNING BOARD. ATTEND THE JULY 15 PUBLIC HEARING.