Coweta

County commissioners last week decided to revisit the

county's cell phone tower ordinance after postponing a

vote on a tower in Grantville.

During

earlier discussions, commissioners raised safety

questions about a proposed SprintCom tower at Alexander

Road East in Grantville.

The company

proposes a 250-foot tower within less than 250 feet of

the property line, and if the tower should fall,

commissioners wanted to know whether neighboring

properties would be in danger.

County

planner Robert Tolleson said the county's current

ordinance requires to be at least the height of the tower

from any neighboring structure.

Commissioner

Jim McGuffey, who represents the district where the tower

would be placed, asked county administrator Theron Gay if

the safety issue had been clarified.

Gay said he

had received a letter from the company saying that most

towers fall and fold, but the company could not guarantee

the tower would not fall like a tree and land on unleased

property.

The

administrator also said that staff researched property

values and felt the placement of the cell tower would

have a detrimental affect on property values.

County

attorney Mitch Powell told the commissioners that he had

just received a legal brief from the state on one of the

first court cases involving cell towers, but did not have

a chance to read the 30-page document.

Since

Powell could not give an opinion, McGuffey asked the

commission to delay the vote until July 5 and also asked

the county staff to take another look at the county's

cell phone tower ordinance.

In other

business, the county received its 1998 audit from Bates,

Carter and Company. The county learned that it is in good

financial shape and learned that revenues exceed budget

amounts in many areas.

The

accounting firm recommended that the county account for

taxes in the same year that those taxes are used to fund

the budget - the 1998 digest is to fund the 1999

budget, and the revenue should be recorded in 1999.

The firm

also recommended the county pay off some existing debt

and start accumulating cash for future needs.

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