Ben Skipper

of Preferred Sites company thought he had a perfect location for a communications

tower on a farm some distance away from any subdivisions.

But the proposed

site was just over 6/10 of a mile from an existing tower, and the county

Zoning Board of Appeals decided that's too much of a variance from county

law, which requires a two-mile separation between towers.

The ZBA turned

down the company's request for an exception to allow the tower on Flintwood

Farms on McDonough Road, prompting owner H.D. Thames to wonder aloud whether

the rights of property owners are being given due consideration.

"You can

own the property and pay taxes on it for years and years, but you can't

do what you want to with it," Thames said.

Skipper said

he'll have to ask his client, Powertel, whether it wants to pursue the

matter in the courts.

He said the

company tried to get permission to put its antenna on the existing tower,

which is owned by the county, but that tower is full.

"If we

move two miles down the road we'll have no coverage," he told ZBA

members.

There was no

neighborhood opposition to the request, but ZBA members said they were

worried about setting a precedent with such an extreme variance.

"It scares

me," said member David Bartosh. "This is a huge, huge variance."

Member Larry

Blanks said the reason for the two-mile separation is to keep towers out

of highly residential areas, and since Powertel's proposed site is nowhere

near densely developed home sites, that's not as much a consideration.

"This is the least amount of impact ... it's a unique request,"

he said.

But Blanks

was alone in voting for the variance. Bartosh and Chairman Bill Beckwith

voted against. Members Ron Mabra and Tom Mahon were unexpectedly absent,

and under county law the applicants could have asked for a postponement,

but the owners decided to take their chances with the three board members

present.

Having lost,

they must wait 12 months before filing the request again, unless they

can find a suitable site on other tracts they own next door to the proposed

one.

Webb and Adine

Mask and SprintCom Inc., asking for a variance in setback requirements

for a tower proposed for Ga. Highway 92 south, took advantage of the rules

and asked for a postponement. Their request will come back up again June

28.